On Gold Mountain
On Gold Mountain: The One-Hundred-Year Odyssey of My Chinese-American Family written by Lisa See is an inspirational narrative depicting her Chinese families experiences and struggles immigrating to the west coast of America during the 19th and 20th century. The author was effective in telling her families story. There were similarities and differences between the Fong family’s experiences and the Chinese community’s immigration experiences as a whole. Immigration to America was a phenomenon for Chinese people in the late 19th century in search of “Gold Mountain”. This was a term in Chinese culture to describe economic opportunity in the state of California after gold was found. The title of the book is a very appropriate metaphor for expressing Fong See’s determination and success in America in the sense of him conquering Gold Mountain. This paper will compare Fong See’s family’s immigrant experiences to that of the Chinese immigrant community collectively. Of focus will be the effects of the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, the significance of Chinese ethnic enclaves, the treatment and role of Chinese women within American culture, the difficulties that the Chinese immigrants had with assimilating to American culture, and the negative attitudes towards the Chinese on all levels in America. Analyzing Chinese assimilation and the negative attitudes towards the group will be done in the same section because of the similarities between the two themes. All of these themes will be compared to the experience of Fong See and his family in America.
The California gold rush of 1848 brought huge economic attention to the west coast of America and this attracted thousands of immigrants from all over the world. The state’s population increased from 15,000 to 250,000 in the four year period after gold was discovered. Chinese immigrants were seen as the most worthy of the newly adopted citizens by the Governor of California due to their strong work ethic and low
The California gold rush of 1848 brought huge economic attention to the west coast of America and this attracted thousands of immigrants from all over the world. The state’s population increased from 15,000 to 250,000 in the four year period after gold was discovered. Chinese immigrants were seen as the most worthy of the newly adopted citizens by the Governor of California due to their strong work ethic and low
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