Sexism in
Is it fair to judge someone by their sex? Sexism is a problem common to both Chinese and American cultures, and as such they are met by most of the characters in the novel. The women were looked upon as an inferior being. They had little or no status in society, and little was expected from them. When they tried to stand up for themselves, they were discriminated. The Chinese culture was normally male dominated. The male was expected to do most of the work, and the woman was expected to stay at home. In the novel, The Joy Luck Club, Ann-Mei Hsu, Lindo Jong, and Ying Ying St. Clair are all women who grow up in a traditional China, where there is sexism. They deal with serious problems that harm their lives. Ann-Mei is oppressed in many ways. Her mother is invited to spend time at the home of a wealthy man named Wu Tsing. During the night, he comes into Ann-Mei's mother's room and rapes her. Despite emotionally scaring Ann-Mei, this reveals the lack of respect for a woman in China. Ann-Mei's mother is forced into to be his concubine because of her lack of power as a woman. She becomes t
Secondly, Lindo Jong story shows how women were discriminated against. At the young age of twelve, Lindo is engaged to Tyan-yu. This is an example of the unimportance of a female's feelings. Nobody wants to have an arranged marriage. Marriage is supposed to be expressed by two people who are in love with each other. Chinese tradition is restricting Lindo from being her own person, and living her own life. She is unable to make her own decisions. Lindo is so willing to give up her life in order to protect the honour of her parents. Also, Lindo is quickly blamed for not having children. It was impossible for Lindo to stand up for herself because no matter what, the male would be believed over the female. Waverly Jong is Lindo's daughter. Waverly experiences a conflict when she asks to play chess with older men in the park in Chinatown. The men tell her that they do not want to play with dolls. Also, they become surprised at her skill in the game chess that men excel in. This also shows how females are undervalued. As you can see, in traditional Chinese culture, many judgements were made about a person just by observing
Some common words found in the essay are:
Lindo Jong, Ying Ying's, Wu Tsing, Chinese American, Ying Ying, Tsing Ann-Mei's, Jong Lindo's, St Clair, St Clair's, China Ann-Mei's, ying ying, chinese culture, third wife, little status, joy luck, joy luck club, luck club, wu tsing, ying ying st, novel joy, undervalued ying, ying st, undervalued ying ying, novel joy luck,
Approximate Word count = 760
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)
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