Shanghai Girls: August 2015

Friday, August 28, 2015

Blog 2 Question 2

2. According to the zodiac signs in Chinese culture, Pearl is a dragon and May is a sheep. Based on the descriptions of these signs contained within the novel, do you think the two sisters are true to their respective zodiac signs in Shanghai Girls? Up to this point in your life, do you think that you have been true to your own Chinese zodiac sign? Here is a link to a website which contains more information about the zodiac signs: http://www.chinahighlights.com/travelguide/chinese-zodiac/

The Dragon is said to be the most vital and powerful beast in the Chinese zodiac. Their character traits are to take control while showing dominance and ambition. They have been gifted with intelligence, confidence, and courage. The dragon is not afraid to take challenges and risks, which is a characteristic that Pearl definitely has. Pearl has been courageous all her life mostly because she is the eldest and is more independent. She is also book smart and always alert, which allows her to understand her surroundings. The risk Pearl took to not only stay on the Island with May for months while pretending to be pregnant and then mothering May’s child was a very courageous act on her behalf. Mothering a child that is not hers meanwhile May is allowed to openly travel around in china town without any obligations because nobody knows that May gave birth to a child. Pearl stays at home cooking meals and cleaning the house because she is a daughter in law, a wife, and a mother. The sheep is said to be

May is a sheep which according to the Chinese zodiac people born in a year of the sheep are believed to be gentle, shy, stable, sympathetic, amicable, and kindheartedness and justice. May is not necessarily shy, or have much of a kind heart, in my perspective. May is witty and gets her way most of the time. I also think May prefers to be the center of attention which is contradictory to what the sheep is supposed to symbolize. One thing that May does portray for sure is the fact that she enjoys spending money on fashionable clothing.

The Chinese zodiac states that I was born in the year of the monkey which states that the monkey is witty, intelligent, and have a magnetic personality. I can state that I have a personality which allows me to be curious while finding ways to learn new things every day. I am ambitious and always look forward to becoming a better person than I was yesterday. I also have a playful personality which I believe is essential for having unforgettable moments with close friends and family. I do enjoy pursuing my education as I look forward to becoming a successful individual.

Friday, August 21, 2015

Fate?

Several external factors certainly greatly impacted Pearl’s life. Her being sold off by her father, a war involving China, and a horrible married life superficially appear to dictate her life. I believe that these incidents may appear fated, but ultimately they are a result of Pearl’s decisions and her resilience as these problems arise. When Pearl first learns about her arranged marriage she angrily disagrees with her father and vows to not marry her future husband. She remains vigilant in not going through the marriage including destroying her paperwork needed to go to the United States. As the war erupts in Shanghai and her father’s gambling addiction causes more problems, she decides to flee. This was a conscious decision to leave China. She decides to go to the United States and reunite with her husband because it seemed like the most logical choice. Despite seeking out her husband, she still had a plan to try to leave after acquiring enough funds. Their journey did not go as planned, this forced May to make many difficult decisions. When they are attacked by the gang she protects her sister and gives up her bourgeois trappings to go to the United States. When she learns of her sisters pregnancy May begs her to take the child as her own. This was an act which would protect her sister as well as secure a child for herself. When they arrive to the United States they are faced with very poor living conditions and many of their personal freedoms are restricted as a result. This was the most overt external factor that aimed to dictate Pearls life. Despite the situation, she makes a clear choice to stay and slowly gain more personal freedom and acquire some money. As she learns more about the family she decides to stay. When Joy grows up the family is struck with news that Sam is being investigated. This factor causes strife within the family, we learn that May was indeed the one who orchestrated the whole situation. The conflict reveals to Joy the true nature of her birth and life. When Joy flees to China to seek comfort in her father and homeland Pearl goes after her. This demonstrates her ultimate decision in accepting Joy as her daughter. Despite the many obstacles placed to Pearl by the war and her family, she developed a close relationship with Joy. Although the external forces pressured Pearl, ultimately they only shaped the way Pearl chose to live her life. In our lives we face similar forces that may limit or expand her choices. These incidents, however do not dictate how one lives. Even within one day of our lives we are faced with many choices that can have a dramatic impact in our future circumstances. We can choose to adhere to the schedule or plan for the day or forgo the plan and do something spontaneously. Either of our choices could have similar consequences or dramatically reshape our lives. You can meet new people by simply adhering to your daily life or trying something new. In addition by choosing either of the situations we lose the opportunity cost of whatever other activity we could choose to do.

Blog #2 Question#2

Many Chinese people have the traditional custom to look to their zodiac sign for advice and guidance, this belief is really expressed in Shanghai Girls. Throughout the novel May and Pearl are compared with their respective zodiac signs, the sheep and the dragon. The sheep is said to be a complacent, content, feminine, fashionable, artistic and compassionate; she must be taken care of and thinks only of herself and comfort. The dragon has a striving desire that cannot be filled, she is loyal, demanding and responsible. The character’s embodied their zodiac signs when they lived in Shanghai, but I believe their roles switched when they went to America.

In Shanghai, May was never denied anything she wanted, as a result she grew up a spoiled child and threw fits whenever things didn’t go her way. She was able to live a comfortable glamourous lifestyle, being able to afford to dress up fashionably to model and socialize with artists and revolutionists whenever she wanted. She was carefree and let her parents and Pearl take care of her, however when she moved to America she could no longer afford to stay a sheep. Pregnant and scared she adopted some of the dragons strong attributes, she was able to take a lot of responsibility on when she tended to her sister’s aid after her rape, she concocted the white mask for them to camouflage and she split their money between them when they were on the boat, she even thought of a clever way to stay in the interrogational angel island until the end of her pregnancy to keep her baby, sister and herself alive and living. When they were transported to live with Uncle Louie she was able to create a job for herself in the movies because she had the desire to be portrayed as glamourous and she achieved her own goals but her own merits, she didn’t wait for someone else to take care of her but instead strove for opportunities to push her career further.

In Shanghai, Pearl was the responsible, loyal older sister that listened to her parents and took care of May. She strove to get an education and demanded more out of life, breaking away from her traditional mother and into a modernized Chinese woman. Pearl lead a comfortable life up to this point, however when the sisters were hurled into America, Pearl took big hits to her mentality of life. She was weighed down with the death of her mother, abandonment of her father, torments of rape, stressed for her baby, and left with fears for the outside world of her little apartment. She let herself become a sheep, being taken care of by Sam and the rest of the family and became ignorant to the world around her only concerning herself with the housework. She became introverted and reverted to old traditional stories and Chinese thinking because it was comforting for her to act like her mother. Pearl displays these sheep like qualities because she longs for china, once she accepts she’s Americanized she could move forward and make an effort to create a life around her, but she still lives in fear because she isn’t a citizen.

According to the Chinese zodiac I’m a rooster, I am said to be an observant, hardworking, resourceful, courageous and talented individual that’s very confident in herself. I think this is fairly true I’m very hardworking, resourceful and observant, however I lack the confidence, and I definitely don’t like being the center of attention. I think I am fairly true to my sign thus far, I do get a little agitated if I speak and others don’t listen especially if it’s one of my siblings.

Thursday, August 20, 2015

Blog #2 question #2

Throughout the novel, Shanghai Girls, Pearl and May are constantly reminded of their Chinese zodiac signs to further stereotype them. Pearl is a destiny-changing dragon while May is a naïve, sweet-hearted sheep. Toward the beginning of the novel, both characters displayed characteristics of their respective signs, but as the book progressed, their personalities changed drastically as they now have faced life-changing events. Even though their characters changed, I believe both girls still remained true to their signs, but where slightly changed from all the chaos that the war brought them.

Pearl was told by her mother to take care of her younger sister no matter what the cost. Pearl held on to this last wish of her mother’s and dedicated herself for the protection of May. When they moved to Los Angeles, Pearl was made into a stay-at-home housewife while May was allowed to venture out and live a life similar to that of postwar Shanghai. This fact made Pearl upset and envious of her sister because she had freedoms Pearl was not granted. Pearl managed to accept these changes though, and showed the type of resilience that only a dragon sign can exhibit. Perhaps the words of her dying mother really influenced her selfless behavior with regards to May. May on the other hand, continued on living a similar lifestyle to the one she had in Shanghai, except, she did not have her sister to accompany her everywhere she went. She even had hopes of becoming a movie star in Los Angeles, which exemplified how unchanged she remained by still constantly obsessing with attention and glamor.

Up to this point in my life I definitely feel I have lived up the name of my Chinese zodiac sign, the horse. Horses are extremely energetic and sociable beings that love to be recognized and approved by all. Horses are also believed to be very healthy because they hold a positive attitude towards life. Also, we are rational, sentimental, and straightforward and are best suited for careers in which we are own boss. People born on this Chinese zodiac sign typically have a pleasant, amiable, down-to-earth disposition, which can provide stress relief for others. Lastly, horses are quick-witted and can perceived the thoughts of people before they express them. Ultimately though, I believe that zodiac signs do not offer anything better than a brief piece of literature to read for amusement.

Overall, Pearl and May definitely kept true to their Chinese zodiac signs though where stricken by trauma from the events that occurred in Shanghai. Even though they displayed different personas later in the book, they were still the same individuals just perhaps altered from the war and death of their mother. In the end, I am not one to really believe in zodiac signs. I ultimately prefer the mental freedom that comes from removing all stereotypes attached to everything in life. Even though the Chinese zodiac is pretty accurate, I am a constantly changing being and am never tied down to just one belief.

Blog #2 question #3

Pearl has had a lot of external factors pushing her life in different directions. The only stable period for her was when she was in her father’s home living a carefree life. Once she was sold into marriage her freedom was taken from her far before she reached Los Angeles. In escaping Shanghai Pearl, May and their mother where tossed into a movie like action scene. The part in the book where she has to find May laid out after the bomb explosion or the encounter with the Japanese soldiers are both tremendous external factors. She was pressured to do the husband and wife thing with her arranged marriage partner, despite having the choice the pressure to go with the flow was enormous. The visitor from the Green Gang comes to their home and threatened them, setting them on a course to flee the country. Her body was changed forever when Pearl and her mother were raped by the Japanese soldiers. Upon finding out that May is with child the only way for them to utilize the Louie name to escape the refugee camp was to take Mays child. She could have let her sister deal with the consequences, but she has taken care of May her entire life. Since she has cared for May in this manner for so long to take the child is more of a reflex than a choice especially with reference to the predicament that they are in. Once in Los Angeles she is thrust into a complete submissive roll for a while to Old man Louie. She thinks that as an American citizen he can have her sent back to Shanghai for noncompliance. She is forced to work in a café or were every Old man Louie wants her for that day. Pearl is forced to learn to be a mother by shadowing here mother-in-law and helping her with the care for the house and Vern.

It is funny how things change because after she runs into her American friend’s dad while working in the restaurant she has a choice. Her friend’s dad invites Pearl and her sister to come to stay with them and the choice is hers to make. She has begun to gain more freedom in the household. Doing things such as choosing to cook family dinners on Sundays. May and her child are acting and she is building a relationship with her, and Pearl has begun to create relationship with her arranged marriage partner. She chooses to stay within the Louie home when she could have left. Eventually she chooses to do the husband and wife thing but is still force to keep the secret of her infertility.

I often feel that outside forces interfere with my life far too much. If everything in my life is balanced at some point something will remove that balance that I try to maintain and it is always an outside source. I don’t think that anyone with a sense of responsibility will put themselves in danger like an external force. This is the adventure that we call life. The forces of our actions affecting others. Like I said earlier we will not purposely put ourselves in danger but the repercussions of our action may have negative effects on others.

Wednesday, August 19, 2015

Blog 2 Question 2 Answer

Throughout the book, Pearl always seemed to be the tougher one. The one who could really withstand pressure, hard work, suffering, heartbreak, and even traumatic situations. She was always looking after her sister in a very protective manner, and was willing to suffer even more in order to take any more possible suffering from her sister, who became her only family, along with Joy. Although there were many difficult obstacles, she was always brave and persevered through the worst situations imaginable, keeping up her confidence that she was going to be able to succeed and get to her main goal. Because of these factors, I believe that Pearl was very true to her Chinese zodiac sign, and that she reflected well the personality and characteristics expected from a Dragon.

On the other hand, May started out by being the favorite daughter, the one that always got everything she wanted just by being her usual sweet self. She had nothing to worry about, and life seemed to be easy and fun. With the war, the arrival of the Japanese, and their unexpected arranged marriage, her and her sister’s world turned upside down. There was no time to even think things through, but only time to act. After her Pearl almost died after being raped by many Japanese soldiers, May had to toughen up and take care of her sister. The roles were inverted. Pearl, who had always taken care of May, now needed her sister’s help to overcome a very traumatic episode of her life. May did not let her down, and used all her strength to keep them both alive. I believe that was the time that May actually became mature, and showed her true personality. She was confident, strong, and there was nothing she wouldn’t do for both her and her sister.

The Chinese zodiac sign of a sheep has the following characteristics: gentle, calm, shy, stable, strong sense of justice, strong creativity and perseverance, strong inner resilience and excellent defensive instincts, like to spend money on fashionable things giving them a first class appearance, etc. May is a sheep in the Chinese zodiac sign, and I believe she is very true to the characteristics of her sign. She showed an inner strength that I did not expect from her, judging her personality by the characteristics of the first part of the book. She definitely shows she is more than able to care for herself, without the need of her sister’s motherly protection. She always seemed to be fragile, and defenseless, but when things got difficult, she was great at defending herself, and her sister, showing she is able to protect those she loves. She also showed a strong inner resilience since the time when the sisters were trying to flee China. In this way, she appeared to be true to her Chinese zodiac sign, just like Pearl.

Being half Chinese, I was already aware of my Zodiac sign, which is a Dragon. Although I did not grow up in a traditional Chinese culture, I was told about the characteristics of this zodiac sign. I always found myself well connected with it, and that most characteristics expected from this zodiac sign matched well with my personality. I believe I am someone with a lot of courage to reach my goals, which makes me feel confident with myself. I am a very ambitious person, who likes to have everything under control. I usually welcome challenges, because I feel that that is the only way of evolving and becoming better. I also tend be short tempered and become irritated easily. Everything described about my personality is expected from a Dragon; therefore I am very true to my zodiac sign.

Wednesday, August 12, 2015

Question #3 Response

In Shanghai girls, there are many external factors that seem to conspire against one of the main characters, mainly Pearl, that seem to be out of her control. I would say that eighty percent of what happens to Pearl are due to external factors she has no control over. You could thank her father for selling his daughters. She had no control and did not know that her dad’s gambling problem would catch up to him so bad that he would have to sell his own daughters. That was an external factor that she had no control over. Pearl had no control in the decision to leave china. When you got Japanese Zeros dropping bombs on your home country, you really have no choice but to escape to safety. Pearl had no choice in the decision of Imperialist Japan to try and conquer the world. This was another factor of the external sort that she had no control over. It gets a little more complicated as the book progresses towards them living in Chinatown. Here, I think decisions that she makes contribute to difficulties that she experiences in her life, but have external consequences that cannot be avoided. One big decision she made however, was to take on May’s child as one of her own, just to save May’s reputation. Here she could have just easily had told May that she must be responsible for her own baby and continue on from there. Taking care of Vern and the family was just a responsibility Pearl took on. Both external factors and decisions of her own contribute to that situation, as well as being stuck working at the restaurant.

Many of our problems in our own lives can be attributed towards outside forces, but I believe the ratio is different nowadays when it comes to our own decisions and external factors that which we have no control over. I believe that some people are just dealt hard situations to live through, but there are many bad situations that come about our own reckless and just plain out bad decisions. In my life I believe a lot that I have experienced has come forth as a product of my own decisions; some good, and some bad. However for the most part, in our lives, we are fortunate enough to live in a country where we can make our own decisions, so a lot of the time our lives take direction mainly based on decisions we make on our own accord. Although, that does not mean we are exempt from the occasional hiccup in the road caused by outside forces. Sometimes, there are things that are out our control that we have no choice but to ride it through. Decisions you make afterward however, can potentially change that, and can be an opportunity to gain control of your direction once again. The best thing we can do is take pearl as an example, and take things for what they are, and accept what is not in our control.

Question #2 Response

#2 Response

According to the Chinese zodiac, Pearl is described as a dragon, while May is described as a sheep. I believe that these signs are suitable for each character, based on the definitions of the novel. A dragon is described as determined, not giving up easily, loyal, responsible, and pushing forward for more. From what I’ve read in the book, Pearl fits this description. She has never really given up, even when life has dealt a harsh hand to her. Rather, she took things for what they were and moved on when other people may have easily given up. One of the biggest examples of this is when May is found out to be pregnant, she eventually pretends to be the mother of May’s daughter, Joy, to save May’s humility. Although she is bitter about working at the restaurant, she continues on, staying at home most of the time to take care of her responsibilities at home. May on the other hand, is described as a sheep according to Chinese zodiac and the definitions of the book. A sheep is described as one who needs to be cared for and to be watched over, not taking responsibility for much, much like when a shepherd tends to his sheep. I think this definitions fits May well, as May was always one to wander in the beginning of the book, as well as when living in Chinatown, never being home in order to become an aspiring actress. Her big sister Pearl has always been the one to watch out for her.

When it comes to my Chinese zodiac sign, I am apparently a rooster. According to the definition provided by the website ChinaHighlights, roosters are hardworking, resourceful, courageous and talented, Roosters are very confident about themselves. Roosters are always active, amusing and popular among the crowd. Roosters are talkative, outspoken, frank, open, honest, and loyal individuals. They like to be the center of attention and always appear attractive and beautiful. Vain and boastful, Roosters like to brag about themselves and their accomplishments. For the most part, I’d like to think that this describes me well, as many of the characteristics a rooster holds are important characteristics aspiring scientists should have. However, I do not like being the center of attention, nor would I call myself beautiful. I can be vain at times, especially when people tell me to open pickle jars and I am able too, I usually flex my biceps and proceed to tell everyone in the room to check out my figurative “guns”. I will be boastful, especially in situations that absolutely do not warrant boastfulness. For example, I’ve found myself in situations where I have boasted how correct I am, even though I was absolutely wrong. As far as appearing attractive and beautiful, I occasionally whip my hair back and forth, so I would describe that as an accurate statement. Finally, to answer the question, up to this point in my life, once again for the most part I believe I have stayed true to my zodiac sign, but I have not tried too. I may have had some lapses in not being true to it, but who hasn’t?