Analysis Of Balzac And The Little Chinese Seamstress

The novel ‘Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress’ explores the transformative power of literature as a central theme. The effects of this are most evident in the character, the little Chinese seamstress.

As a child, the seamstress did not have the opportunity to get exposed to many books in her life. Thus, her behaviours and appearance is not influenced by western literature. In the first part of the novel, she is described to have the “gleam of uncut gems of unpolished metal.” This metaphor indicates that she isn’t close to the city and the western lifestyles since the imagery used to describe her eyes have strong connotations of unpolished and rustic charms. The words uncut and unpolished could describe the unrefined aspects of the little

The Seamstress has started to be interested in novels that Luo read for her and shows how she develops through the new knowledge she acquired. Luo believed that he could “transform” the “little mountain girl” by reading different kinds of novels. The evidence of this transform began with the change of her attitude towards education. At the beginning of the novel, the seamstress wasn’t really attentive towards education. Yet, when Luo started to read her books, hoping to “make her more refined and cultured”, he shares the magic of literature with the Seamstress. She began to yearn for more knowledge. Her approach towards books also changes drastically, which is shown in the part where after listening to Luo reading the book, and “the coat was resting on the flat of her hands, the way a sacred object lies in the palms of the pious.” This quote highlights the passion of the seamstress towards the words written on the coat. The coat is a symbol of education, and it portrays as a divine which shows that she is appreciating literature so much it resembles a devotee holding the bible. This strongly highlights the power of literature and how it could change one’s

The comment that “she’s adopted our accent” Indicates her efforts to be civilised. An accent, which shows a person’s background and origination, cannot change easily. The deliberate change in the accent portrays the seamstress’s desperate urge to abandon her roots and become a city girl. Her change is also portrayed by her looks. First she had cut her hair into a bob, wore jackets only worn by the city girls and bought herself a pair of white tennis shoes. The purchase of her white shoes “that would not last more than three days on the perpetually muddy paths of the mountain” is not reasonable nor practical. But the fact that she bought the shoes shows that she is willing to leave her hometown in order to become a city girl. “At my first shout she hastened her step, at my second she broke into a run and at my third she took off like a bird, growing smaller and smaller until she vanished.” A “bird” could represent freedom, and the mountain was like a cage for her. By using a simile, it could be inferred that the little seamstress is running away to find her freedom and independence. Her eagerness to obtain freedom can be observed in the increasing speed without any hesitation perceived by Luo. The western ideas in the books awaken the seamstress to realise that she needed to break out and make a major change in her life. This Illustrates the