Understanding the Mothers and Daughters of The Joy Luck Club
Amy Tan's novel, The Joy Luck Club explores a variety of mother-daughter relationships between the characters, and at some level, relationships between friends, lovers, and even enemies. The mother-daughter relationships are most likely the different aspects of Amy Tan's relationship with her mother, and perhaps, some parts are entirely figments of her imagination. Therefore, Amy Tan believes that ramification of cultures and tradition between a family can be burdensome and cause the family tree to fall apart.
From the beginning of the novel, we hear Suyuan Woo tell the story of "The Joy Luck Club," a group started by some Chinese women during World War II. June explains while remembering the memories of her mother, " 'We feasted, we laughed, we played games, lost and won, we told the best stories...we could hope to be lucky. That hope was our only joy,' " (12). The mothers grew up during perilous times in China. They were raised to never forget an important outlook of their life, which was, "to desire nothing, to swallow other people's misery, to eat [their] own bitterness" (241). For many years, the mother did not tell their daughters their stories until they were sure that their fractious offspring would listen. By then, it is almost too late to make them understand their heritage that their mother left behind in China. It seems that their family's legacy cannot seize their imaginations after years, decades, and centuries of blissfulness and sorrow.
Through the eyes of the daughters, we can also see the continuation of the mother's stories, how they learned to cope in America. With this, Amy Tan touches on an obscure, little discussed issue, which is the divergence of Chinese culture through American children born of Chinese immigrant parents. The Chinese-American daughters try their best to become "Americanized," at the same time, casting off their heritage while their mothers watch in dismay. For example, after the piano talent show fiasco, a quarrel breaks out between June and Suyuan. June does not have the blind obedience "to desire nothing...to eat [her] own bitterness." She says to herself, " 'I didn't have to do what my mother said anymore. I wasn't her slave. This wasn't China' " (152). Unbeknownst to June, Suyuan only hopes and wants the best for her daughter. She explains, " 'Only one kind of daughter can live in this house.
Throughout the novel the characters are put in these situations which force them to obtain information about the people they thought they knew. The center of finding out who everyone is was brought into play through the death of Marie. The story is told by David, only twelve years old, who sees his family an community in a different light for who they truly are under there cover. By doing his own little investigations, often times eavesdropping, David saw through the lies, secures and betrayals to find the truth.
A popular weapon used by both sides was the rifle. Rifles were invented before the Civil War and were greatly used in the War of 1812. However, more types were built and a larger amount was used during the Civil War. Rifles added a spin to bullets for a greater accuracy at longer ranges. Using this weapon, soldiers could fire 400 yards away, as opposed to the average 80 yards (Robertson 50). Rifles were the fastest and hardest weapon of the time. Rifles allowed their bullets to be shot harder and faster towards its target. New inventions, used by the Union more than the Confederate, included Parrott rifles. They were composed of iron. Robert Parker Parrott, an American soldier and inventor, created these weapons, hence the name Parrott rifles. Despite its name, the Parrott rifle was actually a cannon. Its size ranged from 10 to 300 pounders. It was not favored by most because it was considered unsafe (“Civil War Artillery”). Because of its bulkiness and heaviness, it seldom led soldiers to inaccuratel...
Dogan, Shamed. “Legal Drinking Age Should Drop to 18.” High Ground.com. 1997 February 14, 1997
My interviewee went through a lot during World War II and sharing her amazing story left me evaluating her words for a long time, rethinking and still not willing to imagine the pain. She was one of the 150,000 American woman served in the Women’s Army Corps during the war years. They were one of the first ones to serve in the ranks of the United States Army. She recalls being teased a lot about being a young woman in a uniform but was very proud of it. Women finally were given the opportunity to make a major contribution to the national affair, especially a world war. It started with a meeting in1941 of Congresswoman Edith Nourse Rogers and General George Marshall, who was the Army’s Chief of Staff. Rogers asked General to introduce a bill to establish an Army women’s corps, where my interviewee, Elizabeth Plancher, was really hoping to get the benefits after the World War II along with other women. ( Since after World War I women came back from war and were not entitled to protection or any medical benefits. )
When analyzing the Joy Luck club it is important to consider the life of the author. It is apparent after studying both The Joy Luck Club and Amy Tan that there are some incredible similarities among the two, particularly the story of mother Suyuan-Woo and her daughter Jing-Mei Woo. Suyuan is a main character and plays an extremely important role in the novel even though she passed away. She created the Joy Luck club years ago and is the main reason why this tight kit family exists today. Suyuan decided to create the Joy Luck club during a ve...
Although it seems straightforward, the US constitution leaves a sort of ‘grey area’ when speaking of concealed firearms in public, the second amendment speaks of militia related interest, not self-defense related interests. The second amendment defines the right to keep a firearm in a household, which was normal for the time; but the ever-changing world and constant threat of shootings means we should leave it to police officers to handle crime. One major argument, however, is the thought that ‘if everybody was armed, everybody would then be able to protect themselves’. Sadly, we do not live in a perfect world; we live in a world where more guns leads to more accidents. Also if everybody was armed, Criminals and under-the-radar insane people would all want to perform heinous acts against society. In Gun Control by Earl Kruschke he states, “Someone who keeps a gun in their house for self-defense is more likely to injure themselves than to ward off an attacker” (Kruschke 34). That means owning a gun for self-defense and recreational use is statistically not worth doing, but it may offer some much needed peace of mind. Many citizens believe that owning a gun in a home can be an effective way to defend their
...price index. As a result of this linkage, the minimum wages in these states are normally increased each year, generally around January 1st (www.dol.gov). This proves that many states know that different times call for different wages.
This is caused because the more guns there, are the less violence there is. Dangerous criminals will think twice about robbing someone that has a gun. A victim with a gun is no longer a victim because they can not fight back against the attacker. Therefore, they can save their lives and save lives of the public which need help at that moment. Lott states, “The estimated annual gain from 1992 from allowing concealed handguns was over $5.74 billion” (House Report). This states that when a decline in violence goes down the amount of money goes up. Concealed guns can only benefit everyone in multiple ways. Concealed weapons can help create the feeling of safety and reduce violence. No one wants to live in
... was in fact an increase in violent crime. In the data this has been shown to be false. There is also no supporting evidence to show that concealed carry permit holders are committing a significant number of crimes either. In order to get a permit in the first place background checks are done that weed out anybody that has a history of felonies, violence and dangerous mental illness. There is also great legal responsibility that comes with the territory in a self-defense situation. A normal, sane person does not want to have to use a gun in defense. There are lots of serious implications, even if the use is justified, such as civil lawsuits and the psychological impact of the defense itself.
The term teenager came to light at the early 1950’s due to the large population of individuals in that group. This group of individuals had a lot of freedom to purchase clothes, food and any type of music they preferred due to the increase in money for spending. It is during this period that the young individuals flocked up to listen to the most preferred music during those days; rock music. The situation today is very different despite the presence of a few similar elements.
Amy Tan’s novel, The Joy Luck Club describes the lives of first and second generation Chinese families, particularly mothers and daughters. Surprisingly The Joy Luck Club and, The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood Among Ghosts are very similar. They both talk of mothers and daughters in these books and try to find themselves culturally. Among the barriers that must be overcome are those of language, beliefs and customs.
"I have already experienced the worst. After this, there is no worst possible thing" (Amy Tan 121). Throughout The Joy Luck Club, Amy Tan tells stories of how mothers use the misfortunes in their lives, to try to teach their daughters about life. Many of the mothers had bad experiences in their pasts and do not want to see their daughters live through the same types of problems. They try to make their daughters' lives as easy and problem free as possible. However, the daughters do not see this as an act of love, but rather as an act of control. In the end, the daughters realize that their mothers tried to use their experiences to teach them not to give up hope, and to look at the good of an experience rather than the bad.
Development in relationships provokes the teaching of valuable life lessons. Amy Tan’s novel The Joy Luck Club, published in 1989, delineates the progressive development in the mother daughter relationships and the lack offs impact on an individual. The novel illustrates the tensions between mother and daughter through a lack of communication- illuminating that communication reaches prosperity only when understanding has been established. Tan furthermore emphasises, the motherly supremacy as a contribution to a daughter’s tireless urge to instil acceptance.
In life, many things can be taken for granted - especially the things that mean the most to you. You just might not realize it until you've lost it all. As I walk down the road finishing up my teenage days, I slowly have been finding a better understanding of my mother. The kind of bond that mothers and daughters have is beyond hard to describe. It's probably the biggest rollercoaster ride of emotions that I'll ever have the chance to live through in my lifetime. But, for those of us who are lucky enough to survive the ride in one piece, it's an amazing learning experience that will influence your entire future.
The Joy Luck Club is a representation of the persistent tensions and powerful bonds between mother and daughter in a Chinese American society and is written by Amy Tan. The book illustrates the hardships both the mother and daughters go through in order to please the other. Also, it shows the troubles the daughters face when growing up in two cultures. This book reveals that most of the time mothers really do know best. Throughout all of the Jing-Mei Woo stories, June has to recall all of the memories of what her mother had told her. She remembers how her mother left her babies during the war. Junes mother felt that since she had failed as a mother to her first babies she had failed as a person. When she made June take piano lessons June thought that she was trying to make her become a child prodigy like Waverly, but her mother did this because she knew it would benefit June for the rest of her life. Because of the death of her mother, June was forced to take the place of her mother in more than just filling her place at the Maj Jong table. The mother daughter tradition was broken because the lost babies were found after the death of their mother. Junes trip to China can be seen as the completion of her mothers promise to return, honoring her sisters by attempting to transfer what she had absorbed from her mother and her tradition. And I think, My mother is right.