Lit Analysis #3 : The Joy Luck Club

“I closed my eyes and pondered my next move.” (Tan 101) Life is a game that gets more and more complicated as the years go by. We learn the rules and how to play from our parents from an early age.  For many, their mothers teach them many life lessons, many that at first they don’t listen to. In The Joy Luck Club, by Amy Tan, we can see the relationship between mother and daughter, in which both learn from each other. In each story, four mothers instruct their daughters, learn from them, and realize many things about themselves.

            “You must watch what everybody else throws away and keep that in your head as well.” (Tan 33) Throughout the novel, we learn of the different hardships that each of the Chinese-American families has experienced. From Lindo Jong’s arranged marriage, to Rose Hsu Jordan’s loss of her brother, there’s one recurring thing in each chapter. The Chinese mothers attempt to advise and provide support for their white-washed American-Chinese children. In many cases, the daughters seem to realize that their mothers were indeed right. The mothers draw from their own experiences with their mothers, in attempts to save their daughters from suffering. Many of the mothers have a fear that their daughters will not be “proper chinese women” and proceed to try and chance their offspring.  An example of this is Jing-mei’s mother, Suyuan Woo. Out of jealousy of her friend Lindo Jong, she attempts to “bring out Jing-mei’s inner genius.” She wasn’t doing it so that her daughter could become a better human being, but rather so she could boast to her friend. Regardless to their beliefs, each of the mothers learn new things from their daughters that ultimately influence them and their decisions later on.

            “A mother is best. A mother knows what is inside you.” All four mothers of The Joy Luck club, believe they know what is best for their daughter. They never consider however, that maybe they could learn a thing or two from them. Lindo recognizes through her daughter Waverly that she has been changed by American culture. Ying-ying realizes that Lena has unknowingly followed her passive nature in her marriage to Harold. An-mei realizes that Rose has not understood the lessons she taught her about faith and hope, which she herself has lost belief in.