Amy Tan Fish Cheeks Analysis

Improved Essays
At 14 it is easy to be unaware of whom you truly are and whether or not to be proud of whom you think you are. In the story Fish Cheeks by Amy Tan that is very true. She struggles with embracing her true identity and family in front of people who might not have the same customs as her and her family. Her family is American Asian so they celebrate things differently as the family they invited. In this paper I will be discussing just a few of the different Chinese American customs.

The American Asian culture is an interesting one primarily because of all of its different customs. A large part of that are the typical American Asian foods. Most of American Asian food is “adapting local ingredients and catering their customers tastes (Roberts,

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Lived Back Home

    • 1222 Words
    • 5 Pages

    The Identity Conflicts of First Generation Children In the short story, “Lectures on How You Never Lived Back Home,” M. Evelina Galang illustrates the frustration and struggle first generation children confront in finding their identity while growing up in America. She expresses the thoughts and emotions of a young, Filipino-American girl who tries to find a balance between her American culture and Filipino roots. From trying to please her family’s customs and blending in with American society, Galang shows how first generation youth often feel conflicted about their identities because they try to live two different cultures.…

    • 1222 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Both Amy Tan and Firoozeh Dumas showcase heroes that have positively impacted them in their narrative essays. In her essay “Fish Cheeks,” Amy Tan narrates about her struggles of self-acceptance and the shameful actions her family presented during a Christmas Eve family dinner with her crush Robert, and his family. She also talks about the moment her mother gave her encouraging words about self-love. During the Christmas Eve dinner, Tan’s relatives licked their chopsticks and poked them in different plates of food, her father poked a fish’s cheek and yelling across the table “Amy, your favorite” offering her the piece of fish, and he later belched loudly showing he is satisfied according to Chinese customs. Even though Tan was dealing with cultural acceptance, her family was…

    • 416 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Decent Essays

    To begin with, everyone has an identity. In both texts the authors convey feeling and experiences. The author conveys the idea of identity because he shows feeling and talks about Amy and Julia’s experiences. In addition, in Fish Cheeks there is an experience that shows how Amy Tan is conveying her feelings.…

    • 254 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    She holds in contempt her roots, though. Meanwhile, the young daughter is proud of her origin. Amy Tan presents the reader Chinese mother and daughter who wants to live a marvelous life in America. The one can observe Jing Mei-Woo’s childhood and her mother’s expectation for the daughter.…

    • 296 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Tan, a young Chinese American author relives her encounters as a preteen minority. Tan had issues accepting her heritage in a country where “a slim new American nose” and blonde hair were seen as the ideal images of beauty (Tan 116). At the Christmas dinner, Tan’s mother has invited…

    • 1018 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Fish Cheeks

    • 830 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Embarrassed and hiding her face, Amy Tan struggles to accept herself during an excruciating dinner her mother had set up with an american family. The lesson she was taught here is one she will come to remember for a long time. This story, Fish Cheeks, by Tan shines a light on the idea that parents lessons are better learned through austerity. Kids will remember the moments in life where they felt strong emotions, like anger, embarrassment, and shame. Kids remember lessons through thoughts and feelings, and getting a harsh lesson from a parent is always remembered.…

    • 830 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    When my father first immigrated from China to America, he was nervous, bittersweet about leaving his native country, but mostly excited. To him and thousands of others like him, America was a sign of a life of new opportunity. Growing up, my life was a blend of American and Chinese cultures. As a young child, I was always unsure if I was more American or Chinese, or even both. I didn’t feel like I fit into any of those categories.…

    • 608 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    One thing you can never change is who you are on the inside, your origins, and a beautiful quote that represents this understanding is “Some people like you, some people don't. In the end, you just have to be yourself “ ( Andres Iniesta). Similar to this quote, in the passage “Fish Cheeks” by Amy Tan, the narrator Amy falls in love with a boy named Robert (The Minister's son). The way her culture lives is very distinct to the way Robert lives, because of this she is appalled by the way her family eats in front of their family and is disgusted by their actions. Similarly in the Passage “Aria: A Memoir of a Bilingual Childhood” by Richard Rodriguez, the narrator Richard is distinguishing himself from his family because he grew more attached to…

    • 744 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Asian culture contributed a lot to the american society. American society is built upon our diversity and differences and that's what make us so strong as a whole country. Every culture contribute something. Asians and latinos brought over their cooking skills , we have many Latinos…

    • 437 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Countries such as China, Italy, Africa, and much more have contributed to the meals that Americans eat today. When immigrants from different countries first came to the United States they tried their hardest to make their meals from back home. Most of the time immigrants would have to tweak these foods because the states did not acquire certain ingredients needed to make that meal. “American cooking today is one of the most vital cuisines in the world” (Rosengarten 216). Along the year’s America’s food has changed in many ways and because of this, the country is more diverse and distinct.…

    • 509 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    There is a large contradiction between traditional Chinese-American and Westernized Chinese-Americans. Mrs. Spring Fragrance tried to help her neighbor, Laura, get out of her arranged marriage. Laura was in love with an American- born man named Kai Tzu, however, she was arranged to marry a schoolteacher’s son. Laura tries to become as American as possible. She lives…

    • 1747 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    As the daughter of an Asian immigrant, I’ve dealt with stereotypes my whole life. It’s true that my family can be considered “typically” Chinese; my mom urges me to study hard and I want to follow her footsteps in medicine. But my drive doesn’t come from a strict household like most people assume. At 35, my mom, with 2 year old me, my dad, and my grandparents, came to America. Divorced a year later, she single handedly took care of our family for over 14 years.…

    • 168 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Without the constant pressure of Chinese tradition overhead, humor and affection replaced the constant need to pay respect; thus “living became fun.” Life was no longer about respecting tradition or family honor, instead Wong was able to shape her own life by experimenting with courses, extracurricular activities (e.g. pottery), and new friends. Although she experienced American culture in an uninhibited setting, Wong refused to abandon her familial culture, “No matter how critical [Jade Snow] was of [her parents], she could not discard all they stood for and accept as a substitute the philosophy of the foreigners.” At her core, she was Chinese, exposure to American culture did not usurp her heritage - it simply modified it. Thus, Wong became a Chinese-American - able to see the world through two sets of eyes.…

    • 757 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    People should be proud where there family came from and who they’re family are and not be embarrassed of their heritage. Many people today are uncomfortable of their backgrounds and do not have the pride everyone should have today. In Amy Tan’s story "Fish Cheeks" displayed imagery, figuration, and mood in her story. Ehast the story mostly reviews over is that people today do not take pride on who they are today, even though people do not like who they are personally, Tan does not stay true to herself and wants to fix everything who she is in the beginning of the story. The story uses irony Around the end of the story the author shows an important message that one should be proud of your roots and who you are.…

    • 826 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Rosa Miranda 25 November 2017 Professor Bonser Culture and Acceptance in Gene Luen Yang’s Graphic Novel “American Born Chinese” In the young adult literature winning graphic novel American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang, the authors purpose is to encourage young adults to accept themselves for whom they really are. Throughout the story, the main characters are being triggered by the lack of acceptance from the society they are surrounded by and want to fit in. Each main character is extremely affected by the racial and cultural differences and lead them to doing things that are not appropriate for their own good. The graphic novel involves three different stories.…

    • 820 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays