What is in a story if you can’t take something out of it and relate to your everyday life? The book “Typical American” by Gish Jen, gave me something that I never fully, and I probably still don’t, comprehend: foreigners, and their struggles in making a new life in another country. I have been on my share of trips, both domestic and abroad, but was never in a distant land long enough to feel the effects of the unknowing these people felt every day. The manner in which this story was presented has given me a new insight into, not only foreign nationals, but more importantly, how one goes about presenting emotional feeling not just through words, but setting, characterization, point of view, conflict, and theme.
Ralph grew up in Shanghai, China, where he had a distant and non-loving relationship with his father. Ralph took the opportunity to come to America in hopes of achieving his degree and eventually PhD. While this is a relatively simple goal for most people in America, it became more than a bourdon for Ralph; often getting sidetracked to pursue bigger and better things.
The start of Ralph’s troubles came when he was supposed to renew his visa to stay in America, but he let it expire, and was unable to register for classes. After Ralph’s sister Theresa and his future wife, Helen came to America, Ralph finally started getting himself back on track in terms of his dream. He would go back to school and eventually graduate: but the dream did not end there. This is the main conflict in the story for Ralph, an inner battle with himself to do the right thing, in hopes of living a better, more prestigious life in America. “I can do all things through Christ which strengthen me” (p88), this is from a time in Ralph’s life when he ...
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...heir return home, Ralph accidentally hits Theresa with his car, sending her into a deep coma.
This is the turning point for Ralph, not only as a person, but as a character in the book. Ralph goes from a somewhat flat character, to a round character, and with this transformation, he completes his dream, a dream which he had with him the whole time. Not only has he come to peace with himself and his accomplishments, he has come to peace with those around him, “Ralph watched the water fight with sadness in his heart, never guessing the scene would one day hearten him, as it did now.” (p296). Some may say that Ralph never achieved his dream. I say that he achieved his dream about half way through the book, he just didn’t realize all he had, and all he could lose until it was almost gone.
Works Cited
Jen, Gish. Typical American. New York, NY: Vintage Books, 1991.
He has the regular recognition that such a large number of youthful Americans have; the possibility that as a result of the nation they live in, their identity, and where they originate from, there are openings that are legitimately theirs and little can turn out badly in getting what they need for their future. For Ralph and numerous youthful Americans, this dream rapidly demonstrates false as they grow up and encounter life. In the novel, Ralph's impression of New York City and America changes practically as fast as it was initially shaped. He is quickly stood up to with a dialect hindrance, abandoning him lost and separated from his new world. Before sufficiently long, Ralph "was starting to realize what was
This quote is significant because it represents what Jack is and what he has done. Ralph calls Jack these names before they lose their temper and are about to fight. In this quote, Ralph has called Jack out, that he is the reason of all the misfortune that has happened on the island and that he is the beast. That he was the reason of all this savagery and that he caused the evil within the boys, he brought it on through his need for leadership and his want for hunting and killing. Ralph calls him a thief and a swine because of his behaviour towards Piggy. He stole his glasses and turned all the boys against Ralph and Piggy who were the only good people on the island. As well as for making the island a fearful place for the boys. I feel that Ralph is right in everything he has said to Jack. He created the fear on the island all because of his need to be chief. As well as turned everyone against each other at the ending of the novel.
He was faced with difficulties. Ralph forgot to renew his visa, the only proof of his identity and had to live without a legal identity for months. Although he stayed in America with Theresa and Helen, he began to show “typical american” qualities such as lying and cheating his way through life. Ralph once said, “Money. In this country, you have money, you can do anything. You have no money, you are nobody. You are Chinaman. Is that simple” (Jen 199), this quote is only the beginning of Ralph’s detrimental
Ralph's actions as a character in the novel assist in reinforcing Golding's point that the prevalent force within man is evil. While Ralph struggles, albeit unsuccessfully, to maintain a civilized society on the island, he repeatedly tries to resist the temptation of evil inside him. As the island descends into chaos under Jack's tyrannical regime, the rest of the boys on the island let their hair become longer, at the same time becoming increasingly vicious. Ralph tries to ignore the temptation of having long hair, trying to push it back to maintain the good he has inside him. Ralph wants to “have a pair of scissors” to cut his hair, but the hair is coaxing him to let evil dominate (109). ...
Ralph has an idealistic view of the world and he always strives for righteousness and perfection in himself and in others. I think that because he expects perfection in this world, he is disappointed with the imperfections in himself and in others as well as the unfairness in the world. Facing difficult situations, one after another in his life, has affected him deeply because of his idealistic view of the world.
At the beginning of the story, after the plane had crashed on the island and the boys are accounted for, Ralph feels very free and absent. He finds a lagoon to with warm water, and just like any other twelve year old boy, he goes for recreational swim. "Whizzoh! . . . Ralph inspected the whole thirty yards carefully and plunged in."(12) So far, not terribly worried yet, about being rescued and getting off the island. Along with him being fairly rel...
When Ralph and Helen both tried to stay within their Chinese culture, they did not want to steer towards the typical American values. Ralph studies his countless books during his travels to America trying to avoid being sucked into the beautiful scenery that surrounded. By keeping his Chinese value of studying, he was able to avoid being attached to America. Ralph avoided indulging into the American culture by trying to stick strictly to his Chinese values. He avoids America and only tries to obtain knowledge that is absolutely necessary to live....
to pay for his education. Out of all Christian said he thought Ralph was, when he
Ralph’s power at the beginning is secure but as the group succumbs to their savage instincts, Ralph’s influence declines as Jack’s rises. This is due mainly to the cruelty and violence that goes on in the story. This cruelty reveals that Ralph’s commitment to civilization and being rescued is so strong that he will not allow himself to change his morals and become cruel like the others. The cruelty in this novel also shows that Ralph is a very intelligent character. His intelligence can be proven because there was a point in the novel when he hunts a boar for the first time and he experiences the thrill of bloodlust. He also attends one of Jack’s feast where he is swept away by the frenzy and participates in the killing of Simon. This is a very tragic moment for Ralph because this is when he realizes the evil that lives within himself and every human being. It is the cruel acts that happen in this novel that reveals Ralph’s character of being intelligent and being able to think deeply about human experiences. He even weeps when getting saved because of his knowledge about the human capacity for
The poem America by Claude McKay is on its surface a poem combining what America should be and what this country stands for, with what it actually is, and the attitude it projects amongst the people. Mckay uses the form of poetry to express how he, as a Jamaican immigrant, feels about America. He characterizes the bittersweet relationship between striving for the American dream, and being denied that dream due to racism. While the America we are meant to see is a beautiful land of opportunity, McKay see’s as an ugly, flawed, system that crushes the hopes and dreams of the African-American people.
first things that Ralph, the central character of the novel, does upon his arrival on the
...when he suggests an idea to get rescued. The reason for Ralph expressing his logic is that he comes from a civilized place just like the girls would. The girls would have suggested a way to get rescued and they probably would get rescued, using their knowledge and understanding, maybe not in the same way as the boys, but the same idea.
Ralph’s innocence is lost when he realized that they were not going to get off the island, and so he had to worry about survival of the others and himself. Ralph’s innocence is shown when he talks about his dad soon coming to rescue him and the others from the island as soon as he finds the map, “I could swim when I was five. Daddy taught me. He’s a commander in the Navy. When he gets leave he’ll come and rescue us. What’s your father?”(Golding 13). This quote helps convey his innocence because he lacks the mental capacity to truly understand the situation that he’s in, which is he’s stuck on a random island. He still believes his dad will come rescue him as soon as possible, “he’ll come and rescue us.” This quote also reveals that he has no worries in the world and has a casual conversation with Piggy even though they were just involved in a plane crash and are now stranded on a island. Ralph doesn’t truly understand what’s happening on the island and thinks he’ll be rescued in no time, but in reality he’s going to be stranded and is going to have to find a way to survive along with his tribe. Ralph starts an assembly to discuss the situation they are in and where they are, “We’re on an island. We’ve been on the mountain top and seen water all round. We saw no houses, no smoke, no footprints, no boats, no people. We’re on an
As the climax approaches, Ralph begins to mature slightly as chaos erupts. After Ralph discovers that a ship passed while the fire was out and Jack is culpable, Ralph confronts him and rather than acquiescing to Ralph, Jack takes out his anger, physically on Piggy, the only person at that time intimidated by Jack. Ralph responds by saying Jack's tantrum is a "dirty trick" and tells them to light the fire. All this infers that Ralph is becoming less gregarious and a bit more serious. He shows maturity when he takes up for the underdog and does not go along with the majority.
“The loss of innocence for which Ralph weeps at the novel's close is not, however, a matter of transformation from childish goodness to adolescent depravity, is not a growing into wickedness. It is rather the coming of an awareness of darkness, of the evil in man's heart that was present in the children all along,” (Boyd). At the end of the novel, Ralph cries for a few reasons. He cries because he has lost his friend Piggy. He also cries because he has lost his innocence. He now realizes that there is evil in every man.