Andrew Lam uses various themes within his Essay. The different struggles Lam’s faces are major focal points that establish the foundation of this piece. This passage focuses on real-life situations dealt by different cultures clashing with one another. Also, the author expresses how individuals can celebrate traditions in their own ways but still have a connection with old customs. The three major themes that Lam uses throughout this essay are rebellion, a quest for identity and love.
The writer exhibits rebellion against his mother. This is a form of resistance toward his mother’s traditions. Lam uses his self-expression to find his voice away from the Vietnamese cultural rituals practiced within his family. For example, the first observation …show more content…
“No,” I answered in English, curtly. “What good is it to speak it, Mom? It’s not as if I’m going to use it after I move out” ( Lam). He is resisting a part of his Vietnamese culture by refusing to speak the language. Also, this line introduces his newly-found identity that he uses to assimilate between the American and Vietnamese culture. Secondly, a dialogue is used between the writer’s parents to exemplify their accordance to Lam’s rebellious actions. It is stated, …show more content…
This relationship is important to the essay because it shows the reader the affection the author has towards his mother. For example, Lam states, “I am, after all, not a complete American brat, dear mother. Every morning I write, rendering memories into words. I write, going back further, invoking the past precisely because it is irretrievable. I write if only, in the end, to take leave” (Lam). This line talks about how the author takes his mother’s efforts into consideration and uses her traditions of praying silently in his own way of writing his words down. This also shows the reader that Lam’s love for his mother and her beliefs are appreciated through his present-day actions. In addition, Lam expresses his ties to his mother when he states, “. . . it occurs to me as I type these words that this too, strangely enough, is a kind of ritual, a kind of filial impulse to reconcile Mother’s world and my own. The solemnity of the act — my fingers gliding on the keyboard, my mind on things ethereal — is something akin, at last, to my mother’s morning prayers” (Lam). This excerpt conveys the same message of acceptance and unifies the love both individuals
The writer exhibits rebellion against his mother. This is a form of resistance toward his mother’s traditions. Lam uses his self-expression to find his voice away from the Vietnamese cultural rituals practiced within his family. For example, the first observation …show more content…
“No,” I answered in English, curtly. “What good is it to speak it, Mom? It’s not as if I’m going to use it after I move out” ( Lam). He is resisting a part of his Vietnamese culture by refusing to speak the language. Also, this line introduces his newly-found identity that he uses to assimilate between the American and Vietnamese culture. Secondly, a dialogue is used between the writer’s parents to exemplify their accordance to Lam’s rebellious actions. It is stated, …show more content…
This relationship is important to the essay because it shows the reader the affection the author has towards his mother. For example, Lam states, “I am, after all, not a complete American brat, dear mother. Every morning I write, rendering memories into words. I write, going back further, invoking the past precisely because it is irretrievable. I write if only, in the end, to take leave” (Lam). This line talks about how the author takes his mother’s efforts into consideration and uses her traditions of praying silently in his own way of writing his words down. This also shows the reader that Lam’s love for his mother and her beliefs are appreciated through his present-day actions. In addition, Lam expresses his ties to his mother when he states, “. . . it occurs to me as I type these words that this too, strangely enough, is a kind of ritual, a kind of filial impulse to reconcile Mother’s world and my own. The solemnity of the act — my fingers gliding on the keyboard, my mind on things ethereal — is something akin, at last, to my mother’s morning prayers” (Lam). This excerpt conveys the same message of acceptance and unifies the love both individuals