T a h r ’N t s eces oe W RITTEN BY SUSAN LA M ARCA Chinese Cinderella Adeline Yen Mah This book is the moving autobiography of a young Chinese girl‚ Adeline Yen Mah. Born the fifth child to an affluent Chinese family her life begins tragically. Adeline’s mother died shortly after her birth due to complications bought on by the delivery‚ and in Chinese culture this marks her as cursed or ‘bad luck’ (p.3). This situation is compounded by her father’s new marriage to a lady who has little
Premium Health care Investment Management
Chinese Cinderella is Adeline Yen Mah’s remarkable autobiography of her childhood. She was a rejected daughter growing up in World War II China. She longed for her father’s acceptance after her mother died in childbirth and her father remarried a young and cruel Eurasian woman. She finally receives his attention and brings honor to her family by winning a creative writing competition. In Adeline’s story the idea’s of rejection‚ abandonment and overcoming adversity is cleverly conveyed through the
Premium Family
Chinese Cinderella I. Introduction: A.) Title of the book: * Chinese Cinderella (The true story of an unwanted daughter) B.) Author: * Adeline Yen Mah C.) Summary of the book: * When Adeline was born‚ her siblings called her a bad luck‚ because of their mother’s death. One year later‚ her father married a half French and half Chinese woman‚ who hated Adeline‚ as a replacement for her dead wife. Every time Adeline receives a reward from school‚ she would tell
Premium Family Sibling
Last term our class studied Chinese Cinderella by Adeline Yen Mah. It is Adeline’s story‚ about her tough and horrible childhood as a neglected and unloved daughter of a rich and arrogant man‚ and a cruel‚ and abusive Stepmother. Right from the moment her mother died‚ Adeline was labelled as ‘bad luck’. Her family was very superstitious and believed she caused her mothers death so was therefore despised‚ no one wanted her around at all. Unfortunately for Adeline she didn’t really have any parents
Premium Family Chinese Cinderella Chinese Cinderella and the Secret Dragon Society
FROM CHINESE CINDERELLA Adeline Yen Mah’s ‘Chinese Cinderella’ is the story of pain‚ rejection and triumph. Mental pain‚ contempt and cruelty were the harsh realities of her life. But the will to succeed and win recognition proved to be powerful motivating factors. The subtext is based in the years 1940-1950 and on memoirs of Adeline’s childhood. This extract is based on one of the few occasions when she went home. The title has a dreamy fairy tale like tone. It is used in an ironic manner and appropriately
Premium Chinese Cinderella Chinese Cinderella and the Secret Dragon Society Self-esteem
The novel Chinese Cinderella is an autobiography written by Adeline Yen Mah about the harsh life she had whilst growing up. Adelineʼs childhood shapes her character‚ the reader can see these developments throughout the novel. One characteristic easily seen is her love for reading and writing. Adeline is also a very intelligent school student who accomplishes many achievements in the novel. Her intelligence also leads to her success. Adelineʼs modesty of her intelligence and impressive writing skills
Premium Chinese Cinderella Chinese Cinderella and the Secret Dragon Society Kate Winslet
From Chinese Cinderella Growing up in a wealthy family in 1950s Hong Kong‚ Adeline Yen Mah should have had an enviable childhood‚ but she was rejected by her dominating stepmother and despised by her brothers and sisters. She was sent to a boarding school and left there. In this extract from her autobiography she relates one of the few occasions when she went home. Time went by relentlessly and it was Saturday again. Eight weeks more and it would be the end of term … in my case perhaps the end of
Premium Gender role Chinese Cinderella Chinese Cinderella and the Secret Dragon Society
Adeline’s character: In Chinese Cinderella‚ there are many instances whereby we can observe positive characteristic of Adeline. Firstly‚ Adeline is accepting of her situation and is very forgiving. On the first day of school‚ there was no one taking her to school and after school‚ “nobody was coming to pick her up”. However‚ she does not blame her father for failing to pick her up from school. Not only she is accepting to her situation‚ she is also very independent. She did not ask for help but
Premium Family Sibling Stepfamily
Family & Relationships Leaving behind & Loneliness Self-esteem Here are quotes which support these themes: Family and Relationships: ‘To her we are not separate people. Over here‚ we have become a single unit known as all of you’. (page 28) This quote relates to the theme of family and relationships. The profound barrier between Niang’s biological children and step-children is described through the different treatment of the two groups‚ with Niang’s ‘real’ children favoured immensely. ‘In
Free Sibling Family Empathy
Family and Relationships: ‘To her we are not separate people. Over here‚ we have become a single unit known as all of you’. (page 28) This quote relates to the theme of family and relationships. The profound barrier between Niang’s biological children and step-children is portrayed through the different treatment of the two groups‚ with Niang’s ‘real’ children favoured immensely. ‘In no time at all big sister went over to the other side. I knew Niang loathed me and despised my aunt
Free Sibling Family Empathy