Shanghai Frank Langfitt Analysis

Amy Tan’s short story “A Pair of Tickets,” has June May crossing an ocean to visit her family that she has never met, where she connects with her Chinese heritage in a way she was never able to before. On her trip, she discovers the depth and importance of her culture through her family members. The main character, June May, is a woman of Chinese heritage, from San Francisco, California. Growing up in the United States, in a very American environment, June May feels as though she never truly understood what it meant to be Chinese. As she soon learns, however, June May realizes that through her own family she can connect with the heritage that bonds them all together.

People ages 18 through 24 have to take an adult course in order for them to their drivers license. The class is 6 hours long and ends with 2 tests which they have to pass in order to get their certificate. The class is very useful for understanding and comprehending road signs and driving rules and laws. But at the end of the class when its time to take the test they don’t take it seriously. The teacher will let the students use their book, notes and in cases students can also copy without the teacher even knowing. So at the end it is almost guaranteed that everybody will pass the test, and it is possible that people passing the tests do not even know anything or know very few stuff that they were supposed to learn.

1. Schmitt’s purpose in writing this travel narrative, is to show the differences between the Chinese and American cultures, when it comes to many different things. Main examples in this narrative are; living under the same roof, loss of a loved one, and funeral etiquette. In the Chinese culture it is excepted to come into common areas in your under clothing. Where in America, this would not be appropriate at all. In most places in America, law enforcement would be called on some one outside of their living area in nothing but their underwear and shoes. The narrative shows the many differences in funeral etiquette. One such being, white floors being the

Four Chinese mothers have migrated to America. Each hope for their daughter’s success and pray that they will not experience the hardships faced in China. One mother, Suyuan, imparts her knowledge on her daughter through stories. The American culture influences her daughter, Jing Mei, to such a degree that it is hard for Jing Mei to understand her mother's culture and life lessons. Yet it is not until Jing Mei realizes that the key to understanding who her

The piece describes what she envisioned her time in China would be like; visions of small talk and drinking tea danced in her head (Schmitt 125). This is a bit admirable to a more reserved person because it shows how outgoing she is when diving into a new culture. However, the reality of a language barrier and day to day behavior settled in. A series of uncomfortable exchanges illustrate the challenge of being accepted into a new culture. Described in the essay are people standing around in bath robes and under garments and popping in and out of rooms like some sort of clown

Setting is one of the many way we learn about character. In Amy Tan’s “A Pair of Tickets,” June May, the protagonist, at the age of fifteen denied that she had any Chines whatsoever in her. Now at the age of thirty-six June May is on way to China carry her mother’s dream of going back home, with her seventy two year old father, Canning Woo. Their first stop will be Guangzhou, to visit Canning Woo aunt who he had not seen since he was ten years

Over there nobody will look down on her, because I will make her speak only perfect American English.  And over there she will always be too full to swallow any sorrow!  She will know my meaning because I will give her this swan- a creature that became more than what was hoped for.”  (Tan 1)  The culture in China the mothers of Joy Luck dealt with was unlike anything their daughters could ever imagine or appreciate. Between the mothers Lindo, Suyuan, An-mei and Ying-ying, the Chinese culture forced them into being married by a matchmaker, giving up babies, witness desperate attempts to save loved ones, and having an abortion.  In many ways the Chinese culture scared each woman, although they were proud of their heritage, their daughters deserved better.  These four mothers had very high hopes for the better lives that they wanted to give their daughters by raising them in America.  They didn’t like or want to have their daughters looked down upon, just because they were Chinese women.  From each of their own experiences, they learned that they wanted to improve the lives of their following generation.

Sui Sin Far’s short story, “In the Land of the Free” touches on the reality of being a Chinese immigrant in late-19th century America. The story revolves around a Chinese couple. The husband is ready for his wife, Lae Choo, to arrive from China with their new son, later named Kim. However, due to policies on immigration, the American government was forced to take possession of the child due to a lack of paperwork. However, Far’s short-story has a deeper meaning than just focusing on unfair immigration policies. She takes advantage of the story’s ending to symbolize a rejection of immigrant culture, most especially Chinese immigrant culture, by taking advantage of Kim’s change in behaviors, appearance, and dialect.

In Amy Tan’s “A Pair of Tickets,” setting unfolds an important aspect of the story by positioning a ‘where’ and ‘when.’ Throughout the story, June May struggles with her internal conflict of resisting her Chinese culture. However, she begins to release this resistance as she ventures through China. The setting perpetuates the theme through the usage of transportation, the significance of the color gray amongst colors, and June May’s transition into a Chinese-American. As reflected by the setting and external places visited in “A Pair of Tickets,” June May’s interior state becomes more Chinese as she explores her native country.

“A Pair of Tickets” is a short story written by the famous writer named Amy Tan. This story focuses on a woman called Jing-Mei Woo. Jing-Mei Woo is born in the United States, even though her parents are from China. She is considered as a Chinese American. In consideration of being born and raised in the United States, as Jing-Mei gets older she is having a hard time to accept that she is Chinese. Jing-Mei and her father, Canning Woo buys a pair of tickets to travel to China after her mother’s death because Jing-Mei wants to know what it feels to be Chinese and visit her sisters as well. Three places that Jing-Mei Woo shows her reactions and feelings are in the taxi, the hotel, and Shanghai Airport.

The short story "A Pair of Tickets," authored by Amy Tan is a detailed analysis of issues that concern many people that are of a different descent but that have been residents or migrated to another country for a long time. The story was written in such a way that if one does not take cognizance of interpretation of stories; one may not really gesticulate what the author is trying to portray. The story was about a young American student on a journey for the first time to China with a plan of reuniting with her half-sisters for the first time after the demise of her mother. The writer made use of stereotypes and prevalence of internal conflicts in presenting the theme of the story to the readers for easy understanding. The Protagonist or

The children’s whole future hinged on just one test. It is China’s version of the SAT’s, but in China it is called “GAO KAO” or “tall test”. The children prepare their whole life for this one test. If they do pass they get a pick at top

When the book began it discussed Chinese education. Their education system did not seem relevant because in America our education system is not as strict. There was mention of the long hours that children are in school, and the constant studying they do. Although we study in America we do not take it to the extent that the Chinese do, spending all day at school, and then all night studying, is not an everyday American trait. The only similarity we possess is the emphasis on standardized testing, which from previous studies, we have seen is not good. Zhao even recalls a protest that broke out about the testing and how it promotes cheating. He states, “in June 2013 in Hubei

“It was not easy to live in Shanghai” (Anyi 137). This line, echoed throughout Wang Anyi 's short piece “The Destination” is the glowing heartbeat of the story. A refrain filled with both longing and sadness, it hints at the many struggles faced by thousands upon thousands trying to get by in the city of Shanghai. One of these lost souls, the protagonist, Chen Xin, was one of the many youths taken from his family and sent to live the in the countryside during the Cultural Revolution. Ten years after the fact, Chen Xin views the repercussions of the Cultural Revolution internally and externally as he processes the changes that both he, and his hometown have over-gone in the past ten years. Devastatingly, he comes to the conclusion that there is no going back to the time of his childhood, and his fond memories of Shanghai exist solely in memory. This is in large part is due to the changes brought on by the Cultural Revolution. These effects of the Cultural Revolution are a central theme to the story; with repercussions seen on a cultural level, as well as a personal one.

Some historians argue that Chicago’s Chinese population was an insular ethnic group located in Chinatown. Contrary to popular belief, Chinese men did not simply live as lonely bachelors in the U.S. Instead, they navigated foreign terrain to seek methods that both fulfilled patriarchal duties to their wives and children, who were legally kept out of the U.S. in most cases, and find intimacy and companionship among white, black, and Chinese prostitutes in Chicago. Intimate relationships formed between prostitutes of many races in Chicago and Chinese men were integral in Chinatown’s underground economy and challenge images of a monolithic Chinese population and the perpetually lonely Chinese bachelor.