Compare And Contrast Woman Warriror And Woman Warrior

Opposites balance each other out, and without opposites the world would be a very bland place. Nothing new would be learned because everyone shares all of the same beliefs and there would be no progression. Progression relies on varying opinion and questioning authority. “Woman Warriror” by Maxine Kingston is a story about a family who has recently moved from China and tries to assimilate themselves in the new culture while still having expectations that were produced from their old culture. At one point Brave Orchids sister, Moon Orchid, moves in with them but ends up struggling to find a place for herself in the fast paced difficult life in “The Western Palace”. Brave, written by Chapman, is a movie about a feisty young woman named Merida

who struggles with the strict guidelines set up for her by her family tries to break free from cultural norms so that she can express herself and be the person that she wants to be.

In “Woman Warrior” and Brave the characters Moon Orchid and Merida play complete opposites. Merida plays a strong woman warrior who always opposes authority while Moon Orchid is silent and allows everyone to mistreat her. Merida is a signal of strength and power and a woman warrior while Moon Orchid embodies what it means to have none of the qualities that a woman warrior should have because she is submissive and allows herself to be mistreated on a constant basis.

Moon Orchid is on the very far side of the spectrum because she is completely submissive and listens to anything that she is told. When Moon Orchid is confronted with a problem she attempts to run and hide from her problems. She demonstrates this when she says, “I’m scared,” said Moon Orchid. “I want to go back to Hong Kong” (1750). Instead of confronting her problems like she should she models what it means to be submissive and not an example of a true woman warrior. She is not a role model that girls should grow up looking at. Moon Orchid does not show strength because she has many obstacle in her life and she just gives up and

allows herself to be pushed down instead of standing up and fighting for her rights. Moon Orchid does not want to confront her husband even though he left her and hurt her deeply by abandoning her. She was wronged by him and has the opportunity to try to fix it she decides to be submissive rather than aggressive so she doesn't have to cause a commotion. She does not want to do anything like this so Brave Orchid, her sister, has to do all of the talking and they end up getting no where with the conversation. This is bad because people should stand up for themselves when the have been hurt or when someone has done something with the intent of malice. “The next odd thing Moon Orchid did was to cry whenever anyone left the house. She held on to them, pulled at their clothes, begged them not to go. The children and Brave Orchid’s husband had to sneak out. “Don’t let them go,” pleaded Moon Orchid. “They will never come back” (2300). She is fearful of abandonment and that if someone even leaves for a short amount of time then they will never ever come back. She has become so dependent on other people and she is to able to do anything for herself. Her lack of independence and constant worrying are not attributes that a woman warrior would have. She is not a woman warrior because she does fight for herself nor is she able to speak up and stand up against all of the things that people do to her.
Merida, on the other hand, embodies everything that it means to be a woman warrior because she is smart, strong, and courageous.

She does not worry about how other people will see her, she just wants to be herself. She questions all authority and does not blindly follow rules that are laid out for her. There is a competition where the men of her village compete for her hand in marriage. She was not interested in any of them but her parents were not giving her a say in her own engagement so she proclaims, “I, Merida, will shoot for my own hand in marriage” (Chapman). She does not sit there silently when she sees something that she disagrees with. She knows that it will enrage her parents and most of the village but she decides to fight for her own rights because no one else will. A woman warrior does exactly this, fights not just with her words but with authoritative actions like this that challenge the standards that a society sets for its people. Merida believes that she can change her future and that path is not set for her to follow as she says, “There are those who say that fate is something beyond our command. That our destinies are not our own. But I know better. Our fate lives within us. You only have to be brave enough to see it” (Chapman). This is part of what makes her such a brave person; not believing that everything is out of her hand, but deciding that she will make and impact on the world. She is a perfect embodiment of a woman warrior and a modern day

princess that does not just pine over her Prince Charming. She is an example that all people should follow because of her strength, courage, and wit. More character like her need to exist and be shown to the public because females need a strong female role model if they wish to be a woman warrior when they grow up.
Both Moon Orchid and Merida have certain expectations that people want them to fulfill. Moon Orchid is expected to be the traditional Chinese wife who obeys the husband and never says anything controversial. Moon Orchid is expected to be the docile housewife that can always be counted on to be supportive of whatever anyone else wants. Merida has certain expectations that her parents want her to be. They do not want her to be the feisty warrior and princess that she is; they want her to marry a nice young lad and to try to be as perfect as possible. The difference between these women is quite clear because Merida fights these expectations and becomes the person that she wants to become rather than the person that her parents want. Merida and Moon Orchid are complete opposite sides of the spectrum. Although Moon Orchid is not a role model or an example, characters like her are needed to exemplify other characters who embody the traits of a woman warrior by contrast. All in all, a woman warrior is someone that is both physically and mentally tough who does not take no for an answer and who always fights against oppression. So how do you embody what it means to be a woman warrior?