Mu was known as an “Old Whore” (Jin 146) who lived on Eternal Way. She was hated by everyone who knew about her extra marital earnings, with the exception of her husband. Sleeping with random men was the reason she was disliked. Even her husband knew he was married to a fallen woman however, he loved her with all of his heart and she knew that. Mu's life was turned upside down one day when the two Red Guards from Dalian City showed up at her door and whisked her away to be punished for her nympho actions.
Mu was a dynamic character. As she was being taken down to be questioned and punished for her sin's she carried with her an undisturbed attitude. Death was a possibility for Mu that day and she knew it, yet she remained calm. She was a beautiful, plump woman with long legs and did not have one strand of gray hair on her head. “While most of the women had sallow faces, hers looked white and healthy like fresh milk (148). Unlike the other women in her community who wore pants and jackets all the time, Mu wore dresses and that staggeringly separated her from the other noblewomen. The day she was taken by the guards “Mu wore a sky-blue dress, which made her different from the other women who always...”(p148). She had a “purple wart beside her left nostril” (p148), that set her apart from the other women, a beauty mark I imagine. However as she was b...
You May Also Find These Documents Helpful
-
Kingston’s mother tells her the story of Fa Mu Lan’s battle with menstruation so that Kingston is able to accept her identity as a woman and the challenges that come with it. Fa Mu Lan, a female character that many people look up to, is a story that was told to many girls. In the story, there is an old couple that trains Fa Mu Lan to become a warrior. When Fa Mu Lan menstruates for the first tell, they explain to her, “You don’t stop shitting and pissing. It’s the same with blood. Let it run” (Kingston 31). Menstruation represents Fa Mu Lan’s womanhood. The old woman teaches her that she has to let her blood flow because she can’t control it. Additionally, her period is a reminder that her identity as a woman cannot be…
- 138 Words
- 1 Page
Satisfactory Essays -
In Truman Capote’s novel, In Cold Blood, he follows the story of two young delinquents who robbed and viciously murdered the highly respected Clutter family in the small town, and in the fictional novel by Ellen Hopkins, Identical, readers journey through teenage Kaeleigh that is sexually abused by the alcoholic father and neglected by an absent politician mother. Both authors shed light on the struggle of pursuing daily existence. Friedrich Nietzsche’s quote, “There is a certain right by which we may deprive a man of life, but none by which we may deprive him of death; this is mere cruelty.” further justifies the fact that people should be allowed to take control of their lives if they aren’t happy.…
- 718 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
In Chapter two of the Woman Warrior, Kingston presents the story by using Fa Mu Lan as an archetype to display the heroine image of “I”. Fa Mu Lan disguises as a man and takes her father’s…
- 674 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
You are sitting in your living room at home watching the nightly news. The lead story for the night is about a family of four that were murdered. After seeing and hearing about something like that we often ask ourselves, What could possess a person enough to kill another human being? What is it that drives a person to kill? Will we ever know? Many authors use this unique mentality in short stories. They write about what the killer thinks and how he/she acts on his/her thoughts. One of these stories is "A Good Man Is Hard To Find", by Flannery O'Connor. In this story O'Connor's victim, The Misfit, is an escaped convict. He was in the Federal Penitentiary for killing his father. Throughout the story O'Connor builds up this killers mentality through his words and body language. Like many other murderers, The Misfit could not distinguish the difference between fantasy and reality.…
- 1119 Words
- 5 Pages
Good Essays -
She is publically shamed for her wrongdoings and needs to admit the name of the person who committed the crime with her. She refuses to tell and is then forced to wear a scarlet “A” that stands for adulterer. She lives through her years as a frail woman who is made fun of by children and is shunned by all adults. Her life and the troubles she faces signify the consequences of being abandoned by their community. She represents the people who are not defined as normal, but as abnormal. Her one sin caused her to lose her dignity and her happiness like how causing a crime creates a permanent mark on what the world believes you are. The Scarlet Letter is a story about reintroducing people into society after being punished for their unnatural behavior and rebellious nature towards society’s rules. People will have greater conflicts than before because of their crime against their community, a community that trusted and respected them for who they are, this crime has broken what they believed in and they need to be punished in order to learn that what they are doing is wrong…
- 665 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Murder, a rightfully known act of immorality is proven to be justifiable in Andre Dubus’s “Killings”. The alluring temptations of vengeance, too strong for Matt Fowler to push aside, were eventually accepted. Fowler commits the exact same crime as his son’s killer, both murders seek out revenge, however for different reasons. Fowler kills for the sake of his wife, he grieves seeing her in agony and he himself is in anguish knowing his son’s killer is free. Richard Strout acted out upon jealousy and anger, which ultimately ended in his demise, a suffering much worse than living with guilt. The distinction in these two killers morality is what determines the difference in their suffering.…
- 799 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
Walter Mitty (the protagonist of “the secret life of Walter Mitty”) is basically a normal guy, except for one huge problem. His mind can easily wander. His mind is most prone to wandering when he thinks of his wife. His wife regularly belittles him and does not treat him like a “man”. It is for this reason that whenever Walter Mitty’s mind wanders he goes into a world where he is the hero and the star. He goes into a world where he can be whoever he wants to be and be the best possible at being that person. Much like Walter Mitty, Charlotte (the protagonist of “the yellow wallpaper”), has a husband who persistently tells her what to do and what is best for her. Just like Walter Mitty’s wife, her husband expects her to do what she is told and if she doesn’t then she is just a “silly girl”.…
- 509 Words
- 3 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
Wang Er points out that although society is quick to accuse and vilify innocent people of being damaged goods, "as for real damaged goods, they just let them do whatever they want “ (84). This social abandonment of truly damaged goods first occurs when Chen rushes to the injured Wang Er's side, outing herself as his lover in front of the entire village, who proceed to both stop gossiping about and speaking to her. Later, when Chen upholds her image as “so ignorant that she had to be innocent," the state contentedly denigrates her through confessions and denouncement ceremonies (112). However, once she admits that she enjoys sex and declares herself truly damaged goods, they have no use for her and let her go. Not only is society prone to attack innocent individuals, but they are unable and hesitant to challenge truly impure people. This hesitance stems from fear of the damaged goods' open rebellion and proud abandon of honor - to others, this is unimaginable and destabilizes their ideas of right and wrong. By portraying social norms as misguided and weak, Wang Xiaobo makes the point that social stigma cannot hurt sexually liberated people. In fact, by breaking the stigma the couple baffles both their community and government officials, giving them no choice but to leave them alone. Therefore, succumbing to sexual temptation results not only in release…
- 1292 Words
- 6 Pages
Powerful Essays -
In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, the concept of secret sin often conflicts with many of the characters’ identities. More often than not, this concealment leads to isolation and self-bewilderment. Indeed, Hawthorne demonstrates this concept when he remarks how “ No man… can wear one face to himself and another to the multitude”(259). Moreover, the consequences of leading a double life fueled by “secret sin" permeate this “tale of human frailty and sorrow” in general and Arthur Dimmesdale’s ongoing moral dilemma in particular.…
- 671 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Mrs. Mallard’s expression of overbearing devastation that ended her life accounts for the rash behavior she shows through her grief. Her death, as a result, is the icing on the cake and topped off all of the unorthodox demeanors she express leading up to it. It is mentioned previously that the news of Mr. Mallard’s death was broken carefully to the fragile hearted Mrs. Mallard. There is an unexpected revelation when Mrs. Mallard hears the news of her husband’s death, and she felt relief rather than despair. She reacts by, “abandon[ing] herself a little whispered word escaped her slightly parted lips. She said it over and over under her breath: "free, free, free!"” (443) Mrs. Mallard is excited to have finally gotten a chance to be her own person. She begins planning and looking forward to a life of freedom without the constriction marriage included. Her excitement would be short lived due to her husband’s reemergence, which was yet another unexpected twists to the plot. Seeing her husband alive and realizing that she would not have the freedom she longed for ended hope for the life she wanted. “It was Brently Mallard who entered, a little travel-stained, composedly carrying his grip-sack and umbrella. He had been far from the scene of the accident, and did not even know there had been one.”(444) Mrs. Mallard’s reaction, and the final event of the…
- 1279 Words
- 6 Pages
Powerful Essays -
All humans have sinned; whether or not they have acknowledged their sins is a different situation. However, it is part of the human nature to make wrongful mistakes. Some people learn from their errors, while others are mangled by their own deceptions. The novel entitled “The Scarlet Letter,” written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, demonstrates the contracting approaches to coping with one's adversities such as sin and punishment. In this classic and timeless novel, A young woman gets outcasted after committing adultery and conceiving a child from a man who is not her husband. Though, the book is set in colonial Boston, it gives a good lesson on how reputations can instantly vanish or be built, and how people face those problem. As one character, Hester…
- 157 Words
- 1 Page
Good Essays -
The story takes place in china. The setting of this story is very important as it all revolts around the Chinese culture. One as a reader can be able to place oneself in the same situation and experience the feelings that are being presented in this story. The story is being told from a first person point of view. The narrator is Jing-Mei “June May” Woo. She is the 36-year old American born daughter of Suyuan a women who made the big decision which was to abandoned her twins, however she did it for love because at the time she thought she was going to die. June May is the one telling the story. We only know what the narrator thinks. We can only make inferences about the rest of the characters in the story by the way they behave. The narrator embarks an adventurous journey. Along the way she learns many things about her real roots she discovers things that she never knew before.…
- 1427 Words
- 6 Pages
Good Essays -
“…I charge thee to speak out the name of thy fellow-sinner and fellow-sufferer! Be not silent from any mistaken pity and tenderness for him; for, believe me, Hester, though he were to step down from a high place, and stand there beside thee on thy pedestal of shame, yet better were it so, than to hide a guilty heart through life.” (Hawthorne, 20) Arthur Dimmesdale speaks to the Miss Hester Prynne after she is convicted of the sin of adultery and is standing on a pedestal in town square being the subject of a passionate sermon spoken only by the man who committed adultery with her. At the time no one knew that he was the man he charged her to tell, but this couple sets the perfect scenario for a common debate. Which is more influential in a person’s life, public or private guilt? Hester experienced public guilt while Arthur suffered private guilt and both of them had effects on all aspects of their life. Nathaniel Hawthorne presents this problem using the long-term and short-term effects of such a sin as adultery in a community that strives to be a community that follows the…
- 618 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
In the world of literature, there are many ways to indirectly convey or foreshadow events, settings, and situations. Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter uses a great deal of literary devices and techniques in order to effectively lead the reader towards his viewpoint and, finally, towards his purpose. The sin of adultery, which acts as the base and impetus for much of the plot in The Scarlet Letter, affects Hester Prynne, Arthur Dimmesdale, and Roger Chillingworth the most; however, each of the preceding is affected differently by the sin and each of their fates is decided accordingly. Every one of the aforementioned also gains a sort of wisdom, be it good or be it evil, from their suffering. Hawthorne uses symbolism, metaphors, and imagery to convey each character's intrinsic traits which are forced to surface as a result of the sin. The author uses internal and external conflict to represent each character's wisdom gained from their suffering.Hester's external release of pain is in great contrast with Dimmesdale's internal accumulation of pain. Dimmesdale's suffering is very much internal and continues to build slowly and strenuously. The air of regret from the sin of adultery is held in Dimmesdale like a balloon being sl…
- 2272 Words
- 10 Pages
Better Essays -
Characters in literature or in life make difficult decisions; one simple decision could turn into a big disaster. Different decisions make up life, but sometimes decisions includes the betrayal of a family member, the value of religion, yourself, or the betrayal of the others.…
- 541 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays