Love In 'Poor Fish And The Tall Woman And Her Short Husband'

Love is in the eyes of the beholder. This statement has been uttered throughout time and throughout the world. Love has influenced everything from art to music, even writing. Ji-Cai and Moravia used the concept of love in their short stories "Poor Fish" and "The Tall Woman and Her Short Husband" to not only reach a wide audience but to also show that love is not "skin deep". "Poor Fish" is about a less than fortunate man who became friends with a woman who can see past his insecurities. "The Tall Woman and Her Short Husband" is about a tall woman who loves a short man and everyone believes it 's for his money but it was shown throughout the novel that true love between the two exists. Both of these short stories, even though they were written …show more content…
When the other woman in the village do not believe that the couple is really in love the tall woman is interrogated “Say!” she screeched. Why did you marry him?”(Ji-cai). This shows the other womans distrust in the tall woman when she admits that she really loves the short man. The author of this short story was known for writing about things abnormal to society, for example a literary critic stated “Their (Ji-Cai) genre, called "literature of the wounded," sparked controversy because they dared to tackle taboo subjects”. This supports that Ji-Cai dared to be abnormal and defy societal norms like the tall woman and the short man in his short story.
These short stories differ in their settings and surroundings. The short story “Poor Fish” is in a more accepting society even though they still face the hardship of some people judging them. In “The Tall Woman and Her Short Husband” the society is more strict and the couple faces more hardship in the way that they are being judged and laughed at by everyone for expressing true love. Even with the cultural difference between these stories it still conveys the same message that judging other people for doing what they like is not a good way to conduct