Calendar

“Lottery in June, corn be heavy soon” (Jackson 246). “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson describes about a tradition of an annual lottery draw, participated by the people of a village to insure a bountiful harvest. Usually in lotteries, the winners get something special that makes them happy. But in this story, the tradition of the lottery is that whoever is the winner is stoned to death to get a good crop on coming harvest time. We know that tradition is an important part of any culture. But this…

Conformity in Chinese and American Society Woman Warrior, written by Maxine Hong Kingston, focuses on the topic of conformity. Throughout the novel, Kingston is forced to conform to both Chinese traditions and American society. Her mother, Brave Orchid, pressures Kingston to conform to Chinese tradition, which is believed to keep her safe and make her a strong Chinese woman. However, Kingston, who is growing up in American society, is confronted with the new American beliefs, offering more…

In the book, Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan, in the chapter “Double Face” Lindo realizes how impossible it is to be both Chinese and American through a flashback. She hopes that through her story, Waverly will realize what Lindo is just beginning to understand herself. As the chapter “Double Face” begins, Lindo and her daughter Waverly find themselves in a beauty parlor preparing for Waverly’s second wedding. As they are both looking at each other in the mirror comparing themselves, Lindo slips into…

Pushing Hands (1992), Wedding Banquet (1993), and Eat Drink Man Woman (1994) are Ang Lee’s award-winning trilogy that established his unprecedented success in both film critic and global market. In Ma’s article, he defined Ang Lee’s trilogy as domestic tragicomedy, the word “domestic” refers to not only family, but also nation and Chinese culture; and “tragicomedy” indicates the elaborated melancholic immigrant culture in both Chinese and Chinese diaspora with a light-hearted tone (193). Indeed,…

Standards in Their New Lives In the novel The Joy Luck Club written by Amy Tan, four families of Chinese immigrants gather around a mahjong table. Jing-Mei Woo is to replace her mother’s seat at the table. After Jing-Mei’s mother passes away, it is her responsibility to take over the seat. Jealousy fills the group when comparing their daughter's abilities. Beauty is important to all of the daughters and their mothers. Superstition factors into their everyday lives controlling their…

Ensuring Business Negotiation In China As technology advances so does the efficiency in transportation. With fast reliable transportation business people in America want to expand their businesses out of the country. Since China is one of the world largest growing economy, Americans are lure into wanting to make business with them. When Americans go to China, they are not only expose to a new territory but culture as well. By knowing the compare and contrast culture of China, Americans would…

Across the globe there are a number of barriers that separate the people who live within them. Language, religion, race, culture, and geography are just a few of these barriers. Throughout time people have seen many events that can bind some of these countries together. One constant is athletic events. Some countries are more powerful at this. Ancient Chinese sports like juedixi, dragon boat racing, and cuju are able to connect and unify many people across the globe and allow barriers to be…

Insert title later Many books that are considered societally great all share the same virtue of relevancy and usefulness across generations. Although in today’s era of increasingly advanced technology almost all books will be preserved for future generations, that was not the case up until very recently. Books that are considered classics by today’s standards are ones that were passed down by generations, for hundreds or even thousands of years. Books from the Greek and Roman era, and even from…

Have you ever wondered how festive Chinese culture truly is? China’s culture has always been very festive, and a place where tradition is valued greatly. China celebrates many festivals as the year passes; festivals such as: Spring Festival, Winter Solstice Festival, Lantern Festival, and many more. These festivals are celebrations for things such as the seasons changing or other events. These celebrations call to wear traditional clothing most of the time, and are usually full of color, music,…

The film Useless by Jia Zhang-ke is a film like nothing I have ever seen before. The film is one in which Zhang-ke explores the many realities of Chinese culture; the culture that the Chinese receive from elsewhere, the culture that has been created by the exploitation of the working class, and Chinese culture from the perspective of the outsider (the viewer). By exploring three features of the clothing industry in China, Jia delicately explores the monetary and imaginative options of not just…