Week 3, Post A, Chinese Cinderella

Besides pervious cultural differences like the Japanese controlling China, I only noticed a few minor differences. One of the cultural differences was when Adeline was describing a game they played in china, and says, “I first noticed Wu Chun-mei when we played shuttlecock against each other one day during recess. A shuttlecock was a rounded piece of cork with feathers stuck on the top […]. We would kick it up and down and add up the number of kicks made without interruption” (pg 56-57). Adeline goes on to describe how when you hit the shuttlecock with a racquet over a net, they call it badminton, and then I realized the shuttlecock is like a birdie.

The other, not necessarily cultural difference, but difference in time periods, or society, was the American soldiers living in china after the end of World War II. Adeline says, “At school, we were given surplus C rations for our lunch, left by China’s new hero’s the U.S. marines. We ate hard biscuits, canned meat and chunks of bittersweet chocolate. After each meal, we prayed and thanked our American allies for winning the war” (pg 59). This shows how grateful the Chinese were, and they were happy to have the Americans stationed there. This thankfulness is a lot different that the feeling towards the Japanese soldiers who were in China earlier in the story.

Lastly, I noticed alot of small cultural differnces throughout the story, like the mentioning of the Chinese New Year, and the traditons for that. Also Adeline talks about going to the park and seeing famous players competing in Chinee chess, and she talks about listening to storytellers spinning yarns about kung fu heroes(64).

Week 3, Post B, Chinese Cinderella

I am a lot farther in the book, but I still think that the story is still being introduced, and more significant events will begin to happen soon. I am enjoying the book so far, and continue to learn more about Adeline, but I am having trouble totally relating to her because of her age difference(she is about ten), and because of the suffering she is going through. When I was reading a story Adeline wrote about her aunt and her mother, she says, “Every child can enter without a ticket and girls are treated the same as boys. No one is sneered at or scolded without a reason. It’s called Paradise.”(pg 52-53) When I read this it, made me think of what most people would call Paradise. I think most people I know would say it is a place where they can relax, not have to work, and can do what ever they please. I think that it is interesting what Adeline thinks is Paradise, but I wasn’t necessarily surprised that that was what she dreams of, after being treated so harshly by everyone in her family. In the same letter Adeline says, “Though I am really nothing, she makes me believe I am special” (pg 52). I think that Adeline has come to think of herself as nothing because her parents act as if she doesn’t exist. As Adeline became friends with Wu Chun-mei, I was happy for Adeline because she now has someone to talk to and because Wu Chun-mei need help with math, I think it gives Adeline a sense that she is needed and wanted. I think this is very important for everyone, especially Adeline.

World Issues

More Sources:

http://www.globalissues.org/HumanRights/Abuses/China.asp

http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/ASA17/050/2008/en/83b26dc5-0008-11dd-b092-bdb020617d3d/asa170502008eng.html

http://www.euractiv.com/en/sports/olympics-triggering-human-rights-violations-china/article-171524

http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,545892,00.html

World Issues Post

I am going to focus on the Olympics in China, and human rights issues. Here are some sources:

http://sks.sirs.com/cgi-bin/hst-article-display?id=SMN0307H-0-5091&artno=0000275104&type=ART&shfilter=U&key=olympics%20in%20china&title=Amid%20Human%20Rights%20Protests%2C%20a%20Look%20at%20China%27s%20Record&res=Y&ren=Y&gov=Y&lnk=N&ic=Y

http://sks.sirs.com/cgi-bin/hst-article-display?id=SMN0307H-0-5228&artno=0000275024&type=ART&shfilter=U&key=olympics%20in%20china&title=Olympic%20Boycotts%2D%2DA%20Bad%20Idea&res=Y&ren=Y&gov=Y&lnk=N&ic=Y

http://sks.sirs.com/cgi-bin/hst-article-display?id=SMN0307H-0-5228&artno=0000275088&type=ART&shfilter=U&key=olympics%20in%20china&title=Olympic%20Torch%20Protests%20Illuminate%20U%2ES%2E%20Right%20to%20Peaceful%20Dissent&res=Y&ren=Y&gov=Y&lnk=N&ic=Y

http://sks.sirs.com/cgi-bin/hst-article-display?id=SMN0307H-0-5228&artno=0000273807&type=ART&shfilter=U&key=olympics%20in%20china&title=US%20Lists%20Human%20Rights%20Abusers&res=Y&ren=Y&gov=Y&lnk=N&ic=Y

Post B, Chinese Cinderella

When I started reading this book last week, I saw how Adeline’s whole family wasn’t very nice to her, but I still thought it wasn’t totally a Cinderella story until I read more this week, I began to understand why. After reading more chapters I knew a lot more about their family and how things were done. Niang, Adeline’s stepmother was never specifically mean to Adeline until one incident. One day after Niang’s baby daughter wasn’t listening and Niang began to beat her, and everyone ignored it, until Adeline stood up for the baby. After telling Niang to stop, Niang said to Adeline, “‘Get out!’ she snarled in a cold distinctive voice. ‘I shall never forgive you! Never! Never! Never! You’d better watch out from now on1 You will pay for your arrogance!’”(pg 35). I think this is cruel to Adeline, and maybe in their culture it wasn’t right to stop Niang, and it may have been disrespectful, Niang shouldn’t have been so cruel. Also I think that it was weird Adeline’s father wouldn’t stand up for her. He cared more about his young French wife than his helpless child.

Another time I thought was weird was when they forgot to pick up Adeline at school, and she wandered around for hours. I thought is was especially mean when Adeline’s father was not worried at all when she called, and when they arrived home, instead of reassuring Adeline that they would not forget her, he gave her a map so she could find her way. Although this may be good for Adeline, to learn, I think that a father should be gentler, and realize that his daughter is young and helpless, and just wants her father to love her.

Post A, Chinese Cinderella

After reading a few chapters in Chinese Cinderella, I have noticed a lot of cultural differences, but two main ones were the Chinese New Year and the fighting between the Japanese and the Chinese. In China when it is the Chinese New Year, everyone gets off work and school for a few days to celebrate and partake in the festivals. “It was a holiday not only for all the schoolchildren in China, but for all the grown-ups as well. Even Father was taking three whole days from work to celebrate” (pg 42). Also everyone wears new outfits on New Year’s Day to signal a new beginning.

Adeline’s dad was taken away by Japanese soldiers and so their family had to move to Shanghai. Everyone had to be careful what they say and do because the Japanese had taken control of many parts of China. Adeline’s family also had to be very secretive when moving, and had their luggage mailed separately, but leaving most behind, because the servants could have become suspicious, and as Adeline’s father said, “‘It’s important that the servants know nothing about my whereabouts. Otherwise, the Japanese might arrest me’” (pg 23).

Post B, Chinese Cinderella

When my sister recommended this book to me , I wasn’t totally sure I would like it, but after the first chapter I was really interested in Adeline’s story, and how anyone could totally ignore their child or be right out mean to their sister. I could not imagine being Adeline and feeling as if no one loved me, and I felt excited for Adeline when she got to wear a medal for an award at school because for once her father noticed her. When I read this passage I felt really bad for Adeline, but was surprised when she barely had a reaction, “On my way back to my seat, I couldn’t help noticing that of all the prizewinners, I was the only one unaccompanied by anyone from my family.[…] As for Big Sister, she had refused to go to school that day. She’d said she had a stomachache” (pg. 16). I also think that it is horrible Adeline’s sister wouldn’t go to school just because it would make her sister happy to have someone there from her family.

I think that Adeline is used to the fact that no one pays attention to her, but is still very sad. Adeline is always talking about how much she loves school, and I think this will be her way of getting her dad’s attention, even if it makes her siblings even crueler to her. Also because Aunt Baba still cares about her, she will keep Adeline determined to do well in school.

Post A, Chines Cinderella

A main reason I chose the book Chinese Cinderella, was because I really didn’t know much about the Chinese culture. After reading a few chapters I have learned a lot about what was going on in China around the 1940s, and some main traditions in their culture.

First of all, I thought it was interesting how extended family all lived together. Their grandma, their grandpa, their aunt, their parents and many children all lived in the same house, and lived like one family, always eating together. Adeline’s family was very rich and also had many servants, cooks, and other help at their house too.

Another cultural difference is the binding of a woman’s feet. Although Adeline did not have her feet bound when she was born because it was banned, her Grandmother Nai Nai’s feet were. In China people believed that having small feet is beautiful, no matter the pain. For the rest of her life, Nai Nai had arthritis because of her bound feet, and could barely walk.

China in the 1940s is under Japanese rule, and Adeline’s family was affected along with many others. Adeline lost family members to the strict Japanese soldiers. Everyone in China had to be very careful what they said and did not to disrespect the Japanese. For example, “Once Big Brother’s friend was kicked and slapped by a Japanese soldier because he forgot to bow when he ran past. That morning, Ye Ye had stopped Third Brother from kicking a paper ball made of old newspapers because a photo of the Japanese emperor was visible on its surface” (pg 16).

Overall, the Chinese culture, and political situations in this time period and now, are very different that how we live.

Outside Reading Quarter 4

For outside reading this quarter, I chose the book Chinese Cinderella: The true story of an unwanted daughter, by Adeline Yen Mah. I chose this book because my sister just read it and said it was really good. I think the story looks exciting, and it will be interesting to compare Adeline’s story to our version of Cinderella. From what I read on the back cover, it seems like the story is pretty true to the title, Chinese Cinderella. This is a true story, a memoir, and I think it will also be interesting to learn about the Chinese culture because I have never really read much about it. Overall, I think this looks like a really good book, and I am looking forward to reading it.