An-Mei Brave Meaning
The song “Brave” by Sara Bareilles is written in second person, and in the case of The Joy Luck Club, it is a hopeful message from An-mei’s mother to An-mei to persevere, speak up, and be brave. An-mei’s mother was viewed by An-mei’s family as ni, a traitor to their ancestors because she moved into Wu Tsing’s home as a concubine. Despite this, An-mei chose to go with her to Tientsin. She sees first-hand the harmful environment her mother lives in and understands why her mother takes her own life. “Brave” serves as a reminder to An-mei that her mother wanted the best for her. She wanted An-mei to grow into a better person than she ever was. An-mei took this message to heart and fully embraced it. She stands up to the disingenuous Second
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Wife, crushing the fake pearl necklace she was gifted, reclaiming her life despite the seemingly insurmountable obstacles ahead of her: “And on that day, Second Wife’s hair began to turn white. And on that day [An-mei] learned to shout” (Tan 240). This is where the lyric “Say what you wanna say / And let the words fall out / Honestly I wanna see you be brave / With what you want to say / And let the words fall out” would play, as it connects with An-mei finding her voice.
After An-mei’s anecdote, the story transitions into her perception of her mother’s loss of face: “She lost her face and tried to hide it.
She found only greater misery and finally could not hide that... That was [her] fate” (Tan 241). The lyric “Maybe there's a way out of the cage where you live / Maybe one of these days you can let the light in / Show me how big your brave is” would play. This establishes a link to An-mei’s mother’s tragic death and how it drastically altered An-mei’s life. Because her mother lost her face and found more misery, she wanted An-mei to have the opposite: a life full of love, hope, and freedom. The cage symbolizes the household of Wu Tsing and the manipulative Second Wife, which An-mei was able to free herself from and eventually journey to America to find a better life. The light symbolizes the still-present love of An-mei’s mother, which was able to break the barrier of death and translate directly into An-mei’s life. An-mei’s “brave” stems from her mother’s hopes and dreams and her meaningful sacrifice to “kill her weak spirit so she could give [her] a stronger one.” (Tan 240)
In conclusion, “Brave” by Sara Bareilles is an extension of An-mei’s mother’s love to her daughter. Although her mother’s suicide wounded An-mei, the deep cut eventually healed and translated into An-mei finding her voice and speaking up for herself. An-mei also realizes the wishes her mother carried with her to the grave and actively tries to fulfill them for
the rest of her life, resulting in a profound reverence for the sacrifice of her mother.
Wife, crushing the fake pearl necklace she was gifted, reclaiming her life despite the seemingly insurmountable obstacles ahead of her: “And on that day, Second Wife’s hair began to turn white. And on that day [An-mei] learned to shout” (Tan 240). This is where the lyric “Say what you wanna say / And let the words fall out / Honestly I wanna see you be brave / With what you want to say / And let the words fall out” would play, as it connects with An-mei finding her voice.
After An-mei’s anecdote, the story transitions into her perception of her mother’s loss of face: “She lost her face and tried to hide it.
She found only greater misery and finally could not hide that... That was [her] fate” (Tan 241). The lyric “Maybe there's a way out of the cage where you live / Maybe one of these days you can let the light in / Show me how big your brave is” would play. This establishes a link to An-mei’s mother’s tragic death and how it drastically altered An-mei’s life. Because her mother lost her face and found more misery, she wanted An-mei to have the opposite: a life full of love, hope, and freedom. The cage symbolizes the household of Wu Tsing and the manipulative Second Wife, which An-mei was able to free herself from and eventually journey to America to find a better life. The light symbolizes the still-present love of An-mei’s mother, which was able to break the barrier of death and translate directly into An-mei’s life. An-mei’s “brave” stems from her mother’s hopes and dreams and her meaningful sacrifice to “kill her weak spirit so she could give [her] a stronger one.” (Tan 240)
In conclusion, “Brave” by Sara Bareilles is an extension of An-mei’s mother’s love to her daughter. Although her mother’s suicide wounded An-mei, the deep cut eventually healed and translated into An-mei finding her voice and speaking up for herself. An-mei also realizes the wishes her mother carried with her to the grave and actively tries to fulfill them for
the rest of her life, resulting in a profound reverence for the sacrifice of her mother.