Analysis Of Maxine Hong Kingston's No Name Woman

In “No Name Woman”, Maxine Kingston’s ancestral line serves as a life lesson, whereas in “In Search of Our Mothers’ Gardens”, Alice Walker inherits culture and hope. Kingston recounts the first time hearing of her aunt “who killed herself” due to the fact that she was pregnant, and “could not have been pregnant… because her husband had been gone for years”; the mom adds a reminder: “Don’t humiliate us. You wouldn’t like to be forgotten as if you were never born”. Kingston’s aunt disrespected the honor of her family and her village by her lack of faith to her husband, and creating another person dependent on the village for food, which is always scarce. Her ancestry and aunt serve as a lesson to always respect family and their well being, or risk being forgotten

Small Beauty by Jia Qing Wilson-Yang is about the experiences of Mei, a mixed-race trans woman, who moves from the city to rural modern-day Canada as she deals with past and present trauma. The text is an exploration of personal identity and how one connects with the place they live. Colonization still impacts how people shape their identity today; in Wilson-Yang’s Small Beauty the lasting impacts of colonialization shape how Mei views aspects of her identity through the novel including gender identity and race. First, this essay will set the definitions that set the foundation, second it will explore colonization in relation to Mei’s gender identity, third it will examine the impact of colonialization on Mei’s racial

The roles of women also play a part in the conflict in this story. In the 19th century, women were expected to fulfill their duties as wives and mothers. They were to be content in their existence as nothing more. As Amy Griffin says, “Fulfilling their submissive role forced women to deny their individual personalities and aspirations” (10). The narrator’s desires to have more in her life than John and her child do not fit in with

My mother was in the room. And it was perhaps the first time she had heard me give a lengthy speech using the kind of English I have never used with her.”(417) Overcoming the barrier between languages she spoke aided Tan in building a bridge between cultures. She changed her language to assimilate into American culture while also keeping familial culture. A piece of heritage that uses a language of intimacy, a different sort of English that relates to family talk. Tan grew up with this language and she still uses it with her mother, husband and in her books. (418) Another method to find identity in a new host society is through appearance. In the essay, “No Name Woman” by Maxine Kingston ideals in appearance were passed from generation to generation. Altering ideals when creating identity is noticed in Kingston’s essay. A long held tradition in many Chinese families is that many generations live under the same roof and this can cause a conflict in ideals. Conflicting ideals between generations is shown as Tan tells how the younger generation hid the identities of their sexual color and their character. Hiding these new identities they hoped to avoid potential conflict with generational ideals. Kingston did not hide her identity, she found herself “walking erect (knees straight, toes pointed forward, not pigeon-toed, which is Chinese-feminine) and speaking in an audible

Written in 1983, Kincaid narrates the thoughts and moral beliefs of the time by her mother. In Girl, Kincaid uses repetition of the term “slut” to emphasize that her mother did not want her to develop a bad moral reputation (Kincaid 118-119). Later in the narration though are her mother’s thoughts on abortion, “this is how to make a good medicine to throw away a child before it even becomes a child” (Kincaid 119). It shows that while the mother instructed her in moral principles, she also understood that things happen to a young woman. The practical nature of this instruction seems to indicate more modern thought while still living in a society of traditions. Another hint of the time period is the mention of divorce and how to live after it, “this is how you love a man…and if they don’t work out, don’t feel bad about giving up” (Kincaid 119). This could indicate that divorce is an accepted practice in the more modern society that Jamaica Kincaid wrote Girl in.

Furthermore, Kingston uses her aunt as a symbol or model of what the Chinese fear becoming. Paragraph 21 states “…the feelings playing about in one’s guts [must] not be turned into action,” which means the Chinese believe fantasies and sinful behavior must be suppressed instead of expressed. Kingston’s aunt broke this rule by digging a freckle out of her face, ripping stray hairs out of her head, and spending large amounts of time fixating on her looks in order to seduce a man as stated in paragraphs 26 and

Being an author of several praised works, Maxine Hong Kingston has been deemed a noteworthy American writer since her first book debuted. Her unique style and interesting blend of myth and truth in memoir form garnered her international attention and won her several awards. Kingston’s works have put heavy emphasis on her family history and her experiences as a Chinese-American, so it is no surprise that she has been received well by many and misunderstood by others at the same time. A discussion on one of her most popular works, “No Name Woman”, and a look at the different ways Kingston’s works have been interpreted should reveal how literature can have different meanings depending on what one is looking for.

For example, we can see how Olivia, living in the older generation of this story, has difficulty following the rules of etiquette that is expected for a British woman of the time, but she does try comply with them. She spends her time where the Nawab’s wife spent most of her life as well: at home, where she decorates the place for Douglas and plays the piano. At this time, we can see that it is uncommon for women to have intellectual freedom, for they do not get the opportunities to share and create their own ideas. When Olivia did not know who her baby's father was, she ended up getting an abortion, which is a daring step to take during her time, and her rebellious history would remain a forbidden topic up until the narrator's generation. Unlike Olivia, the narrator lives in a time when there are less restrictions on her freedom. She learns appreciate the Indian culture, and spends her time immersing into the culture and gaining a social life within the community. Instead of aborting her baby like Olivia, the narrator decides to keep it, for mixed babies are not considered so much of a controversy anymore. On the other hand, the Indian women of modern day maintained their old culture and customs, many held roles looked upon in society, and the majority were living strong and happily. The Nawab's mother Begum was one of the powerful characters in the story, for she had a independent, loving, and

In “No Name Woman,” the theme of silence starts with the elementary words of the memoir stating you must not tell anyone. This statement is ironic because Kingston is in fact telling everyone, giving voice to Chinese customs and the lives that are foregone. As written in her memoir, she states, “You must not tell anyone,” my mother said, “what I am about to tell you. In China your father had a sister who killed herself. She jumped into the family well. We say that your father has all brothers because it is as if she had never been born.” (Deshazer 308). It is especially notable and ironic that the memoir begins with the phrase “You must not tell anyone.” Her effort in No Name Woman is to write about that which is never said; her unnamed dead aunt, and the outrageous behaviors in her mother’s Chinese village. Kingston was not necessarily silenced direct by a male figure; however, the words said by her mother “You must not tell anyone” is a representation of Kingston father’s authorization voice through her mother’s explanation. Kingston’s effort is also about discovering a voice, as both a Chinese-American

Maxine Kingston in “The Women Warrior” presents a traditional Chinese society that anticipates women not to decide what is best for them all by themselves. Kingston creates a woman who goes beyond this ritual culture constraint and who take up

The excerpt, "No Name Woman", from Maxine Hong Kingston's book, Woman Warrior, gives insight into her life as a Chinese girl raised in America through a tragic story of her aunt's life, a young woman raised in a village in China in the early 1900s. The story shows the consequences beliefs, taught by parents, have on a child's life. Kingston attempts to figure out what role the teachings of her parents should have on her life, a similar attempt for many of us in the world. Lessons taught by our parents, the people who brought us into this world, help guide us into the people we become as adults. Hopefully, the guidance is positive.

According to the book, this woman gave birth to a baby which was a symbol of embarrassment and humiliation not only for the villagers but for all the family. Even though this baby did not have any notion of what was going on, she was still a victim of Chinese norms. This baby also became forgotten being that she was not given the opportunity to be alive. Kingston’s aunt decision of killing the baby, had to do greatly with the fact that she was girl. As the book states “it was probably a girl; there is some hope for forgiveness for boys”. Without any doubt, if the baby was given the opportunity to live she would have been mistreated and condemned all her life. She would not have had the opportunity to developed her own identity or raise her “own voice”.

Maxine Hong Kingston's autobiography, The Woman Warrior, features a young Chinese-American constantly searching for "an unusual bird" that would serve as her impeccable guide on her quest for individuality (49). Instead of the flawless guide she seeks, Kingston develops under the influence of other teachers who either seem more fallible or less realistic. Dependent upon their guidance, she grows under the influence of American and Chinese schools and the role models of Brave Orchid, Fa Mu Lan, and Moon Orchid. Her education by these counselors consequently causes her to abandon her search for an escort, the bird to be found somewhere in the measureless sky,

In The Woman Warrior, Maxine Hong Kingston crafts a fictitious memoir of her girlhood among ghosts. The book’s classification as a memoir incited significant debate, and the authenticity of her representation of Chinese American culture was contested by Asian American scholars and authors. The Woman Warrior is ingenuitive in its manipulation of the autobiographical genre. Kingston integrates the value of storytelling in her memoir and relates it to dominant themes about silence, cultural authenticity, and the cultivation of identity. Throughout her work, Kingston reaches a variety of conclusions about the stories her mother told her by writing interpretations of her mother, Brave Orchid’s, “talk-story”. Brave Orchid’s talk-story is a form

Culture is a defining thing in every person’s life, and affects them and how they perceive the world. In the poem “Without Title,” the theme is that leaving behind one’s former way of life, culture, and family can lead to the loss of joy, identity, and joy in culture. In this poem by Diane Glancy, it has different ways of showing this loss of culture and identity. Without Title uses a lot of figurative language to show this. Line 14 says, “I remember the animal tracks of the car,”. This shows how the author knows the culture she used to have and recognizes that it is gone and there is no true part of her culture now. She calls car tracks, animal tracks, which is something she would have seen if she had gotten to stay with her people and family. These all have a wistful longing feel in the poem, one of sadness. In the final part of the poem it says, “The red buffalo painted on his chest. Oh, I couldn’t see it but it was there,” This can be a representation of the author’s father’s lost culture, how he still has it be he is not allowed to show it at all, so he just keeps it to himself. In both it shows all the father and the author have left of their culture, their memories, and physical reminders. It shows a loss of identity, and that they both miss it. When the author says her father, “brought home horns and hides,” it can also be representing any piece of his former culture that he tried to bring back into the home, but his wife says to “get rid of them.” The wife could say