Joy Luck Club Onion Peel

In The Joy Luck Club, something prevalent throughout the movie is sacrifice.  Especially the mothers.  The mothers constantly sacrifice their own lives and desires in order to better the lives of their children, or to set an example for them to follow.  For example, An-mei’s mother sacrifices pain and flesh from her arm to honor her own mother, Popo. It is as though the pain is nothing compared to her obligation to her mother. An-mei Hsu's mother also sacrifices her body to Wu Tsing so that she can have at least some status instead of becoming a beggar. She does this so that An-mei can look up to her. Her suicide, while seemingly selfish, is the ultimate sacrifice she can make for An-mei. By killing herself, she is showing An-mei that being a second-rate concubine, used and disgraced, is no way to live. In dying, she gives An-mei the strength to carve her own path in life, and to not follow one like hers.  In China, Ying-Ying St. Clair was married to Lin-Xiao with a baby boy until Lin-Xiao abuses her and abandons her for an opera singer. Overcome by her depression, Ying-Ying accidentally drowns her baby son in the bathtub, she lost "the thing that mattered the most."  Many years later when Ying-Ying goes to America and remarries, she see that her daughter Lena is unhappy with her marriage, Ying-Ying reasserts herself by knocking over a table in the bedroom and causing the vase to fall from the table and break. Lena goes to her mother and admits her unhappiness. Ying-Ying replies that Lena should leave and not come back until Harold gives her what she wants.  She says this as she herself was in a bad marriage, causing lots of trauma and sadness for her.  She does not want Lena to go through the same thing (of not having love for her husband and constantly doing things the way he wants).  The mothers in the movie not only make a great sacrifice in leaving China in hopes of finding a better life for their daughters, but also make great sacrifice in trying to make them better people and have them lead better lives.

 

Regret Poem

Feeling sorry for an action
Or saying something
You do not wish
Oh I know oh oh that I let you down,
Is it too late to say sorry now?
Coming to terms with the past
will help you get along

Justin Bieber wants you to forgive him...he regrets what he has done to you.
"Is it too late to say sorry now?"

Jenny: An Antagonist to Readers

In the novel, Mary’s twin sister Jenny is seen as an antagonist by readers of the novel My Name is Mary Sutter.  Although Jenny is Mary’s twin sister, there is a lack of connection between the two siblings.  Twins are supposed to always be there to support one another and help the other in times of need.  Even in other forms of literature and entertainment, it is a common theme that twins put the other one’s happiness before their own.  The relationship between Mary and Jenny was one that was distant.  The reason why many, including me, believe that Jenny can be an antagonist in the book is because she seems to be a factor in the many conflicts in Mary’s life.  An antagonist, by definition is a person who actively opposes or is hostile to someone or something; an adversary.  She displays her opposition, hostility, and negativity in Mary's life throughout the book. For example, Jenny essentially takes away Mary’s love, Thomas.  The two even show public displays of affection in front of her.  Jenny having a husband and being pretty are two things that Mary does not have, which she envies about her sister Jenny.  During this time in history, the goals of women were to have a nice appearance in order to fit into the social norms of having a husband.  Jenny makes Mary feel bad about herself and who she as a person at times.  On top of this, Jenny passes away when giving birth later on in the book, being one of many family member of Mary who pass away.  With the passing of Jenny, she is one who makes Mary feel lonely and depressed.  Her death causes Mary to rethink the relationship they had, and the sadness of their disconnect, despite them being sisters...twin sisters.  But despite what Mary's sister has done to her, directly and indirectly, Mary has grown and become stronger due to Jenny as a factor of bringing conflicts into her life.