Waiting Between the Trees

“This was a man so bad that even today I cannot speak his name. Why did I marry this man? It was because the night after my youngest aunt’s wedding, I began to know a thing before it happened.” This is an example of foreshadowing. Through this passage, the reader knows that later on in the story, Ying-Ying will marry the bad man. They can also tell that the man will do something bad to Ying-Ying.

“I took this baby from my womb before it could be born. This was not a bad thing to do in China back then, to kill a baby before it is born. But even then, I thought it was bad, because my body flowed with terrible revenge as the juices of this man’s firstborn son poured from me.” Ying-Ying aborts her baby because she wants to get back at the bad man for leaving her for another woman. She does something bad for revenge but really ends up hurting herself. The child she killed was her son as well as the bad man.

Today, many movie and book plots revolve around people getting revenge. A lot of the time, after the people have gotten their revenge, they do not feel satisfied. They realize that they only hurt themselves or that seeing another person suffer doesn’t feel as good as they thought. In Ying-Ying’s case she hurt herself trying to get revenge by aborting her baby.

Magpies

“I know this, because I was raised the Chinese way: I was taught to desire nothing, to swallow other people’s misery, to eat my own bitterness. And even though I taught my daughter the opposite, still she came out the same way.” This is an example of irony. An-Mei expects if she teaches her daughter, Rose, in the opposite way she was taught her daughter won’t turn out like her. However, even though she raises her different Rose turns out meek like someone who is raised Chinese.

“Because we both knew this: that on the third day after someone dies, the soul comes back to settle scores. In my mother’s case, this would be the first day of the lunar New Year. And because it is the New Year, all debts must be paid or disaster and misfortune will follow. So on that day, Wu Tsing, fearful of my mother’s vengeful spirit, wore the coarsest white cotton mourning clothes. He promised her visiting ghost that he would raise Syaudi and me as his honored children. He promised to revere her as if she had been First Wife, his only wife.” Before this passage An-Mei’s mother committed suicide. She did this because she could not stand her circumstances and to give her children a better life. She knew that her husband, Wu Tsing was afraid of ghosts haunting him, so she killed herself at a time when he would be most afraid of her spirit. She used his fear and superstition to procure a better life for her children.

This is similar to a scene in the movie and book, Matilda. In the story, the main character Matilda is a genius and has special powers that allow her to move objects with her mind. Matilda’s teacher, Miss Honey, is being mistreated by her aunt, Miss Trunchbull. Matilda uses her powers and Miss Trunchbull’s superstition to make Miss Trunchbull move out of Miss Honey’s house and stop treating her badly.  Both An-Mei’s mother and Matilda play off another’s superstition in order to obtain better circumstances for the ones they love.

    Matilda        Magpie cartoon 

Without Wood

“My mother once told me why I was so confused all the time. She said I was without wood. Born without wood so that I listened to too many people.” This saying, “without wood,” is an example of a maxim. By saying Rose is without wood, her mother is telling her she listens to the opinions of everyone and ends up confusing herself. She is also telling her this so she can change her habit and help herself to be able to make decisions without confusion.

“I used to believe everything my mother said, even when I didn’t know what she meant.” When she was small, in her naïveté Rose believed everything her mother said without question. She also took everything to be literal. If her mother was exaggerating, Rose would believe the exaggeration.

Children in general are like this. They believe everything their parents tell them and think that their parents are all-knowing. I myself was like that when I was little. My parents and I were at the beach and I asked my dad how many grains of sand were in the ocean. He told me he didn’t know and I thought he knew but didn’t want to tell me so I was angry and started yelling at him. Although this example is not exactly the same as Rose’s circumstances, it too shows how naïve children can be.

Four Directions

“‘I wanted to talk to you….I wanted to tell you…Rich and I are getting married.’” This is the climax of the chapter. All of the anecdotes and explanations lead up to Waverly telling her mother of her engagement. It is the part of the chapter where everything comes together.

“And hiding in this place, behind my invisible barriers, I knew what lay on the other side: Her side attacks. Her secret weapons. Her uncanny ability to rind my weakest spots. But in the brief instant that I had peered over the barriers I could finally see what was really there: an old woman, a wok for her armor, a knitting needle for her sword, getting a little crabby as she waited patiently for her daughter to invite her in.” In this quote, Waverly realizes that she had read her mother completely wrong. She had thought for a long time that her mother was intentionally making snide comments and stabbing her with little barbs. In reality, however, her mother was only waiting for Waverly to include her in her life and to tell her things.

Today many mothers and daughters have problems with miscommunication. Mothers try to get their daughters to share details from their lives and their daughters resent them because they think their mothers are prying.



"a wok for her armor"



"a knitting needle for her sword"



Rice Husband

“She has a Chinese saying for what she knows. Chunwang chihan: If the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold. Which means, I suppose, one thing is always the result of another.” This quote is an example of an adage. It is a made up saying used by Lena’s mother. This saying is exclusive to the St. Clair family and is probably only understood by them.

“And when we bought the house, we agreed that I should pay only a percentage of the mortgage based on what I earn and what he earns, and that I should own an equivalent percentage of community property; this is written in our prenuptial agreement.” In this passage, Lena explains how her marriage to Harold works. They keep all of the money they earn separate and pay for things according to how much money each of them earns.

In real life this way of living is similar to that of roommates. Roommates buy their own things, split the rent, and keep their lives and money separated. This is exactly how Lena lives with her husband.

Two Kinds

“‘You want me to be someone that I’m not!’ I sobbed. “I’ll never be the kind of daughter you want me to be!’

“Only two kinds of daughters,’ she shouted in Chinese. ‘Those who are obedient and those who follow their own mind! Only one kind of daughter can live in this house. Obedient daughter!’

‘Then I wish I wasn’t your daughter. I wish you weren’t my mother,’ I shouted” This is a conversation between Jing-mei woo and her mother and an example of a dialogue. In the dialogue Jing-mei and her mother are fighting after a talent show in which Jing-mei played the piano badly. She then expects her mother to stop making her practice, but her mother is adamant that Jing-mei should keep trying. 

“We didn’t immediately pick the right kind of prodigy. At first my mother thought I could be a Chinese Shirley Temple. We’d watch Shirley’s old movies on TV as though they were training films.” In this quote, Jing-mei’s mother is convinced that her daughter is going to be a child prodigy. She thinks that Jing-mei is going to be like Shirley Temple and is pushing her to be something she is not.

This situation is a lot like pageant moms on the television show Toddlers and Tiaras. The mothers push their children through beauty pageants hoping that they will win and be good at something. The parents push the children to do things that their children may not be interested in doing. The girls then throw tantrums and complain about the clothes their parents make them wear and the makeup they have to put on.

Half and Half

“Ted and I met in a politics of ecology class when he leaned over and offered to pay me two dollars for last week’s notes. I refused the money and accepted a cup of coffee instead.” This is an example of an anecdote. Rose is telling a short story about meeting her husband and their marriage.

“As proof of her faith, my mother used to carry a small leatherette Bible when she went to the First Chinese Baptist Church every Sunday. But later, after my mother lost her faith in God, that leatherette Bible wound up under a too-short table leg, a way for her to correct the imbalances of life.” Here Rose is talking about her mother losing faith in God after her son died.

Today many people lose their faith after a tragedy occurs. Some decide that God would never let something so bad happen so they start to believe there is no God. Others blame God for what happened and turn their backs. Usually the time most people lose their faith is when they need God the most. That is what happened to Rose’s mother:  after she lost her son, when she needed God's help, she stopped believing.

Rules of the Game

“‘Chinese people do many things,’ she said simply. ‘Chinese people do business, do painting, do painting. Not lazy like American people. We do torture. Best torture.’” In this quote, Waverly’s mother is responding to the question “what is Chinese torture?” When she answers, she is using dialect. Her grammar is that of someone who’s first language was not English. She skips articles and says things in a way that an English speaker would not.

“‘Ma, it’s not how many pieces you lose,’ I said. ‘Sometimes you need to lose pieces to get ahead.’” In this sentence, Waverly is saying that sometimes people need to make sacrifices in order to get what they want or what is most important to them.

This is still true today. Many people sacrifice things that are important to them to be able to do things and get what they need most. For example, a new mother may sacrifice having a job in order to stay home and raise her child. Although this is less prevalent today, many people still do it. It may mean there is less money for other things or that they are giving up a job they worked toward the majority of their life, but they do it anyway because they love their children.  

The Moon Lady

“‘For the woman is yin,’ she cried sadly, ‘the darkness within, where untempered passions lie. And man is yang, bright truth lighting our minds.’” This is a declarative sentence. It states the Chinese views on man and woman. In Chinese society women were seen as evil and men good.

“My mother smiled and walked over to me. She smoothed some of my wayward hairs back in place and tucked them into my coiled braid. ‘A boy can run and chase dragonflies, because that is his nature,’ she said. ‘But a girl should stand still. If you are still for a very long time, a dragonfly will no longer see you. Then it will come to you and hide in the comfort of your shadow.’” Here Ying-ying’s mother is telling her why she should not chase dragonflies. She is saying that girls should be quiet and polite.

This was a common view of the time but today it would seem odd. It no longer applies to society like it did during the time Ying-ying’s mother said it. Many women would probably take offense if this was said in their presence.

The Red Candle

"It was summertime, very hot and dusty outside, and I could hear cicadas crying in the yard. We were under some trees in our orchard. The servants and my brothers were picking high above me. And I was sitting in my mother's hot, sticky arms." This quote is an example of imagery because it uses words that appeal to the senses. It is used to describe the weather and the feelings of Lindo Jong.

"Over the next few years, Huang Taitai instructed the other servants to teach me how to sew sharp corners on pillowcases and to embroider my future family's name. How can a wife keep her husband's household in order if she has never dirtied her own hands, Huang Taitai used to say as she introduced me to a new task. I don't think Huang Taitai ever soiled her hands but she was very good at calling out orders and criticism." In this quote, Amy Tan tells how Lindo Jong is treated by her future mother-in-law. She is forced to do housework like a servant and is not shown any affection. Lindo Jong is only given criticism and more work.

Her situation is similar to that of Cinderella at the hands of her step-mother and step-sisters. She also was forced to do all of the chores like a servant. Both Lindo Jong and Cinderella were treated badly by their adoptive families. Cinderella

Scar

“When I was a young girl in China, my grandmother told me my mother was a ghost. This did not mean my mother was dead. In those days, a ghost was anything we were forbidden to talk about.” In this passage, a ghost is a symbol for something that should not be said or talked about. By telling An-Mei that her mother was a ghost, her grandmother was saying that her that her mother should not be mentioned.

Many people keep their feelings holed up inside them, never letting anyone know that something is wrong. “That is the way it is with a wound. The wound begins to close in on itself, to protect what is hurting so much. And once it is closed, you no longer see what is underneath, what started the pain.” In this chapter, An-Mei has a scar from having hot soup spilled on her when her mother came to visit. The soup scalded An-Mei’s skin and her mother left immediately. After her mother left, An-Mei was hurt both physically and emotionally. Over time her wound healed, the scar replaced it, and she suppressed her hurt. From the outside no one could tell anything was wrong.

This reminds me of a character in Thirteen Reasons Why. In the book, a girl had bad things happen to her. Instead of telling someone, she kept her feelings to herself where they built up. She tried to suppress her feelings so that no one would know about her wounds until she could no longer handle them. Both An-Mei and the girl had wounds that they kept to themselves, hidden from other people.

Joy Luck Club

"And then one evening, after I had begged her to buy me a transistor radio, after she refused and I sulked in silence for an hour, she said, 'Why do you think you are missing something you never had?' And then she told me a completely different ending to the story. 'An army officer came to my house early one morning,' she said, 'and told me to go quickly to my husband in Chungking..." Amy Tan uses this frame device to tell the story of Jing-mei Woo's mother and to give the reader insight into the relationship between mother and daughter.

In this chapter the reader learns that Jing-mei and her mother never really saw eye to eye. "I had always assumed we had an unspoken understanding about these things:  that she didn't really mean I was a failure, and I really meant I would try to respect her opinions more. But listening to Auntie Lin tonight reminds me once again:  My mother and I never really understood one another." In this the reader finds the specific problems in Jing-mei and her mother's relationship:  communicating with and understanding one another.

Today mothers and daughters seem to have the same dilemma. One never knows what the other is trying to say. It is one of the major problems in families and society in general: parents and children lack the ability to actually understand one another. This same problem is repeated over and over every generation. It happened with Rock and Roll and with the hippies in the 70s. It seems like a problem that can not be fixed.