Chinese American Literature
by: Athena Banh and Claire Huber
Both past and current Chinese American literature pertain to the overarching themes of assimilation, preservation of culture among generations, and ethnic identity. Specifically in the Chinese American poem series, "Poetic Waves," the hardships faced by past immigrants such as interrogation, homesickness, and the overall immigration experience, are explored through the use of eloquent diction, awakening comparisons, and detailed visual images (Angel Island). Similarly, a memoir written by Maxine Hong Kingston, The Woman Warrior, employs a theme of contrasting individual and communal silence and voice with several motifs and themes, such as a mythical female warrior and the many women in Kingston's life that she represents, and the symbol of bound feet, representing the restrictions on Chinese culture and personal will. The revelations of such feelings of Chinese immigrants in the face of American society also reflect on the social and economic oppression that they faced before, upon, and after their arrival into the US. As the initial Chinese settlers arrived in the US as strikebreakers to provide cheap labor, other ethnic groups and the superior Anglo-Saxons of the time conceived the notions that the Chinese were inferior to them in terms of social and economic standards. Due to that obstacle of oppression, the immigrants were forced to confront the challenge of developing a significant and influential voice and identity, as individuals, communities, and an ethnicity outside of its homeland.
by: Athena Banh and Claire Huber
Both past and current Chinese American literature pertain to the overarching themes of assimilation, preservation of culture among generations, and ethnic identity. Specifically in the Chinese American poem series, "Poetic Waves," the hardships faced by past immigrants such as interrogation, homesickness, and the overall immigration experience, are explored through the use of eloquent diction, awakening comparisons, and detailed visual images (Angel Island). Similarly, a memoir written by Maxine Hong Kingston, The Woman Warrior, employs a theme of contrasting individual and communal silence and voice with several motifs and themes, such as a mythical female warrior and the many women in Kingston's life that she represents, and the symbol of bound feet, representing the restrictions on Chinese culture and personal will. The revelations of such feelings of Chinese immigrants in the face of American society also reflect on the social and economic oppression that they faced before, upon, and after their arrival into the US. As the initial Chinese settlers arrived in the US as strikebreakers to provide cheap labor, other ethnic groups and the superior Anglo-Saxons of the time conceived the notions that the Chinese were inferior to them in terms of social and economic standards. Due to that obstacle of oppression, the immigrants were forced to confront the challenge of developing a significant and influential voice and identity, as individuals, communities, and an ethnicity outside of its homeland.
Chinese American Artwork
by: Olivier Levy and Zik Schriever
The Chinese artwork can be seen as an interpretation of the Chinese American's life. The mural shown on the left depicts various Chinese mythological beings, including dragons and gods, yet also shows faceless people affected by various real life things, such as cigarettes causing one person to become depressed, and a group of people who are uplifted through their life in a good community. Through this, we can determine that the author believes that people can be improved through a well built community, whereas cheap temptations, such as tobacco, can bring a person down to a low level of living. This combination of using physical support through a community and spiritual support through Chinese Buddhist beliefs is a core concept of the community.
by: Olivier Levy and Zik Schriever
The Chinese artwork can be seen as an interpretation of the Chinese American's life. The mural shown on the left depicts various Chinese mythological beings, including dragons and gods, yet also shows faceless people affected by various real life things, such as cigarettes causing one person to become depressed, and a group of people who are uplifted through their life in a good community. Through this, we can determine that the author believes that people can be improved through a well built community, whereas cheap temptations, such as tobacco, can bring a person down to a low level of living. This combination of using physical support through a community and spiritual support through Chinese Buddhist beliefs is a core concept of the community.
Chinese American Newsletters
by: Cadelia Evans and Hudson Hadd
The quintessence of writing from Chinese immigrants, shockingly enough, differentiates itself from the beliefs lived out by the immigrants in daily life. The Chinese pay the utmost respect for their elders, a fact not lost in their writing. In a compilation of newsletters from the Chinese Historical Society of New England, any reference to ancestors or older generations is surrounded by positive connotation and a certain reverence that lacks a presence in almost any other culture. Even immigrated college students recognized a way of life that is slowing slipping away in American culture. When visiting the Mount Hope Cemetery, a student comments on how she can feel the presence of her great-grandfather around her and will go out of her way to recreate that experience in order to, “keep a culture to respect the elders while they are still alive” (Quon 6). The other major style of writing seen in these newsletters, is that the Chinese write in a prideful tone. Especially in the case of Boston, home to one of the oldest Chinatowns in the United States and oldest on the eastern seaboard, Chinese immigrants write with a sense of accomplishment. When describing the events of a ceremony recognizing the historical significance of Boston’s Chinatown, one author points out how the participants were “treated to an array of photographs,” depicting early settlers, and how the audiences “pondered and marveled” at the stories of immigrants before them (Lam 2-3). Lam then concludes by mentioning how people’s resolve demanded the preservation and promotion of the “unique character, stories and history of the Chinatown community,” to pass along to future generations (3).
by: Cadelia Evans and Hudson Hadd
The quintessence of writing from Chinese immigrants, shockingly enough, differentiates itself from the beliefs lived out by the immigrants in daily life. The Chinese pay the utmost respect for their elders, a fact not lost in their writing. In a compilation of newsletters from the Chinese Historical Society of New England, any reference to ancestors or older generations is surrounded by positive connotation and a certain reverence that lacks a presence in almost any other culture. Even immigrated college students recognized a way of life that is slowing slipping away in American culture. When visiting the Mount Hope Cemetery, a student comments on how she can feel the presence of her great-grandfather around her and will go out of her way to recreate that experience in order to, “keep a culture to respect the elders while they are still alive” (Quon 6). The other major style of writing seen in these newsletters, is that the Chinese write in a prideful tone. Especially in the case of Boston, home to one of the oldest Chinatowns in the United States and oldest on the eastern seaboard, Chinese immigrants write with a sense of accomplishment. When describing the events of a ceremony recognizing the historical significance of Boston’s Chinatown, one author points out how the participants were “treated to an array of photographs,” depicting early settlers, and how the audiences “pondered and marveled” at the stories of immigrants before them (Lam 2-3). Lam then concludes by mentioning how people’s resolve demanded the preservation and promotion of the “unique character, stories and history of the Chinatown community,” to pass along to future generations (3).