Pearl S. Buck's The Good Earth

Every person goes through conflict in their lives. In the novel The Good Earth, by Pearl S. Buck, Wang Lung is an average man dealing with everyday problems. The story follows Wang Lung as he goes through his wedding day and all the events that ensue. He goes through problems with money, identity, and love. The Good Earth can be related to “in any age in any quarter of the globe” (New York Times). First, he deals with financial stress with it’s ups and downs. Wang Lung eventually grows wealthier and finds financial stability. But suddenly, there is a big obstacle that ruins the financial stability, which takes the form of a famine. Ultimately, he figures out how to overcome the obstacle and goes back to becoming wealthier and wealthier everyday. Everyone has gone through the financial ups and downs. Another thing Wang Lung experiences is the pressure to do what is expected of him. The first incident happens when Cuckoo taunts him by saying “ Ah, it is only the farmer” (Buck 191) which subsequently causes Wang Lung to pick a concubine to prove that he can afford it. Back in old China, it was expected of a prosperous man to take a concubine home, which Wang Lung does to show that he is wealthy enough to house a person who doesn’t work. Additionally, as a wealthy man, he is goaded into buying the House of Hwang by his oldest son and later admits …show more content…
He buys her expensive items that “cost money more than he liked to give out” (Buck 220). He also listens to Lotus when she demands that he cuts off his braid which then causes Olan to exclaim that he has cut off his life after she sees him. When Lotus complains to Wang Lung about how little she has compared to all the of the other girls in the tea shop, Wang Lung then goes to Olan, who has been nothing but faithful to him and takes away the only two possessions she has to give to Lotus. Wang Lung is blinded by his love and lets it cloud all logical