The story, “Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress”, sets place during the Cultural Revolution in China from 1966 to 1976. During this time period, China was more or less divided into two groups, the rich and the poor. With the Little Seamstress leaving Luo and the narrator at the end of the story, she leaves with a quote saying “She said she had learnt one thing from Balzac: that a woman’s beauty is a treasure beyond price.” I believe that women should not be judged by their physical appearance. The circumstances that stand today will be a good example. Many women spend a long time on doing makeup on their faces because they believe that by wearing makeup on their faces, they will gain confidence in front of men. They also believe that they are able to look prettier and younger, which means that they are able to attract more men. The Little Seamstress quote “A Woman’s beauty is treasure beyond price” perhaps evaluates the strength of how women are evaluated by their physical appearances. The Little Seamstress was an ordinary late teenager girl, who was living in the countryside, where she meets Luo and the narrator, who …show more content…
Throughout the story, even though the Seamstress is a girl, she still takes the same actions as Luo and the narrator who are boys. One of the actions she takes place is when Luo throughs the keys down the water, and she goes diving in the water to hunt for the keys. By Dai Sijie putting this information into the story, we are able to tell that the Little Seamstress can do the same things that Luo and the narrator do. Therefore, women shouldn’t be judged by their appearances. They might not have the greatest language skills, or they might not have other great things, but looking into the Little Seamstress, her physical appearance and her heart is wonderful. It is more or like, anyone will fall in love with her just by looking at her appearance and her
The short story “Girl” takes place on a island in the Caribbean. The female role was very important to the culture they were raised in. Each female had to prove to the people that they well worthy on becoming a women. The female are easily judge for their boys, the why they dressed, people were aware of all certain behaviors the women will show. The short story clearly warns on how a women should be, warns her how to behave, and dress like a women because its the role they were meant to carry.
In the 20th century, the world saw the rise of many new political regimes that would redefine how the people of the world were governed. New political structures such as communism and Fascism took control in countries such as the USSR and Germany. Ultimately, all of these governments failed by the dawn of the 21st century, but the legacies they left behind have not been forgotten. China is one of these countries, and installed a communist government led by Mao in the mid 20th century. As part of their new regime, China instituted a process of re-education, where citizens would be educated in the ways of communist principles. The book Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress details two young Chinese men, the narrator and his friend Luo,
The unnamed narrator of the novel is a thoughtful, intellectual 17-year-old who is sent to the countryside for re-education during China 's Cultural Revolution.
Written by Dai Sijie, and published in English in 2001, Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress is a contemporary piece with a classic story. The book is about a boy, known to us as “The Narrator,” and his friend Luo. It takes place in communist China. Luo is the son of a well known dentist, while the Narrator is the son of a lung specialist and a consultant in parasitic disease. Due to their parents’ education and status, the boys are sent to a mountain village to be re-educated. While there, the boys live in treacherous conditions and live life, similar to that of Sisyphus, but instead of a boulder, they carry sewage. The Narrator possesses the skill of playing the violin beautifully, while Luo was graced with a story telling ability. While being re-educated, they become acquaintances with The Little Seamstress, eventually becoming more. They begin to read her stories, which they steal, and begin to put their lives in danger. By then, it gets interesting. One major scene that showcases their actions is when Luo has to tend to his sick mother, pages 158 to 160, leaving the Narrator watching over the Little Seamstress. Within this passage, the Narrator’s usual tone drastically changes into a militaristic attitude which reveals that when he is put into a position of power, he conforms to the idea that he should be emotionless and straightforward, in order to hide his true desires.
China is and always will be a land seen as mysterious to those with roots in Western culture. And in its own way, Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie is what can happen when Western and Far Eastern culture interact. Outside of the cultural revolution, headed by Mao Zedong, which makes the whole novel possible, and was a push back against Western involvement in China, the novel includes many other ideas of cultural interaction. However, it also prominently provides complex emotions and changes within the characters who are followed throughout the novel. In fact, one passage in particular reveals much character change and development in the narrator of the story (who will simply be known as narrator for the entirety of this essay), and it occurs on the pages of 166 to 169. The passage is a daydream of the narrator’s after having taken a beating by a band of hooligans and potential suitors of the Little Seamstress. In it, readers can see the narrator develop to the same sort of manhood as Luo: the satisfaction of changing something and reaching independence. However, after reaching this stage, he also realizes the drawbacks to having done so, causing him to feel remorse for his actions. This is achieved by the narrator’s expression of hidden desires he developed over time and what lustful feelings and desperation accompany them.
In the book The Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie, Luo and the Little Seamstress become lovers at least that is what they are being described as. Luo has taken it upon himself to educate the Little Seamstress because she hasn't been educated and his attraction to her makes him want to help her become a better form of herself. He has read to her and now is teaching her how to swim. Luo sees the Little Seamstress as a project and that he needs to make her a more knowledgeable person by having to teach and educate her.
Relaxin inside the comfort of a home never lasts. Eventually life returns and that comfort along with more is lost. The novel Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie published in 2000 tells a story of two boys within the re-education system of communist China where things seem hopeless. The Narrator and Luo both meet the Little Seamstress but only Luo is able to entice the Little Seamstress. Luo kindles a relationship with her throughout the novel. Luo regains hope within his life but ultimately the Little Seamstress decides to leave. Luo contemplates his decisions regarding their relationship. Luo realizes that he opened the door for the Little Seamstress to leave for the city revealing that security fails to last.
Using Rhetorical Analysis for gun control Gun control is currently one of the most talked about subjects in America today, but knowing the difference between mass media and scientific studies can help you determine what the truth is and what is made up. Due to its high popularity the media tries to give gun control the most exposure possible. Using rhetorical analysis to determine the truth behind gun control can help you gain a better understanding of it. Finding statistics and facts will help uncover what the mass media isn’t fully telling you. It can help you find what is similar and different between the mass media and scientific studies.
George Washington, one of the Founding Fathers of our country and our first President once wrote, “Liberty, when it begins to take root, is a plant of rapid growth.” He demonstrates how newfound liberty will ingrain itself in individual's lives and spread quickly through a community. Intellectual freedom has a similar impact of the city youth and multiple characters throughout the novel, Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress, by Dai Sijie. Over the course of the re education during the Cultural Revolution in China, the two boys are introduced to many different characters such as the Little Chinese Seamstress. They experience the harsh environment and struggles of reeducation along with some excitement along the way.
Through the Seamstress’ time with Luo at the lake, she expresses her individuality therefore building on her character. Repetition of “you’re” such as “I know what you’re getting at…” shows the Seamstress’ ability to be brave and stand up for herself. She is aware that others make judgements of her vulnerability due to her strong loyalty to Luo, however she addresses the reader through these pronouns to uphold herself, exhibiting vitality. Her confrontation with the reader shows confidence and strength, characteristics she didn’t have when being cooped up inside her house. Through the selection of detail, the Seamstress claims she isn’t like the “French girls Balzac talks about” and describes herself as a “mountain girl”. Here, the Seamstress is acknowledging that she is different and unique. She separates herself from other girls with the descriptive word “mountain”, applying that she is more adventurous, bold, and courageous than the “French” girls.
Luo decides to undertake the project of educating the Little Seamstress by reading books by western authors to her in hopes that she will learn from the characters in the stories and try to adopt their civilized ways. The Little seamstress forms a connection with the books almost instantaneously from her first exposure to Western Literature. According to Luo, “after I had read the passage from Balzac to her word for word...she took your coat and reread the whole thing, in silence. When she’d finished reading, she sat there quite still, open-mouthed. Your coat was resting on the flat of her hands, the way a sacred object lies in the palms of the pious” (Sijie 62). The is astounded by the wise words of Balzac and it is and eye opening experience for her. Through Sieves diction in this passage, the word “pious” also indicated that reading books is also a sacred or spiritual experience for the Little Seamstress. This moment is one of the most significant in the whole text, because it makes the beginning of the Seamstress's Transformation, by showing the great effect that literature has on her. From the Little Seamstress’
In the beginning of the novel, Luo is performing as a high-caliber kind of individual towards his best friend, the Narrator. He is acting like he is superior over the Seamstress, saying things like, “She isn’t civilized, at least not enough for me” (29). Luo doesn’t believe that the Seamstress is that important of a figure, at least not considerable enough to be in his life at this point and time. All that he believes that she is to him is a little seamstress girl that he can read books to. Nothing more than that. The a Seamstress isn't as polite and courteous, as so he thinks. Despite his “uncivilized” feelings about her, he still reads books of reeducation to her and goes by her every chance he gets, which conveys that there is something there that he may be trying to hide, such as his underlying feelings for her. The Narrator noticed that Luo had been “following her every move”(29) and “taking his time to reply”(28). This specific action that Luo tried to hide wasn’t hidden enough for the Narrator to pick up on. Luo doesn’t want to admit that there may be some
Media Censorship. In most of the world people will have access to all different forming on media, whether books, music or online. However, from the turn of the 20th century the modern day, it can still be evident. Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress was a book written by Dai Sijie about two days (The narrator and Luo), where they are sent to a reeducation camp in rural China. While in reeducation, they meet the little seamstress, and discover books that were written by the French author Balzac.
Wolf discusses the effect that these standards are having on women in the workplace. A woman’s beauty, or lack of it, can be used against her. In 1986, Mechelle Vinson lost a sexual harassment case. “Vinson was young and ‘beautiful’ and carefully dressed. The district court ruled that her appearance counted against her.” (Wolf 38) “In Hopkins v. Price-Waterhouse, Ms. Hopkins was denied a partnership because she needed to learn to ‘walk more femininely, talk more femininely, dress more femininely,’ and ‘wear makeup’.” She brought in more business than any other employee. (Wolf 39)
In Jamaica Kincaid’s story, Girl, a mother is talking to her daughter about all the proper things she must do to be considered a good girl to her family and to the public, and when she grows up, a proper lady. She must follow the rules that are given to her by her own mother and by society. The mother also teaches the daughter how to act when things don’t go her way. She is told that along with being a proper lady, she must also be able to get what she wants and be independent. This story was written in the late 1970’s and gender roles, for women, back then were not being “followed” because women wanted equal opportunities (Women In the Workforce). “Gender stereotypes are beliefs regarding the traits and behavioral characteristics given to individuals on the basis of their gender” (Deuhr). This essay will discuss the gender roles that were given to women in the story, during the late 70’s, and in today’s society.