It took me quite some time to reflect and get down onto writing this entry about the line I chose from the passage in the film, “The Joy Luck Club”. Quite like June, the narrator of the novel, who was born into a traditional family set in a westernized culture, I was born into a seemingly less traditional Chinese family set in a rather westernized melting pot culture. Although, we are not entirely in the same situation but there are still some similarities that could be drawn due to our cultural roots.
Both my parents were the product of strict family rules and structured Chinese style of upbringing. Dad received a more westernized education and had the opportunities to work abroad most of his later life, while mum received a full Chinese education through high school and pretty much travel lesser. I guess that would be one of the reasons why both my sister and I had a much different upbringing compared to the norm of a Chinese family.
In a typical Chinese family, a child’s obedience is demanded without the need for any reasoning. Most of the time, parents are an authoritarian figure and would expect nothing less than full acceptance from the child. Their words are practically the laws of the house break the law and get prepared to serve the “sentence”. Although, I must agree that I did not entirely grew up in an environment as intense as this, but at times some of such authoritative mindset does get into the picture as well.
In June’s case, her family was place right in the heart of the American culture, and she has to struggle to understand her roots while fitting into the American dream. Her mother imposed strict rules on her due to her eagerness to mould June into her pre-fixed plan. This resulted in June’s identity crisis and rebellious nature as a child. I would understand how confusing it might have been for her.
Personally, I was brought up to be rather independent and had that freedom to choose my own path of progression; this is fundamentally against the typical Chinese way of running a family. The Chinese believes the best path for a child’s success in their later life would be the one they chosen for him or her. It is expected that they agree and follow with the elder’s decisions as it is deem the respectful. However, this often led to confusion in the child about their own identity, strengths and weaknesses. If such negativity is not properly managed and gets constantly reinforced into the child, late onset problems, such as a lack of self esteem and confidence, might arise in the child’s adult life.
Most of the time, the ill effects that developed from adopting the Asian method of nurturing their youths can be seen when comparing an Asian child with a Caucasian child. The Caucasian child would be better at self-expression and critical thinking abilities, on the other hand, the Asian child would face some difficulties in expressing themselves and most tend to wait for an instruction before embarking on any partake.
In conclusion, the line from the passage, ““Only two kinds of daughters,” she shouted in Chinese,” those who are obedient and those who follow their own mind!” clearly depicts how traditional contexts are able to exercise such a monumental effect on a person’s wellbeing.
No comments:
Post a Comment