The Joy Luck Club Hero's Journey

The Hero’s Journey in The Joy Luck Club In Amy Tan’s novel The Joy Luck Club, Tan explores the difficulty of immigration and adjustment to a different culture by following the women of four families. Throughout the novel, Tan slowly reveals the struggles of each individual woman’s life, both in the past and in the present. Tan’s story may not immediately translate into Joseph Campbell’s widely recognized Hero’s Journey, but certain characters resemble Campbell’s path of character development. Lindo Jong’s life in China and in the United States reflect this path. Lindo Jong’s early life, her ordinary world, starts in China. Lindo grows up in a moderately wealthy family, and early in her life, is pledged to marry to a much richer husband, Tyan-Yu. A flood eventually rips Lindo from the comfort of her family, which results in her living with her fiance. This acts as Lino’s call to adventure, which was not her marriage with Tyan-Yu. Lindo’s call to adventure is her self-determination. Up until this point, Lindo does not fully understand the implications of her marriage. As she becomes subjected to more unequal treatment by her mother-in-law, Lindo begins to realize what her future holds as Tyan-Yu’s husband. This continuous mistreatment allows
While bringing up Waverly, Lindo begins to again lose her focus of self. She becomes overwhelmed in the American way of life, and starts to loosen her grip on her Chinese identity. However, after Lindo alarmingly discovers that Waverly is a purely American girl, Lindo again coordinates her effort on her Chinese identity, attempting to resurrect what was lost or forgotten. She tells Waverly of her past and clears up Waverly’s misconceptions about her life. This discovery is reminiscent of Campbell’s Resurrection and Return with Elixir. Lindo has completed her Hero’s