Respect In The Joy Luck Club

The idea of respect is like a cycle. If you do not give it then you will not receive it and vice versa. The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan is a contemporary novel which explains the story of four chinese immigrant mothers and their daughters. In Chinese tradition, the children show respect and loyalty to their parents no matter what happens. In return, the parents give the children the respect they deserve. If respect is not given, you are treated as a ghost meaning that you do not speak of them or speak to them, just like they just disappeared. The family bond between a mother and daughter is a key concept in this novel. The mothers tell their life stories to ensure their daughters don’t make the same mistakes as they did. They tell these stories

Popo treated An-Mei like her own daughter because her mother chose to disrespect Popo and leave. Popo did not want An-Mei to be taken by her dishonorable mother so she partly raised An-Mei. Popo never spoke of An-Mei’s mother or brought her up. They treated her like a ghost almost as if she were never part of their lives (42). When Popo was towards the end of her life, An-Mei’s mother came back and made an ancient soup with a piece of her flesh in it (48). She came back even though she knew that Popo never forgave her for disrespecting her. An-Mei’s mother made her last condolences, and honored her mother in the best way she could. In The Joy Luck Club, the mother-daughter relationships characterize how respect can define a person. Respect is a big part in every person’s life. Every human being needs some respect given to them and we need to show respect towards others. Lena may not realize it, but she gives respect to her mother and takes everything she says to heart, even when her mother told her if you don’t finish your rice then your husband will have spots on his face. It is like a cycle. Respect is circulating through every person you give it to and one day it will come back, restarting the whole process