Haney 1

Maisy Haney
Ohanian
English 11 Honors 4A
4 February 2015
Information Portrayed Through a Novel
Chinese women often had many struggles that lead to a surplus of issues throughout their
lives. In the 19th century, the vast majority of Chinese women received no schooling and were
economically dependent on men (Jacka 82). The actions and characteristics of many of the
women were a result of something tragic that occurred in their lives. Amy Tans novel, The Joy
Luck Club, goes through the lives of Chinese-American women during their time in China, as
well as their new lives in America. Four women share their cultural experiences with their
daughters that are becoming accustomed to the American trends and traditions. The novel
accurately depicts what life was like for women during the nineteenth century in China and the
America, including the furniture placement, the way they were treated, and marriage laws.
The way furniture placement is depicted in Tans novel is realistic. Throughout China
during the century, ritual connections within a household were very strong and important to
Chinese culture (Harrell 2406). People in China arranged their furniture in their homes as a result
of the obsession with rooms being balanced and cooperative with the environment (Harrell
2406). In The Joy Luck Club, Ying-Ying demonstrated this action of rearranging the furniture
due to the fact that she was convinced that things are not in order. Ying-Yings daughter Lena
described her mothers actions by stating, she whispered some Chinese nonsense instead:
when something goes against your nature, you are not in balance. This house was built too
steep, and a bad wind from the top blows your strength down the hill (Tan 108-109).

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Sometimes the Chinese people believed that an imbalance in the furniture would result in
unfavorable events or feelings. Conflict in families is sometimes attributed to bad geomantic
sting or improper proportioning or layout of a house (Harrell 2406). Ying-Ying began to feel the
distance between her family members as she saw her concerned father constantly watching her
mother (Tan 113). The large bridge between her mother and her father was a result of the
imbalanced furniture. They tend to see that unhealthy family relations are due to the format of
their homes, and hopefully moving the furniture around will lead to better family relations. YingYing began to see things around her home as if they were her real life struggles, instead of just
objects and rooms. Lena, Ying-Yings daughter, continued to explain her mothers odd behavior
by stating, And then she started pointing to the walls and doors of the apartment. See how
narrow this doorway is, like a neck that has been strangled. And the kitchen faces this toilet
room, so all your worth is flushed away (Tan 109). In the early 20th century Chinese culture,
things needed to constantly be in balance, or else their lives would be changed dramatically for
the worse. Ying-Ying, in The Joy Luck Club, was a character who accurately demonstrated the
concentration of the arrangement of the furniture in her home.
The novel portrayed the aspect regarding women in China being completely mistreated
by the men. They were often severely abused by the men in Asia (Wang 4). The men went
unpunished for the crimes they had committed, their women had few rights in their homes, and
the men would do anything to have a son. It is shown through modern texts that during the 19th
century, men in China were allowed to rape and kill their women (Xu 1). Towards the end of the
novel, An-Mei tells a story to the readers about her mother who was placed as a concubine in
China for Wu-Tsing. As An- Mei listened carefully to the stories about her mother, and painfully
said, I wanted my mother to shout at Wu Tsing, to shout at Second Wife, to shout at Yan Chang

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and say she was wrong to tell me these stories. But my mother did not even have the right to do
this. She had no choice (Tan 238). The woman had no right to speak up for herself and say how
she felt about her situation. There was also an extreme desire for male children, and if the first
wife could not have a male child, then he could marry a second wife with consent of the first (Xu
1). Yan Chang told An-Mei a story about her mothers beginning life as a concubine when she
said, Wu Tsing asked her to be his concubine, not for love, but because of the prestige of
owning what so many other men wanted. (Tan 234). Many men at the time were focused on
having a male child, without caring who the mother was going to be. The novel accurately
displayed the life for women as concubines and the rights they had during that time period in
China.
The arranged marriage in the novel correctly compared to the marriages in China.
Arranged marriages in Asia were extremely popular. It was an unchangeable law that left the
parents in control of the transaction. The sons commitment to his family was much greater then
his commitment to his wife, so there was often a disconnect between the husband and wife (Xu
1). Throughout all of Asia, the selection of a spouse was usually carried out with only minor
input from the man and woman who were to be mates (Fried 453). The families and the gobetweens, or a negotiator controlled the transaction (Fried 453). Lindo Jong was placed in an
arranged marriage, and she stated in the novel, We were told stories of sons who were so
influenced by bad wives that they threw their old, crying parents out into the street. So,
Taiyuanese mothers continued to choose their daughters-in-law, ones who would raise proper
sons (Tan 51). The mothers of the men chose their sons wife to ensure a proper life for their
son and her family. These arranged marriages lead to a distance between the husband and wife
after they got married (Fried 453). Lindo experienced this and said, So I didnt have instant love

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for my future husband the way you see on television today. I thought of this boy more like a
troublesome cousin (Tan 52). He was seen as more of a hassle to her than a love. A sons
commitment to his family was far more important than his commitment to his wife (Xu 1). Tyanyu, Lindos husband, and his family were mostly concerned about having a child. As the husband
and wife tried to have a child, Lindo admitted, After months had passed and my stomach and
breasts remained small and flat, Huang Taitai flew into another kind of rage. My son says hes
planted enough seeds for thousands of grandchildren. Where are they? It must be you are doing
something wrong (Tan 62). Her husbands family blamed Lindo for not being able to have a
child, when Tyan-yu was not trying to have a child with her. Tyan-yu was ashamed and did not
want to disappoint his family, so he turned the attention to his wife by blaming her for not having
a child. These common arranged marriages were shown in The Joy Luck Club, where Lindo
Jong experienced the same issues that were present in the arranged marriages throughout China
during the nineteenth century.
Someone might say that the text in The Joy Luck Club is unrealistic because the women
had the right to free themselves. The Chinese Exclusion Act brought horrific challenges for
Chinese people, especially women, but more opportunities have grown since the late 1800s.
They were able to stand up for their rights and beliefs (Chinese Women). Also, when Lindo
was placed in an arranged marriage, she was able to escape and accomplish her dream: freedom.
She broke free from the family after telling a lie, and during China at that time, the woman
would be hunted down and punished if they left their husband without the governments consent
(Xu 1). After she broke free, she noted, How nice it is to be that girl again, to take off my scarf,
to see what is underneath and feel the lightness come back into my body! (Tan 66). During this
time, it was very rare to get away with leaving ones husband based off of a lie. While it may

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seem that women had freedom, they were still stuck in horrible situations. These women were
treated terribly in China during the nineteenth century. This treatment changed once they reached
America. They gained many rights as time went on, and they were treated equally. The novel
showed how women were treated in China.
The main factors of the novel, The Joy Luck Club, were accurately portrayed throughout
the storyline. The women that experienced the tragic events in the novel, were very realistic to
things that happened to the women in China at that time. The arranged marriages, the treatment
of the women, and the idea of the balanced rooms were shown as examples of what life was
really like for Chinese women. Many people from different cultures have experienced similar
changes after reaching America.

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Works Cited
Chinese Women. DISCovering Multicultural America: African Americans, Asian Americans,
Native Americans. Detroit: Gale, 2003. Student Resources in Context. Web. 11 Jan. 2015.
The Family and Social Trends: Overview. World Eras. Ed. Guangqui Xu. Vol.7: Imperial
China, 617-1644. Detroit: Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 15 Jan. 2015.
Fried, Morton. Family and Marriage. Encyclopedia of Asian History. Ed. Ainslie T. Embraer,
Columbia University. New York: Charles Scribners Son, 1988. 453-457. Print.
Harrell, Steven. Domestic Observances: Chinese Practices. Encyclopedia of Religion. Ed.
Lindsay Jones. 2nd ed. Vol. 4. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2005. 2406-2409. Gale
Virtual Reference Library. Web. 14 Jan. 2015.
Jacka, Tamara. Women, Status of. Encyclopedia of Modern China. Ed. David Pong. New York:
Gale Engage Learning, 2009. 83. Print.
Love and Marriage: Social Regulations. World Eras. Ed. Guangqiu Xu. Imperial China, 6171644. Detroit: Gale, 2003. 346-350. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 11 Jan. 2015.
Tan, Amy. The Joy Luck Club. New York: Ivy Books, 1989. Print.
Wang, Edward. Chinese Studies in History. Detroit.: M.E. Sharp, Inc, 2012. Print. Vol. 4 of
Women's History in China. 4 vols.

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Works Consulted
Chinese Women. DISCovering Multicultural America: African Americans, Asian Americans,
Native Americans. Detroit: Gale, 2003. Student Resources in Context. Web. 11 Jan. 2015.
The Family and Social Trends: Overview. World Eras. Ed. Guangqui Xu. Vol.7: Imperial
China, 617-1644. Detroit: Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 15 Jan. 2015.
Fried, Morton. Family and Marriage. Encyclopedia of Asian History. Ed. Ainslie T. Embraer,
Columbia University. New York: Charles Scribners Son, 1988. 453-457. Print.
Harrell, Steven. Domestic Observances: Chinese Practices. Encyclopedia of Religion. Ed.
Lindsay Jones. 2nd ed. Vol. 4. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2005. 2406-2409. Gale
Virtual Reference Library. Web. 14 Jan. 2015.
Jacka, Tamara. Women, Status of. Encyclopedia of Modern China. Ed. David Pong. New York:
Gale Engage Learning, 2009. 83. Print.
Love and Marriage: Social Regulations. World Eras. Ed. Guangqiu Xu. Imperial China, 6171644. Detroit: Gale, 2003. 346-350. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 11 Jan. 2015.
Tan, Amy. The Joy Luck Club. New York: Ivy Books, 1989. Print.
Wang, Edward. Chinese Studies in History. Detroit: M.E. Sharp, Inc, 2012. Print. Vol. 4 of
Women's History in China. 4 vols.
Yung, Judy. Chinese American Women. Readers Companion to U.S. Womens History. US:
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 1998. 95-98. Web. 11 Jan. 2015.

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Annotated Bibliography
Harrell, Steven. Domestic Observances: Chinese Practices. Encyclopedia of Religion. Ed.
Lindsay Jones. 2nd ed. Vol. 4. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2005. 2406-2409. Gale
Virtual Reference Library. Web. 14 Jan. 2015.
Harrell demonstrates the strong connection between a family and their home. He explains how
the placement of the furniture and accessories in the home are specifically put in areas so the
environment can harmonize with it is natural forces. If there is no harmony in the room, then
there is a disconnect within the family. The Joy Lucky Club includes a character who is very
particular about how the elements in the room are placed, and she is convinced that the reason
why her family is falling apart is because of the way the furniture is arranged. The information
that Harrell presents explains why Chinese people believe this to be true.
Jacka, Tamara. Women, Status of. Encyclopedia of Modern China. Ed. David Pong. New York:
Gale Engage Learning, 2009. 83. Print.
Jacka explains the status of women during the nineteenth century. Women were always
considered extremely lower than men. They were placed in arranged marriages in China where
their families and a matchmaker would choose their spouses, or they became concubines. The
men had extreme power over their wives and could get away with any crime they commit
regarding their wives. Some of the women in The Joy Luck Club can closely relate to how Jacka
explains the way that women were treated in China.

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