The Differences in Cultural Values
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Abstract: The article analyze the novel The Joy Luck Club written by a Chinese American Amy Tan from a perspective of cultural values between American and Chinese, to show the differences between mothers and daughters which symbolized traditional Chinese ideas and American ones. They are differences between Chinese Respect of Seniority and American Belief in Equality, Chinese Concept of Lineage and American Individualism and Chinese Modesty and American Frankness.
Key Words: The Joy Luck Club, cultural values, American, Chinese
Introduction of The Joy Luck Club
The Joy Luck Club (1989) is a best-selling novel by Amy Tan. It is composed of four sections, each of which contains four different stories narrated by different people. There are four pairs of mothers and daughters: Suyuan Woo and Jing-mei Woo; Lindo Jong and Waverly Jong; An-mei Hsu and Rose Hsu Jordan; as well as Ying-ying St. Clair and Lena St. Clair. The four mothers are all the first generation of Chinese American immigrants who moved to America during the WWI, while the four daughters are all born and brought up in America. It contains sixteen interwoven stories about conflicts between Chinese immigrant mother and their American-born daughters narrated by the four pairs.
In the first section of the novel, the mothers recollect clearly about their own mothers, and worry that their daughters” memory about them would never be as intensive as their own. In the second four stories, the daughters: Waverly, Jing-mei, Lena, and Rose recall the relationships with their mothers when they were children. In the third group of stories, the four daughters recount their own troubles in marriage and career. Although they believe that their mothers old-fashioned beliefs do not fit in their own American lifestyles and some of the ideas may contradict with the American ones, the daughters search for solutions will inevitably make them resort to the older generation. In the last section of the novel, the mothers offer solutions and supports to their daughters. Finally, the four pairs of mothers and daughters come to terms with each other. The book focuses on Jing-meis trip to China to meet her twin half-sisters to fulfill her mothers unfinished wish.
II. Differences in values between Chinese and American families
In the process of describing the conflicts from sprouting, developing to climax and finally being solved, the writer showed the estrangement and sense of distance from several subtle perspectives. These differences embodied from the story are not so much between two generations as between two cultural values, Chinese Confucianism and American individualism, which can be mainly categorized into the following aspects.
II-1. Chinese Respect of Seniority and American Belief in Equality
It goes without saying that in Chinese traditional ideas, children should show filial obedience to their parents and juniors should obey seniors will, which also belong to Confucianism. The four mothers in the novel all grew up in Old China, where they were nurtured by the Confucian culture. As a result, they unconsciously imposed “filial piety” to their children when they educated them. Jing-mei held the grudge that her mother Suyuan forced her to practice piano and she even brought the grudge into the practice. Once she failed in an important performance and since that, she thought she never had to play the piano. But Suyuan still forced her and said harshly: “There are two kinds of daughter: obedient or follow own mind. Only one kind of daughter can live in this house: obedient kind.” Having affected by the American education, Jing-mei had her own mind and responded with assurance: “Then I wish I wasnt your daughter! Im not your slave. This isnt in China. You cant make me.”
As a nation of immigrants, the United States is indeed a country to which millions of people with diverse backgrounds have contributed tremendously. It is unimaginable, therefore, that there would be a powerful and rich country appearing in the New World without peoples