a lifestyle a Chinese family begins in America. The family consists of a mother and a daughter. The mother is a hard worker and did a lot to come to America‚ but her daughter is not doing much to stand out and is wasting an opportunity in America. Gish Jen’s “Who’s Irish” tells the story of a sixty-eight-year-old Chinese immigrant and her struggle to accept other cultures different from her own. The Chinese mother has a daughter who she has to babysit for‚ because the daughter’s family could not
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Mistakes are often essential factors of one’s wisdom and future success. People can always gain precious life lessons from their flaws‚ which resemble the pebbles that make a stable and perfect road. In the novel Typical American written by Gish Jen‚ the protagonist‚ Ralph Chang‚ makes a mistake in which he shifts and tortures his original American dream to a false and ‘poisonous’ dream that causes his ultimate familial‚ moral and financial collapse; in other words‚ he fails to create a ‘China’ with
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Americans. In “Who’s Irish?”‚ Gish Jen shows the discrepancy between the expectations of a Chinese grandmother and the actions of her Irish-Chinese granddaughter‚
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Gish Jen ’s In the American Society is‚ on the surface‚ an entertaining look into the workings of a Chinese American family making their way in America. The reader is introduced to the life of a Chinese American restaurant owner and his family through the eyes of his American-born daughter. When we examine the work in depth‚ however‚ we discover that Jen is addressing how traditional Chinese values work in American culture. She touches on the difference in gender roles‚ generation gaps between
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November 5‚ 2012 Family and Cultural Conflicts It has often been said that coming to America is the start of a new life for many immigrant families. The novels Mona and the Promised Land by Gish Jen‚ and Hunger of Memory by Richard Rodriguez‚ it is said that “American means being whatever you want” (Jen 49). Mona and Rodriguez both strive to reach that “American dream.” They take the initiative throughout the novel and seek what they want to become. However‚ the novels show that in order for Mona
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¡§Who¡¦s Irish?¡¨ This story ¡§Who¡¦s Irish?¡¨ was written in 1999 by Gish Jen who is a second generation of Chinese American. As a daughter of Chinese immigrants‚ she deeply perceived the culture difference. ¡§Who¡¦s Irish?¡¨ is also based on her identity. Told by an immigrant Chinese grandmother‚ this story is full of thoughts and feelings of being a grandmother. Through the perspective of the grandmother‚ we can understand the inner thoughts and emotions of the protagonist. The point of view
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America Annie Steele Period 9 Coming to America Annie Steele Period 9 1. “Coming to America Question 2: What major difference does the author see between life in the “Old World” and life in the United States? Explain. The author‚ Gish Jen‚ sees a major difference between the way of life in the “Old World” as opposed to the way of life in our society in the United States now-a-days. She states “In the Old World‚ there was one way of life‚ or 2‚ maybe 10‚” and looking back in history
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America can be seen as a once-in-a-lifetime- opportunity. Assimilation is difficult for the reason that it requires an individual to gradually change and become accustom to the culture that is different from his or her own. “In American Society” By Gish Jen‚ the author allows the reader to follow a character named Ralph and watch him struggle to assimilate with American society. Ralph‚ the father of two decided to open a restaurant to provide a future for his daughters. He saw it as an opportunity
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Achieving the American Dream Typical American‚ by Gish Jen is a detailed account of Ralph Chang’s life‚ the friendship he forms and the struggles and achievements he conquers. Supporting the rich story are themes ranging from the paradox of freedom‚ to the assimilation of a race of immigrants. However one major theme Jen emphasizes is the pursuit of the American Dream. All immigrants who come to the United States have this search for success when they first set foot on American soil. It is a dream
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Summary: “Who’s Irish” written by Jen Gish‚ tells the story of a sixty-eight-year-old Chinese immigrant and her struggle to accept other cultures different from her own. The main character is the fierce Chinese grandmother who is the former owner of a Restaurant. She has been living in the United States for a while but is still critical of other cultures‚ such as her son-in-law’s‚ John‚ Irish family and the American values. Therefore she is disappointed that her daughter‚ Natalie‚ insist of living
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