Literary Analysis: The Joy Luck Club

1. Both of Amy Tans( American-Chinese) parents were born and raised in China;however, Tan was brought to America where she was raised. She was able to adapt to that American lifestyle with still holding on to her ancestral  culture.   The Joy Luck Clubis sixteen stories of mothers and daughters that went through the same problems she had: between American-raised daughters and their Chinese immigrant mothers. She focuses a lot on Jing-mei and her mother, Suyuan. Because she had passed away, Jing-mei took her mother’s place playing mahjong in a gathering her mother had started in China and brought with her : the Joy Luck Club. Jing-mei is trying to to reunite with her half sisters who happen to be back in China. Suyuan was forced to leave the twins behind during the Invasion of Japan in world war II. The first four sections of the books are told through the mothers’ point of view. They state the relevance of being close to a family especially a mother and also point out that she believes her daughters aren't close to her which is why they are having a tough time growing up. The last are from the daughters view. They reminisce on their memories  with their mother, showing their mother that they truly appreciate her. This demonstrates the mother-daughter bonds from culture to culture.

2. They Joy Luck Club theme would have to be although cultures and traditions are always changing you never forget where you came from. The daughters are Chinese, but because they were raised around American traditions they aren't Chinese. Their mothers are “ Chinese” and they see the daughters out take on the world and are confused.

3. Tan’s tone is full of memories, both joyful and bitter,  as each mother and daughter reminisce.  

“My breath came out like angry smoke. It was cold…The alley was quiet and I could see the yellow lights shiningg from our flat like two tiger’s eyes in the night.”

“It was only later that I discovered there was a serious flas with the American version. There were too many choices, so it was easy to get confused and pick the wrong thing.”

“I raced down the street, dashing between people, not looking back as my mother screamed shirlly ‘Meimei! Meimei!’ I fled down an alley, past dark, curtained shops and merchants washing grime off their windows.

4. 1) Tone: Each character had a different emotion because of the different situations at hand. 

2) Diction: to help convey the emotions her words were powerful yet soft spoken.

3) Syntax: By giving both point of views we were able to see both sides and what both sides felt was missing. 

4) Symbols: Tan used symbols such as the coy fish in the pond that the mother loved and the goldfish in the bowl that the daughter loved to represented the gap  the two had and the cultural difference they had even though they were mother and daughter.

5) Imagery:  painted happiness and the emotions of each character as did her tone.

“. . . . I wanted my children to have the best combination: American circumstances and Chinese character. How could I know these two things do not mix? I taught my daughter how American circumstances work. If you are born poor here, it’s no lasting shame. . . . In America, nobody says you have to keep the circumstances somebody else gives you. She learned these things, but I couldn’t teach her about Chinese character . . . How not to show your own thoughts, to put your feelings behind your face so you can take advantage of hidden opportunities. . . . Why Chinese thinking is best.”
“I . . . looked in the mirror. . . . I was strong. I was pure. I had genuine thoughts inside that no one could see, that no one could ever take away from me. I was like the wind. . . . And then I draped the large embroidered red scarf over my face and covered these thoughts up. But underneath the scarf I still knew who I was. I made a promise to myself: I would always remember my parents’ wishes, but I would never forget myself."

“A mother is best. A mother knows what is inside you,” she said. . . . “A psyche-atricks will only make you hulihudu, make you see heimongmong.” Back home, I thought about what she said. . . . These were words I had never thought about in English terms. I suppose the closest in meaning would be “confused” and “dark fog.”But really, the words mean much more than that. Maybe they can’t be easily translated because they refer to a sensation that only Chinese people have. . . .”

Character:
Indirect: the way Tan demonstrates the characters thoughts and emotions
Direct: Jing-Mei and her perspectives on different cultures

" I . . . looked in the mirror. . . . I was strong. I was pure. I had genuine thoughts inside that no one could see, that no one could ever take away from me. I was like the wind. . . . And then I draped the large embroidered red scarf over my face and covered these thoughts up. But underneath the scarf I still knew who I was. I made a promise to myself: I would always remember my parents’ wishes, but I would never forget myself."


 I feel as if I met Jing-Mei. She took on the role of a mother at a very young age and even her mother's prized possession, the club. This made her more of a realistic character in the sense that she never gave up and kept going. With the help of her mothers "presence" she was able to fully understand her Chinese culture.