ipl-logo

Simple Recipes Theme

714 Words3 Pages

The theme of the short story Simple Recipes by: Madeleine Thien is: change. Whether the change is through a person or moving to a new country with a different culture, it is clear it is the main theme of the story. The author, Madeleine Thien tells a story through cooking, of her family's journey immigrating from Malaysia to Vancouver, and their transition to the new culture and country. She discusses how the journey didn't just mean a new lifestyle, but a change in her family, a hard one. This cauliflower represents the scene where Madeleine's brother spits and chokes out the cauliflower his father has prepared. The dish was from their original country back in Malaysia. However, the new culture doesn't cook the cauliflower the same way. Her brother is getting used to the change in culture …show more content…

This made the story all the more understandable and meaningful because we are hearing firsthand how hard it was for Madeleine's family to transition into the new country and culture. “I see my father holding the bamboo pole between his hands. The pole is smooth. The long grains, fine as hair, are pulled together, at intervals, jointed. My brother is lying on the floor as if thrown down and dragged there. My father raises the pole into the air.” (Thein 92 - 93) You can feel how sad and scared she must be of her father, the monster who went so low as to try and beat the Malaysian culture back into her brother. The conflict in the short story helps to develop the theme of change as the conflict was quite literally the change from Madeleine's parent's home country of Malaysia to Vancouver. The family immigrating meant they had to fight the battles against the new society's lifestyle, opinions, clothing choices, and culture, to keep their old culture around. This change caused her father to turn to brutality, creating more tension and conflict because they weren't used to the new culture, and her father couldn't accept them adjusting to

Show More
Related
891 Words | 4 Pages

To other people things seemed perfect. Things weren't so “perfect” as you step foot into the McCandless household. There was lots of violence going on and although they didn’t have the hardest childhood, they had a roof over their heads, food to eat, school, things that when on when they were younger impacted Chris and the rest of his life. His dad would sometimes hit and choke his mother, often belting the kids and often assaulting them. Chris’s dad kept many secrets from Chris and his younger sister Carine.

Read More
1132 Words | 5 Pages

While at the camp the family seemed to imagine that when their father returned it would be like nothing had changed, but as the scene unfolds they see him as a completely new person. When the family returns home after the war, they face many challenges trying to adjust to their new life and the way people are treating them. The boy states that the mother “made up new rules. Change out of your street clothes the minute you come home from school. Don’t let the water run while brushing your teeth.

Read More
1031 Words | 5 Pages

Henry’s father has extreme feelings towards certain subjects or groups of people. Specifically, Henry’s father is against the Japanese because of the war that is currently going on, but little does he know, his son’s only friend is of Japanese descent. When Henry’s parents discovered all of Keiko’s belongings that he was hiding, that was the lowest and possibly breaking point of their relationship. Following that incident, “Henry thought about his parents. They hadn’t spoken a word to him in nearly a week.

Read More
1729 Words | 7 Pages

This was a major storyline in the book because Julia’s parents always saw Olga as their perfect daughter who did everything right and lived the “perfect” life. Thus this made Julia feel as though she wasn’t as worthy as her sister, and constantly made her feel as though she couldn't live up to their expectations. I think this book also does a great job of being relatable to people that may have experienced the same struggles as Julia such as fitting into their cultural norms versus the life they think they should have, and anyone who feels as though they don’t fit the “mold” set for them by their parents or society. Therefore this book also offers an interesting perspective of Julia who is of Mexican culture and how she is adapting to her life in America. Thus also deals with the realities and hardships that come with immigration, poverty, and death and allows people to see what life may be like for immigrants who cross the border and come to

Read More
1667 Words | 7 Pages

As you keep reading you start to see Leah 's relationship with her father and the Lord start to become shaky when she see how they culture in in the Congos and learns about human rights. When Leah has journeyed the Congo over the period of time she begins to meet new people and seek new culture. Leah watches how her father looks down on people and his family, knowing it 's morally wrong and she doesn 't think the same way as him she begins to restrain herself slowly from his presents. Leah 's culture she once was changes as she “learns the language of Kikango and begins to recognize the wide gap between cultures and between American games.” (Ognibene) Leah has shifted her place because she does not want to be associated with her father and his attitude, which causes her to learn more about the Congos and the people inside it.

Read More
766 Words | 4 Pages

It’s difficult to get kicked out of a land you have lived in for so long and end up having nowhere to go. In this novel, Grapes of Wrath, written by John Steinbeck, shows Tom Joad’s journey with his family to a new place where they've never been. They travel from Oklahoma to California and encounter a lot of hardship. Tom Joad is the main character in the story and is portrayed in the beginning as someone who can’t control their anger. He shows development in managing his anger issues as a result of his family’s unwavering emotional support.

Read More
1019 Words | 5 Pages

She was reading angry at her brother because he destroys the family making the parent suffer emotional and mental. She explains how the brother addiction turns her house outside down with this attitude. However, the brother addiction makes the parents to never give up on him even though his negative behavior toward them. Parents love him unconditional because it was their son. Even though he was not on the best path, they still support him and be on his side because they believe that he can change.

Read More
183 Words | 1 Pages

She explains how it affected her family to come to the U.S. in seek of the American Dream. She also

Read More
683 Words | 3 Pages

Most people would argue that a parent should love their child unconditionally no matter what, but how is it that nearly 43% of homeless LGBTQ+ youth were forced out of their homes after coming out? (Seaton Perspective | homeless rates for LGBT teens are alarming, but parents can make a difference) Given this high percentage, it’s easier to understand why so many kids are scared to come out and share themselves. More importantly, they help us understand more about Yasaman, the main character in “Why I Learned To Cook”, a short story by Sara Farizan. In the story, Yasaman, a bisexual girl, faces the same struggle many members of the LGBTQ+ community face, coming out.

Read More
544 Words | 3 Pages

“They are a highly dysfunctional and abusive family.” Growing up he had a rough relationship with his mother. They lived in poverty, food and money was scarce. Not only was his family struggling financially but also emotionally. His mom divorced his dad to go live with a man she had been

Read More
533 Words | 3 Pages

This statement not only helped the reader to get a better understanding of the time period in which the story took place, but it also directly related to the theme of cultures clashing by showing how she was young and how this impacted her views on her

Read More
1223 Words | 5 Pages

Madeleine Thien’s “Simple Recipes” is not mainly about the father cooking food and his treatment towards his son, instead, the author uses food to symbolize the struggles her immigrated family experienced in Canada. While it is possible to only look at the narratives that food symbolizes, the idea is fully expressed when the father is compared with the food. The theme of food and the recipes are able to convey the overall troubles the narrator’s family encountered. Although, food is usually a fulfilling necessity in life, however, Thien uses food to illustrate the struggle, tensions, and downfall of the family. Yet, each food does represent different themes, but the food, fish, is the most intriguing because of the different environment

Read More
974 Words | 4 Pages

The aunts all try to appease Grandad by compromising their childrens’ integrity, this turns the liars against their parents. In response to their parents’ greedy behavior and lies, the liars set a fire that ends up killing all of them but Cady. The Sinclair’s tried to hide their familial issues with a facade of wealth and perfection.

Read More
981 Words | 4 Pages

New recipes for hibachi, fondue, quiche, crepes and the most recent addition salsas, were added to her mother’s recipe box. These foods indicate how far she has come from the traditions of her southern hometown. Additionally, she describes how cooking isn’t solely controlled by women but to men as well in the 21st century. The chapter provides a stark between the conventional housewife and the new aged husband who shares the responsibility of cooking. The starts the comparison by describing the image of her mother waiting for her father to come home from work every day.

Read More
507 Words | 3 Pages

In “Cooking Time” by Anita Roy, the character Mandy stood up for something she believed in. In her world, all the joy that came from eating was stripped away. This causes Mandy to be obsessed with reclaiming this lost art of real food, so she rejects modernity, and goes off grid. Most people just live life eating the paste that is called Newtri. Many wish for better food, but do nothing to change this.

Read More

More about Simple Recipes Theme

Related Topics

Open Document