The Jade Peony Essay

The Jade Peony is a novel that concentrated on the life of early Chinese immigrants by describing a series of stories happened in a four-kid family. The novel told the reminiscences of three children’s child life in that family, therefore it was divided into three parts according to the different characters. But apart from the family routine portrayed in the novel, it can be clearly seen in the whole book that war, as another implied clue, played an important role in the development of the story.

In Wayson Choy’s The Jade Peony, Poh-Poh is also a driving force of the narrative. The story is separated into three segments; each segment tells a story from the perspective of a different sibling. The siblings are Poh-Poh’s grandchildren. Poh-Poh is a crucial element of all three stories. She forms a bond with each child that helps them develop and she is a key

belongings that she had her for almost all of her life such as, her swimming hole, the singing tree, and the rest

Everything is everything in the world of short stories. Steinbeck's The Chrysanthemums is full of thick rhetoric that raises questions and stirs the mind and imagination. Everything from the title, to the last line needs to be thought about more than once. The story isn't just about a farmer's wife who likes pretty flowers. Not in the least! The Chrysanthemums is a story about how Elisa Allen is forced to a life that she feels is trapping her. The story is set in the early twentieth century and these times don't allow for just any woman to leave her ordinary, socially and politically correct life. Feminism is a large part of the story, and main character Elisa Allen's language, actions, and even the way she is described play a large

We have all been in a situation where we have immigrated to a new country for different reasons regarding, better future, or education. In the book Jade of Peony, Wayson Choy describes a struggle of a Chinese family as they settle in Canada, with their new generation of kids born here, the family struggles to keep their children tied to their Chinese customs and traditions as they fit in this new country. The Chinese culture needs to be more open minded as it limits the future generation’s potential. Chinese culture limitations are seen through the relationship expectations, education, gender roles and jobs.

How can someone pursue a personal desire if they spent their life trying to conform? Alden Nowlan’s short story, “The Glass Roses” explores this through the protagonist, Stephen. Stephen’s personal desire to feel accepted conflicts with his feeling of having to become like the pulp cutters because he is not mentally or physically ready to fit in with grown men. This results in Chris finding a way to become his own person. Stephen’s journey to pursue his personal desire is shown through setting, character development, and symbolism.

John Steinbeck’s, The Chrysanthemums, was published in 1938 in a book of short stories, entitled The Long Valley. The Chrysanthemums has been a rather powerful draw for scholars because of its wide gap for interpretations and analysis of its main protagonist character, Elisa Allen and also the unique descriptions used to portray the deeper meaning behind the setting of the story. Themes of sexuality, oppression of women, as well as other numerous types of conflict portrayed in this rather somber short story have made it a popular study among scholars and students alike. Steinbeck also uses literary elements including a dramatic tone, rich symbolism, and personification which increase the stories feeling and value exponentially. Steinbeck

I have to admit when I first read “The spirit catches you and you fall down” I thought it would be pretty boring turns out its one of the most interesting books I have ever read. The cultural conflicts can apply to anyone and knowing a little bit more now what the Hmong people have actually gone through can make everyone develop a great amount of respect for the culture. The Lee family continuously went full force colliding with the American ways in order to protect their traditions so they could preserve their culture. Unfortunately, in the end it didn’t help them but that was all they knew considering the fact that that the doctors at MCMC hospital didn’t really go out of their way to explain procedures it only makes sense for the Lee family to revert back to what they know in their traditions.

Day to day, people attempt to live unconstrained by convention or circumstance. Often the people around us hold us back from thinking and feeling the way we truly do; However, there will come a time when we will need to say what we truly believe. In this story, “The Glass Roses”, the main character, Stephen, is faced with the issue regarding his father, “a real man”. When faced with his father telling him how to live and what to believe.

A strong, intelligent, independent boy is what every traditional Chinese family wants. Unfortunately, Sek-Lung is not such an ideal child. In the novel, The Jade Peony, Sek-Lung is a marginal character. He is rejected by the dominant group, first being made to feel insignificant and second to feel uncomfortably visible.

“In Jade Peony”, Sek-Lung and Grandma have a strong connection and close relationship. This is situational irony because generally the oldest and youngest oppose each other due to cultural differences and changes.

Thesis: one’s personal culture and sense of tradition will always be a strong part of the self, regardless of external factors which can have a profound influence on one’s life.

Gender discrimination, such as sexism, are evident in, “The Jade Peony”. In Chinese cultures, pregnancy is an important but superstitious process in which mothers are fed herbal foods and drinks by their mother-in-laws to aid the pregnancy. Old timers tales describe things which the mother should avoid in order to not have something bad happen to the baby. For instance, rubbing the belly will make the child spoilt. In the beginning of The Jade Peony, Jook-Liang describes touching Stepmother 's "protruding tummy" (6). Later on in the novel, when Sekky is born, he is weak and gets all the attention from Poh-Poh. Furthermore, the importance of having a baby boy is a huge part of the Chinese tradition (hence the enforcement of the

is this story about tradition but it also hides the meaning of symbolism as well. The

The more she wrote, the greater the need to preserve despite the constant obstacles in her path is clear. Thuy used her entries as a sounding board, scribbling ideas onto the paper, allowing whatever conclusion she drew to stick with her so she could later draw from. When Thuy wrote in the diary, she spoke as if talking to herself, this way she could freely express and reflect upon her day and private thoughts without external repercussions or judgement. Thuy was a sensitive young woman with a deep craving for affection she feared would be misunderstood. She often critical of herself for being “too bourgeoisie”, a concern that with those attitudes, she could not truly devote herself to the party or be her best self (Dang, Thuy Tram, et al, 72). Thuy became emotionally invested inside the small diaries, more so as time wore on. She was greatly disappointed when the first two were lost while fleeing American forces, ultimately deciding that her memories will always be kept best in her head (Dang, Thuy Tram, et al, 183).