Analysis Of Wild Swans By Jung Chang

Raised in United States, I was raised being told that Communism is bad, yet we did not particular learned much about it in school. A memoir of Communist China from a woman’s perspective is candidly excellent. In this memoir, Jung Chang narrates the lives of herself, her mother, and her grandmother growing up in pre-communist, revolutionary, and Communist China. Mixing extensive historical facts with intensely personal commemorations, Jung Chang presents a vivid portrait of real life in China. She was extremely careful to verify the facts of the historical events surrounding her family’s various problems in Wild Swans. Wild Swans is the story of three generations of women in Jung Chang’s family. Starting from her grandmother name Yu-Fang, who grew up in pre-communist China, a time period when women had their feet bound as children and could be given to warlords as concubines. She lived in a time period where there was no voice either freedom giving to a Chinese woman.
Narrator’s grandmother was obligated to become a concubine to escalate her father’s power furthermore standing in society. But she was lucky to escape this “gilded cage” when her daughter (narrator’s mother) was two years old. After escaping for this “gilded cage,” she was able to forge a new life somewhat more on her own terms. Perhaps, the first quarter of Wild Swans, was written honestly and gracefully. As I was reading the book, I could hear what I pictured to be the smooth, peaceful voice of the narrator describing both lavish Chinese dwelling and the day-to-day misery existence as a concubine with charmed by and attached to the characters introduced.
At some point, the focus of the novel gradually switches to the narrator’s mother named De-Hong, who became a sen...

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... this memoir also distinctly demonstrates the human spirit under pressure. From Chang’s father who stood by his ideals at all costs to her grandmother who simply wanted everyone in her family to be comfortable and happy to neighbors with their own agendas, Chang demonstrates how an oppressive regime s bring out both the best and the worst in human nature.
This is a fascinating book both for its insider’s view of communist China as well as its female perspective on said regime. Similarly, it offers an intriguing commentary on human nature. It is also intelligent and well-written account of a personal history. Whether you read it for class or to educate yourself, you are sure to be moved by the time you read the final pages. I recommend it to anyone interested in the history of China as well as those with an interest in women’s studies or political science history.