For My Daughter Belonging Analysis
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“Relationships are fundamental to an understanding and acceptance of oneself” Discuss the importance of this notion of belonging with reference to your set text and one related text.
“Relationships are fundamental to an understanding and acceptance of oneself” in relation to this statement through both texts Joy luck club by Amy Tan and For My Daughter by Judith Wright will explore the importance of this statement in relation to belonging. Both these texts show how conflict and difficulties in a relationship can lead to both resentment as well as acceptance.
‘For My Daughter’ by Judith Wright explores the idea that time brings change, and within that time, children grow up and separate from their parents. Wright challenges this as she concludes there is an inevitable bond, which cannot be broken but can cause great conflict between the mother and daughter’s relationship when the child is growing up. This is evident through the metaphor “the world has caught you up, to go at the worlds pace” on line 3 in the first stanza.
The connection between the mother and baby is served at birth, however other influences compete with the mother, which then becomes the personal identity of the child. This is evident through the line “you must become your world and …show more content…
follow in its ways”. It is the thoughts and viewpoints through the mother’s perception, which causes conflict to their relationship. When a baby is first born it instantly belongs to its mother, however it is inevitable that the child will develop its own view of the world both in spite of and as well as because of the parents upbringing.
In relation to the Joy ‘Luck Club’, through the character Jing-Mei and mother Suyuan, Tan also explores similar ideas to Wright. Jing-Mei believes that her mother’s criticism bespeaks a lack of affection, which in fact her mother’s high expectations are expressions of love and faith in her daughter. In the story Two Kinds, Jing-Mei describes her childhood, which was full of pain and resentment linked to never becoming the prodigy that he mother desired her to be. Waverly Jong, another character in Joy Luck Club won champion after champion in chess, with her mother Lindo constantly bragging, this made Suyuan more determined to find her daughters hidden talent. However this creates more resentment in Jing-Mei as she sates “I was determined to put a stop to her foolish pride” on page 128. This shows the difficulties and conflict in the parent/child relationship. In this case Suyuan is trying to develop Jing-Mei, however Jing-Mei interprets it as interference and a hindrance to her own development of self-esteem and individual identity as she states “why don’t you like me the way I am” page 136.
Suyuan made Jing-Mei take piano lessons, however when Jing-Mei found out her teacher was deaf, she stopped trying and took the easy way out.
This is supported through the quote “I soon found out why Old Chong had retired from teaching piano, he was deaf!” on page 137. Suyuan eventually entered Jing-Mei in a talent contest but considering she never practices nor tried she was entirely unprepared. She sat down feeling confident, but the performance proved a disaster. After the incident at the recital her mother was devastated, this is shown through the quote “but my mothers expression was what devastated me the most… blank look that said she had lost
everything”
Wright and Tan both experience similar complications through their relationships which both support the statement that relationships are fundamental to an understanding and acceptance of oneself. This is supported through the quote from Jing-Mei “I had new thoughts… filled with lots of wont’s… I wont be what I’m not”. This quote shows the conflict between Jing-Mei and Suyuan’s relationship and how it results to Jing-Mei finding her grounds through understanding and accepting herself.
The inevitable bond between Jing-Mei and Suyuan’s relationship not only causes conflict but also creates an understanding between the two, which eventually concludes to each learning to accept oneself.
This is shown through the refurnishing of the piano by Jing-Mei. Years after the piano recital, Suyuan offered the family piano to Jing-Mei as a gift for her 30th birthday. A few months after Suyuan died, Jing-Mei had the piano tuned and refurnished purely for ‘sentimental purposes’.
Therefore in conclusion Amy Tan and Judith Wright both explore the importance in relationships and how they are fundamental to understanding the acceptance of one. This is shown through the example of the story of Jing-Mei and the refurnishing of the piano as well as in the poem through the mothers eyes of not wanting to let her daughter go.
“Relationships are fundamental to an understanding and acceptance of oneself” Discuss the importance of this notion of belonging with reference to your set text and one related text.
“Relationships are fundamental to an understanding and acceptance of oneself” in relation to this statement through both texts Joy luck club by Amy Tan and For My Daughter by Judith Wright will explore the importance of this statement in relation to belonging. Both these texts show how conflict and difficulties in a relationship can lead to both resentment as well as acceptance.
‘For My Daughter’ by Judith Wright explores the idea that time brings change, and within that time, children grow up and separate from their parents. Wright challenges this as she concludes there is an inevitable bond, which cannot be broken but can cause great conflict between the mother and daughter’s relationship when the child is growing up. This is evident through the metaphor “the world has caught you up, to go at the worlds pace” on line 3 in the first stanza.
The connection between the mother and baby is served at birth, however other influences compete with the mother, which then becomes the personal identity of the child. This is evident through the line “you must become your world and …show more content…
follow in its ways”. It is the thoughts and viewpoints through the mother’s perception, which causes conflict to their relationship. When a baby is first born it instantly belongs to its mother, however it is inevitable that the child will develop its own view of the world both in spite of and as well as because of the parents upbringing.
In relation to the Joy ‘Luck Club’, through the character Jing-Mei and mother Suyuan, Tan also explores similar ideas to Wright. Jing-Mei believes that her mother’s criticism bespeaks a lack of affection, which in fact her mother’s high expectations are expressions of love and faith in her daughter. In the story Two Kinds, Jing-Mei describes her childhood, which was full of pain and resentment linked to never becoming the prodigy that he mother desired her to be. Waverly Jong, another character in Joy Luck Club won champion after champion in chess, with her mother Lindo constantly bragging, this made Suyuan more determined to find her daughters hidden talent. However this creates more resentment in Jing-Mei as she sates “I was determined to put a stop to her foolish pride” on page 128. This shows the difficulties and conflict in the parent/child relationship. In this case Suyuan is trying to develop Jing-Mei, however Jing-Mei interprets it as interference and a hindrance to her own development of self-esteem and individual identity as she states “why don’t you like me the way I am” page 136.
Suyuan made Jing-Mei take piano lessons, however when Jing-Mei found out her teacher was deaf, she stopped trying and took the easy way out.
This is supported through the quote “I soon found out why Old Chong had retired from teaching piano, he was deaf!” on page 137. Suyuan eventually entered Jing-Mei in a talent contest but considering she never practices nor tried she was entirely unprepared. She sat down feeling confident, but the performance proved a disaster. After the incident at the recital her mother was devastated, this is shown through the quote “but my mothers expression was what devastated me the most… blank look that said she had lost
everything”
Wright and Tan both experience similar complications through their relationships which both support the statement that relationships are fundamental to an understanding and acceptance of oneself. This is supported through the quote from Jing-Mei “I had new thoughts… filled with lots of wont’s… I wont be what I’m not”. This quote shows the conflict between Jing-Mei and Suyuan’s relationship and how it results to Jing-Mei finding her grounds through understanding and accepting herself.
The inevitable bond between Jing-Mei and Suyuan’s relationship not only causes conflict but also creates an understanding between the two, which eventually concludes to each learning to accept oneself.
This is shown through the refurnishing of the piano by Jing-Mei. Years after the piano recital, Suyuan offered the family piano to Jing-Mei as a gift for her 30th birthday. A few months after Suyuan died, Jing-Mei had the piano tuned and refurnished purely for ‘sentimental purposes’.
Therefore in conclusion Amy Tan and Judith Wright both explore the importance in relationships and how they are fundamental to understanding the acceptance of one. This is shown through the example of the story of Jing-Mei and the refurnishing of the piano as well as in the poem through the mothers eyes of not wanting to let her daughter go.