"For instance, wei means danger. Ji means opportunity. Add them together and you have a 'crisis'. Break them apart and keep in mind that whenever you are in a crisis, you are in the midst of danger as well as opportunity." -Ye Ye (Yen Mah 154). I believe this example of finding danger and opportunity in a time of crisis perfectly represents Adeline Yen Mah's life in the Chinese Cinderella. Even though she was surrounded by a war, running from the communists, exiled by her cruel stepmother, Adeline still prospered in her schooling and eventually would go off to college in England. With her mother, she faced the constant danger of being sold, and being physically abused. Adeline's restricted home life enabled her to shift her focus towards her studies, which caused her to blossom at school. As punishment, she was left in various convents. But her isolation from her family allowed her to become a very self-sufficient, independent, and responsible person. Looking back through the book, I realized that Adeline's duckling, PLT, represented her life/situation very well. Thoughts?
I agree with you completely. Adeline's tough home life did allow her to prosper in school; as we saw with the medal she wore, and winning the International Play-writing Competition. But you could say that Adeline is a more "successful" PLT. Yes they were both small and worthless in the eyes of the family. But PLT would be killed by Jackie, the family dog. PLT was unable to fend for herself, unlike Adeline, who would later flourish in her life.
Being trapped in those convents gave Adeline a lot of alone time. A lot of time to think about her life, her goals. A lot of time to mature and grow up. She really took her mother's punishment and turned it into something positive for herself.
I also found it interesting how she overcame so much from being forgotten to having to weather her unfair treatment. Adeline's determination allowed her to finally persevere when her father learned about her playwright competition entry. However, it makes me wonder, what would have happened in Wu Mei's life if her father hadn't found out about her performance in the competition and sent her off to a prestiguos college? Thoughts?
Well, no doubt Adeline's education is the foundation of her success, her confidence, and her determination. So it's very probable that if her father was oblivious to her success in the International Play-writing Competition, that Adeline would not have gone to college. As her stepmother Niang mentioned earlier, Adeline would've most likely been tossed into the workforce into a less than quality job, not utilizing the majority of skills she had acquired through school. The fact that her father noticed her success was the difference between two very different lives for Adeline.
"For instance, wei means danger. Ji means opportunity. Add them together and you have a 'crisis'. Break them apart and keep in mind that whenever you are in a crisis, you are in the midst of danger as well as opportunity." -Ye Ye (Yen Mah 154).
ReplyDeleteI believe this example of finding danger and opportunity in a time of crisis perfectly represents Adeline Yen Mah's life in the Chinese Cinderella. Even though she was surrounded by a war, running from the communists, exiled by her cruel stepmother, Adeline still prospered in her schooling and eventually would go off to college in England. With her mother, she faced the constant danger of being sold, and being physically abused. Adeline's restricted home life enabled her to shift her focus towards her studies, which caused her to blossom at school. As punishment, she was left in various convents. But her isolation from her family allowed her to become a very self-sufficient, independent, and responsible person. Looking back through the book, I realized that Adeline's duckling, PLT, represented her life/situation very well. Thoughts?
I agree with you completely. Adeline's tough home life did allow her to prosper in school; as we saw with the medal she wore, and winning the International Play-writing Competition. But you could say that Adeline is a more "successful" PLT. Yes they were both small and worthless in the eyes of the family. But PLT would be killed by Jackie, the family dog. PLT was unable to fend for herself, unlike Adeline, who would later flourish in her life.
DeleteBeing trapped in those convents gave Adeline a lot of alone time. A lot of time to think about her life, her goals. A lot of time to mature and grow up. She really took her mother's punishment and turned it into something positive for herself.
DeleteI also found it interesting how she overcame so much from being forgotten to having to weather her unfair treatment. Adeline's determination allowed her to finally persevere when her father learned about her playwright competition entry. However, it makes me wonder, what would have happened in Wu Mei's life if her father hadn't found out about her performance in the competition and sent her off to a prestiguos college? Thoughts?
ReplyDeleteWell, no doubt Adeline's education is the foundation of her success, her confidence, and her determination. So it's very probable that if her father was oblivious to her success in the International Play-writing Competition, that Adeline would not have gone to college. As her stepmother Niang mentioned earlier, Adeline would've most likely been tossed into the workforce into a less than quality job, not utilizing the majority of skills she had acquired through school. The fact that her father noticed her success was the difference between two very different lives for Adeline.
Delete