Adeline's Use Of Adversity In Chinese Cinderella

Adeline Yen Mah is a Chinese girl growing in knowledge with a wealthy family. Then, a new threat arrises... Niang! She is the evil stepmother that tries to burden Adeline with as much issues as she can. Adeline tries to conquer these problems with the help of her other loving family members. In the novel, Chinese Cinderella, by Adeline Yen Mah, the author shows that being unwanted can be overcome by consulting family. She proves this by showing the help that Adeline received from her Ye Ye (grandfather) and her Aunt Baba.

Lin Lan’s “Cinderella” is a classic fairy tale that depicts the life of a poor, young girl named Beauty in the hands of her wicked stepmother and stepsister. The story leads one to believe a moral lesson is portrayed as how in the end evil never prospers. Beauty is rewarded in many different forms for being the innocent protagonist, while the stepmother and stepsister are chastened for their heinous deeds. As children are the main targeted audience for fairytales, it would seem evident to create a character of good standing morals and virtue; however, there are multiple instances that contradict Beauty’s faultless character.

Growing up in an overprotective environment never gave her the chance to become emotionally mature and independent. In addition, her parent's demands were always in first place and they were very strict.

Like all other children, as Jeannette ages, she comes to understand that her parents are not the person who she thought they were and that her

The autobiographical novel Chinese Cinderella, is about protagonist Adeline Yen Mah’s 1940 childhood in China. Our main antagonist in the story is Adeline’s stepmother, Niang, who is portrayed throughout the story as the ‘evil-stepmother’ figure. But is there the possibility that Adeline has unfairly depicted Niang? The time period in Naing’s life which this book takes place in, would have been an extremely difficult and stressful for her. She was forced into a marriage with man twice her age and expected to become maternal towards his five children from his previous marriage. Under Niang’s circumstances she also had to take measures to protect, manage and discipline 7 children, which we only see as cruel and violent because of the modern viewpoints.

Both girls obtain their own jobs to make their own money, but their fathers respond negatively towards their independence. When Jeanette works, her father “[slashes their piggybank] apart with a knife and [steals] all the money” (250). When Miranda works, her father is unappreciative and doesn’t understand why she needs a job. In addition, Jeanette's father tells many stories where he is always portrayed as the hero. However, time after time, he isn’t there for his children, and yet he still asks, “Have I ever let you down?” (248). Sadly, Jeanette never has the heart to tell her father that he has indeed let her down, several times. Her father makes many empty promises, like the glass castle for example. Her father told her he would build her a big, beautiful castle made of glass, but Jeannette’s hard work on the foundation ended up becoming a trash pile. Jeanette’s father also came home drunk many nights, where he would “[break] windows and [smash] dishes and furniture...then he’d look around at the mess and at [the] kids standing there.”

“Every thought is a battle, every breath is a war, when I look back at the flashbacks, I don't want to remember them any more”(anonymous). These words have many attributes of Adeline's bleak life as a child. Chinese Cinderella by Adeline Yen Mah is a depressing story in many ways. The main character Adeline is discarded by her family, she is physically and mentally bullied by her parents, and her loved ones and friends are taken from her.

Chinese Cinderella is a very sad story where a little, unwanted girl is being abused every day. The novel Chinese Cinderella by Adeline Yen Mah is depressing. The main character, Adeline, is always being treated the wrong way, this story could not be more sad.

Overall, there is an obvious feeling of disempowered regarding her right and or ability to make life decisions. She comes from a close-knit family, though some of her siblings have moved away to seek out goals beyond those that they may feel their parents are putting upon them. She has recently begun to

The true story of Chinese Cinderella is an ‘autobiography’ written by Adeline Yen Mah, describing the many complications she experienced in her childhood and young teenage years. Unlike most children, Adeline struggled to live a ‘normal’ life. She was often looked down upon by most of her family and was neglected and abused in a way that was totally unacceptable. This is significantly repeated throughout her juvenility. An important idea that recurs throughout the story Chinese Cinderella is, unwanted and mistreated by your family and relations.

A parental love growing up really affects you once you’re grown. Her character doesn’t quite know what love feels like because her, “Parents never really knew what was going on…” Her family is uninvolved in what is going on with her which creates a great emotional distance. She holds them in contempt for “... their naivete about who she is and what she does.” So she no longer cares what they have to say because now what they say is too late for her to accept, she becomes disinterested in

A reoccurring theme in Chinese Cinderella is confidence and resilient. Adeline’s family is always making her feel lost, unwanted and unloved. Because of her mother’s sudden death shortly after Adeline was born, even her siblings didn’t give Adeline the kindness that should be given to a sister. An example in the book ’’But then Mama died giving birth to you. If you had not been born, Mama would still be alive. She died because of you. You are bad luck.“ This is said of her older sister, Lydia, to her. This indicates her siblings blamed Adeline for the cause of their mother’s death and considered her ’bad luck’. ”They blamed me for causing Mama’s death and never forgave me.“ This is said by Adeline herself. This suggests that they were always singling her out

In the autobiography Chinese Cinderella by Adeline Yen Mah, the narrator was influenced in many ways by the people around her. One character which influences the narrator’s life to a vast amount was her step-mother Niang. Her Aunt Baba also played a very big part on how Yen Mah turned out in her later and earlier years as well as everywhere in between. Her grandfather Ye-Ye was a constant support to Adeline Yen Mah.

Cinderella is a fairytale for children that displayed love, loss and miracles; however, when it is further analyzed, it has a deeper meaning. Cinderella is a story about a young girl who became a servant in her own home after her father remarried a malicious woman with two spoiled daughters. She was humiliated and abused yet she remained gentle and kind. She received help from her fairy godmother to go to the prince’s ball after her stepmother rejected her proposal. Cinderella and the Prince fell madly in love but she had to leave at twelve o’clock and forgot to tell him her name but she left her glass slipper behind. He sent his servants to find her and Cinderella was the only maiden in the kingdom to fit into the shoes. She

The book Chinese Cinderella, written by Adeline Yen Mah has four main themes. They are: family & relationships, abandonment & loneliness, self-esteem and history. The author Adeline Yen Mah, also wrote the book Falling Leaves but Chinese Cinderella was written for younger audiences. Chinese Cinderella is actually an autobiography, not a fairy tale. Adeline (the protagonist) has to work for her dreams, not by wishing from a fairy godmother. This book was set in the 1900’s (1941-1952). At that time WW2 was happening making Adeline’s life harder. The moral of this book would be that no matter your circumstances, you can work hard and achieve your dreams. This book is really captivating and it tells the reader not to underestimate anyone. That’s why I think this is an amazing book for everyone to read.