Sunday, May 20, 2007
Overall
Overall I think that the book Chinese Cinderella was decent. I thought that it was interesting considering that this is a true story, but i also found the book very repetitive. Although the book does make you want to be able to help Adeline, I thought that she should have gone into more detail about the pain that she felt. Because to me although it was sad and I am not able to comprehend the situations well enough considering i was not there I felt she was kind of pathetic sometimes, never really standing up not only to her father but also her siblings. So overall I would recommend this book to people would want to gain knowledge of more of China's traditions and history.
Chinese Cinderella End
Chapters 18 until the end are said to have taken place two year later. Adeline is still at the same boarding school in Hong Kong. Although she has friends she is also known as an outcast. She never gets new clothes like the other girls, nor do her parents and family ever come visit her like the other girls. She often hears them talking about how weird it is and how they all think that she made up the story about her father. At the school Adeline really began developing her abilty to write. She often beat out the older girls for the slots in the school's magazine. Her ability to write and also her ability to learn very easily helped her and she was able to move up a grade. However this was looked negatively by the older girls. "Instead of trying to memorize every book in here, you'd be more popular if you get yourself some pretty dresses instead" (pg. 165). Though the older girls tended to make fun of her there were still the girls that looked up to her. "She has sort of a special spirit, and it's a persons inner core that counts" (pg. 170).
As the end of term approaches all the girls realize that Adeline is the only boarder who is not going to leave. Finally the night before they leave Adeline's two closest friends comfort her and she finally confesses her true dreams and goals. "More than anything," I told them, "I yearn to grow up, get out of here and see the world. We must get away, stand on our own two feet and create our own destiny" (pg. 176). I think that this quote is really significant for Adeline because she finally kind of confesses her problems and tells herself that only she will be able to change her destiny of being unwanted.
As break went on Adeline grew very ill, and had to be taken to the hospital for her condition. After she was better she was take from the hospital and on her Niang's orders was allowed to finally go back home, but it was only for one week. While she is home she and her grandfather often talk and she tells him that although she likes being smart and talented she sometimes wishes she wasnt so she would fit in better. Her grandfather retaliates and says "You mustn't talk like that! You have your whole life ahead of you. Everything is possible! I've tried to tell you over and over that far from being garbage, you are precious and special. Being top of class merely confirms this. But you can vanquish the demons only when you yourself are convinced of your wealth" (pg.181).
This helps Adeline get through the rest of her school and she goes back and digs in even deeper putting more time and effort then she normally did. She even enters into a playwriting contest, and much to her suprise she wins. However the same day she hears the news that she won, she also hears the news that her Ye Ye had died. This is especially heartbreaking for her considering her play was dedicated to him for giving her inspriation.
Over time she goes back to school only to be pulled out by Niang, who feels that Adeline is old enough to get a job and pay her father back for everything he has done for her. She cries and begs her father to finally do something good for her and send her to the university in London. He agrees on the condition that Adeline go to the university and study medicine. She happily agrees, and the story ends when she finally hears from Aunt Baba who tells her that she is very proud of her and tells her that she is a fighter and that in Aunt Baba's eyes Adeline is a hero.
As the end of term approaches all the girls realize that Adeline is the only boarder who is not going to leave. Finally the night before they leave Adeline's two closest friends comfort her and she finally confesses her true dreams and goals. "More than anything," I told them, "I yearn to grow up, get out of here and see the world. We must get away, stand on our own two feet and create our own destiny" (pg. 176). I think that this quote is really significant for Adeline because she finally kind of confesses her problems and tells herself that only she will be able to change her destiny of being unwanted.
As break went on Adeline grew very ill, and had to be taken to the hospital for her condition. After she was better she was take from the hospital and on her Niang's orders was allowed to finally go back home, but it was only for one week. While she is home she and her grandfather often talk and she tells him that although she likes being smart and talented she sometimes wishes she wasnt so she would fit in better. Her grandfather retaliates and says "You mustn't talk like that! You have your whole life ahead of you. Everything is possible! I've tried to tell you over and over that far from being garbage, you are precious and special. Being top of class merely confirms this. But you can vanquish the demons only when you yourself are convinced of your wealth" (pg.181).
This helps Adeline get through the rest of her school and she goes back and digs in even deeper putting more time and effort then she normally did. She even enters into a playwriting contest, and much to her suprise she wins. However the same day she hears the news that she won, she also hears the news that her Ye Ye had died. This is especially heartbreaking for her considering her play was dedicated to him for giving her inspriation.
Over time she goes back to school only to be pulled out by Niang, who feels that Adeline is old enough to get a job and pay her father back for everything he has done for her. She cries and begs her father to finally do something good for her and send her to the university in London. He agrees on the condition that Adeline go to the university and study medicine. She happily agrees, and the story ends when she finally hears from Aunt Baba who tells her that she is very proud of her and tells her that she is a fighter and that in Aunt Baba's eyes Adeline is a hero.
Friday, May 18, 2007
Chinese Cinderella 15-17
Chapter 15 was a pretty big chapter. The first thing that happens is she is shipped off to boarding school. While she is flying to Tianjin her father comes back and sits with her so he can ask some questions. The first shocker for her, is he has to ask her for her name and her birthday. "A pang went through me. I meant so little to him, I was such a nobody, that he didn't even remeber my name!" (pg.124). The second shocker is when they board the plane them and only 10 others board the plane. When they arrive in Tianjin her father sends her in to the school with her Niang without so much as a goodbye. When she arrives at the school there are very few girls left at the massive school. After she arrives it seems another girl leaves. The girls were leaving due to the fact that at this time the communists were taking over the provinces one at a time and it was headed in the direction of Tianjin. Pretty soon she is the only girl left. She still went to classes regularly and then nuns were all still there, but even she says they "avoided looking at me directly whenever they happened to meet me in the corridors" (pg.132). Finally one day after New Years one of the nuns comes out to the schoolyard looking for adeline because someone has finally come for her. It was her Niang's sister coming with her family to take her to Hong Kong so Adeline could be with her family.
In chapter 16 it covers her journey to Hong Kong with her aunt's family. She really enjoys their company, especially their kids. She began to really love the time she spent with them and even fantized about being adopted by them. Finally the dreaded day arrived for Adeline, were she would have to face the rest of her family who hadnt even bothered to inform her they had moved to Hong Kong. When they arrive at her family's apartment her aunt and her family are all gushed on and nobody even speaks to Adeline. The only person that speaks to her is her Ye Ye and that is only after the rest of Adeline's family has gone to dinner. "We understood each others predicament only too well" (pg. 148).
In chapter 17, after Niang's sister's family leaves Adeline is sent to pack up her things as she is being sent to a boarding school nearby. On her last nigh she sat with her Ye Ye and remebered thinking " It's bound to get better. One day things will be different. Life won't go on like this forever" (pg. 159). When she arrived at the school she realized that it was really a school and an ophrange all in one.
These chapters were really significant to the plot, especially 15. In chapter 15 it really showed just how much she was unwanted, from her own father forgeting her name. To her whole family not even acknowledging to tell her that they were moving. And it also showed how little they cared for her putting her in a school in a province in which was soon to be raided and usually the first to go were foreigners and religious supporters.
In chapter 16 it covers her journey to Hong Kong with her aunt's family. She really enjoys their company, especially their kids. She began to really love the time she spent with them and even fantized about being adopted by them. Finally the dreaded day arrived for Adeline, were she would have to face the rest of her family who hadnt even bothered to inform her they had moved to Hong Kong. When they arrive at her family's apartment her aunt and her family are all gushed on and nobody even speaks to Adeline. The only person that speaks to her is her Ye Ye and that is only after the rest of Adeline's family has gone to dinner. "We understood each others predicament only too well" (pg. 148).
In chapter 17, after Niang's sister's family leaves Adeline is sent to pack up her things as she is being sent to a boarding school nearby. On her last nigh she sat with her Ye Ye and remebered thinking " It's bound to get better. One day things will be different. Life won't go on like this forever" (pg. 159). When she arrived at the school she realized that it was really a school and an ophrange all in one.
These chapters were really significant to the plot, especially 15. In chapter 15 it really showed just how much she was unwanted, from her own father forgeting her name. To her whole family not even acknowledging to tell her that they were moving. And it also showed how little they cared for her putting her in a school in a province in which was soon to be raided and usually the first to go were foreigners and religious supporters.
Sunday, May 13, 2007
Chinese Cinderella 14
Chapter 14 was a really major chapter for the plot change. In this chapter Adeline runs for student council president against her arch rival Chen Lei-Lei. They were allowed to make posters and campaign speeches. Wu Chun-mei was Adeline's campaign manager and announced that Adeline would be holding a speech right after class was over. Much to Adeline's amazement every single one of her classmates stay and listen to her talk. When she is giving her speech she tells her classmates that she doesn't think she should be president but rather Wu Chun-mei should be. "She doesn't know this, but I think she should be the candidate instead of me." pg. 108 When she is done giving her speech Wu Chun-mei asks her when did she all of a sudden want to nominate her. However Adeline has to hurry home as she can not be late or her Niang will surely beat her. She hurries home only not before Wu Chun-mei says to her "Don't worry! I'll win this thing for you! Afterward let's have a party at my house to celebrate." pg. 109.
When she gets home she is not met by Niang she is met by her Aunt Baba, who brings her up to their room and tries to get Adeline to talk about what happened to her yesterday when her father beat her for going to a friend's house. Adeline is ashamed and doesnt want to tell her Aunt Baba. Adeline finally breaks down and screams "I want to forget everything that goes on here. I love my school! There I have friends! There I have fun! We sit together and discuss books and things. My friends respect me. My teacher likes me." pg.110. This is where Adeline finally is able to say everything that had been on her mind. Aunt Baba understands and her and Ye Ye want her to understand that that is what it should be like, and they want her to not forget that so she can be different.
She goes back to school the next day ans is suprised when her name is called for being the winner of class president. Adeline was very excited yet scared at the prospect of having to deal with lying about the party. However she is grateful when Wu Chun-mei never brings it up and proceeds home. She is in her room when she hears a loud commotion in the downstairs, knowing who it is she rushes downstairs so that her friends will all leave so she will not get in trouble. She is far too late and her Niang screams at her to get up to the master bedroom. There her father and Niang both yell and whip her loud enough so that all her friends and classmates hear every single word. She is so embrassed and is even more when they make her tell her friends that they all must get out of her house and never come back. Adeline's last words to all of them are " Thank you for coming. I'll never forget your loyalty." pg. 116. The next day her bags are packed and she is disowned from her family and sent to live in a boarding school in Tianjin.
I thought that this chapter was horrible and i felt immense pain for all of Adeline's suffering. To think of the embarassment and hurt she must have felt when they did that to her in front of all of her friends. And then to not even let her say goodbye to them and send her away for something as silly as having friends making to much noise is shocking. I don't think anyone can really comprehend just how lucky we really are to be living in a country that this kind of parental teaching is not allowed.
When she gets home she is not met by Niang she is met by her Aunt Baba, who brings her up to their room and tries to get Adeline to talk about what happened to her yesterday when her father beat her for going to a friend's house. Adeline is ashamed and doesnt want to tell her Aunt Baba. Adeline finally breaks down and screams "I want to forget everything that goes on here. I love my school! There I have friends! There I have fun! We sit together and discuss books and things. My friends respect me. My teacher likes me." pg.110. This is where Adeline finally is able to say everything that had been on her mind. Aunt Baba understands and her and Ye Ye want her to understand that that is what it should be like, and they want her to not forget that so she can be different.
She goes back to school the next day ans is suprised when her name is called for being the winner of class president. Adeline was very excited yet scared at the prospect of having to deal with lying about the party. However she is grateful when Wu Chun-mei never brings it up and proceeds home. She is in her room when she hears a loud commotion in the downstairs, knowing who it is she rushes downstairs so that her friends will all leave so she will not get in trouble. She is far too late and her Niang screams at her to get up to the master bedroom. There her father and Niang both yell and whip her loud enough so that all her friends and classmates hear every single word. She is so embrassed and is even more when they make her tell her friends that they all must get out of her house and never come back. Adeline's last words to all of them are " Thank you for coming. I'll never forget your loyalty." pg. 116. The next day her bags are packed and she is disowned from her family and sent to live in a boarding school in Tianjin.
I thought that this chapter was horrible and i felt immense pain for all of Adeline's suffering. To think of the embarassment and hurt she must have felt when they did that to her in front of all of her friends. And then to not even let her say goodbye to them and send her away for something as silly as having friends making to much noise is shocking. I don't think anyone can really comprehend just how lucky we really are to be living in a country that this kind of parental teaching is not allowed.
Monday, May 7, 2007
Chinese Cinderella 11-13
In Chapter 11 Adeline and all of her siblings were given a duckling by their father's friend Mrs. Huang. Adeline loved her duckling and named it P.L.T. although it started as the smallest one and the one everybody didn't want Adeline picked him, because she could relate to the little duckling. She cared for P.L.T and would always run home from school so she could play wit him. However when her Niang told her Big Brother to go get one of the ducklings so they could see if their misbehaved dog had learned anything at it's very expensive dog obedince lessons, he of course chooses P.L.T. And when the duckling is placed in the middle of the yard the horrible dog devulges it. This breaks Adeline's heart, but she decides to bury her poor duckling while the wretched dog is for a walk. On her way to bury him her Big Brother confronts her and says he is sorry for choosing her duckling. "I'm sorry about last night too. I didnt know which duckling to pick when Father gave me that order I only took yours because you're the one least likely to give me trouble afterward." pg.84. Adeline breaks down when he says this and retaliates with "She was my best friend in the whole world," I began, tears welling up in spite of me " Now I've lost her Forever." pg.84.
This was a really sad part of the book, because I can definitly relate to the thought of losing your pet or your best friend and how it would absolutely devaste you.
In Chapter 12 Adeline talks about how her Big Sister was getting married to a business assoicate's son of her Father. This horrified Adeline considering her sister was only 17 while the man she was marrying was 31. She also talks about how when gifts would come for her sister her Niang would take them first and if they were fancy and very nice her Niang would tkae them and keep them for herself. Her big sister revolted once when she was given a jade necklace but was caught by her Niang. When she was caught her big sister blamed it all on Aunt Baba knowing that Niang hated Aunt Baba.
I couldnt really relate to this chapter except for the part of blaming someone else for my mistake.
In chapter 13 it is about Adeline's first real run in with trouble in Shanghai. It all started when her friend Wu Chun-mei kept persisting Adeline to come to her birthday party. Now Adeline was not allowed to ever go to a friend's house, so she always found excuses so she wouldnt have to go. But Wu Chun-mei kept switching the dates so that Adeline could attend. Finally they were given a holiday at school and Adeline decided that this would be perfect because her parents would never know and she would be able to go to the birthday party. Everything was fine until Adeline remebered that she always went home for lunch. She was found out by her Niang when her friend's called her house to make sure that she had gotten home in time for lunch. She was brutally beaten by her Father for having disobeyed his rules.
This was really hard to read. Not being allowed to socialize with friends and always having to lie to them would be extremely difficult. I think these were very harsh rules and if they were to me I would probably hate my parents for doing that to me.
This was a really sad part of the book, because I can definitly relate to the thought of losing your pet or your best friend and how it would absolutely devaste you.
In Chapter 12 Adeline talks about how her Big Sister was getting married to a business assoicate's son of her Father. This horrified Adeline considering her sister was only 17 while the man she was marrying was 31. She also talks about how when gifts would come for her sister her Niang would take them first and if they were fancy and very nice her Niang would tkae them and keep them for herself. Her big sister revolted once when she was given a jade necklace but was caught by her Niang. When she was caught her big sister blamed it all on Aunt Baba knowing that Niang hated Aunt Baba.
I couldnt really relate to this chapter except for the part of blaming someone else for my mistake.
In chapter 13 it is about Adeline's first real run in with trouble in Shanghai. It all started when her friend Wu Chun-mei kept persisting Adeline to come to her birthday party. Now Adeline was not allowed to ever go to a friend's house, so she always found excuses so she wouldnt have to go. But Wu Chun-mei kept switching the dates so that Adeline could attend. Finally they were given a holiday at school and Adeline decided that this would be perfect because her parents would never know and she would be able to go to the birthday party. Everything was fine until Adeline remebered that she always went home for lunch. She was found out by her Niang when her friend's called her house to make sure that she had gotten home in time for lunch. She was brutally beaten by her Father for having disobeyed his rules.
This was really hard to read. Not being allowed to socialize with friends and always having to lie to them would be extremely difficult. I think these were very harsh rules and if they were to me I would probably hate my parents for doing that to me.
Sunday, May 6, 2007
Chinese Cinerella 8-10
In Chapter 8 and 9 it is the childrens revolt against not being given money to go on the bus. Their grandfather begins secretly giving them money. However when they are caught with the money their Niang is brutal and whips them all and then when their grandfather is unable to stick up for them because he is a "guest" in their house. They decide it is time to take action. They decide to write a letter to the father in chinese because their Niang is unable to read chinese. They write how it is unfair and how "the whole tram-fare issue was obviously somehow tied up with the establishment of a new hierarchy within our family." pg 39. The children believed that this was Niang's way of showing them that since their Nia Nia was no longer here that she was in control and anything she said was what goes. However when they are writing this letter of protest they get overheard by their Niang who Adeline catches evasdropping when she is going to the bathroom. She immediately returns to the room and tells her siblings to get rid of the letter, and all just waited for their punishment. "we're being kept deliberately in a state of uncertainty because thats what Niang most enjoys. The cat-and-mouse game." pg 48.
In chapter 10 it is more about her school days in Shanghai and also more of a perspective few of the disrespect that Adeline is faced with everyday from her brothers and other siblings. Adeline and Wu Chun-mei meet in school and a friendship is soon born. Adeline decides to never tell Wu Chun-mei about her family so that she will seem as normal as them and not be looked down upon by her friends and classmates. At home things were good again due to the fact that her father, Niang, and half-siblings had gone back to Tianjian again after World War 1 was done for the summer to reclaim his property. Adeline and her other siblings are left in the caring hands of her Aunt Baba and YeYe(grandfather). All is well or so it seems until her three brothers decide to begin having a more normal life. " They refused to submit anymore,"pg 60. They began seeing themselves as the rulers of the home and began torturing Adeline in new ways.
The relationship between Adeline and her three brothers seemed relatively understandable and relatable to the sibling relationships nowadays but then they did something that was very disgusting. They peed in her lemonade and forced her to drink this. Now i don't know how brothers would behave but i believe that they took their "joke" way to far. I don't know anyone who in their right mind would force someone to drink their urine. I thought that although it was disgusting it was also rather insightful Adeline explaining it, it forced me as the reader to really understand her pain and torture.
In chapter 10 it is more about her school days in Shanghai and also more of a perspective few of the disrespect that Adeline is faced with everyday from her brothers and other siblings. Adeline and Wu Chun-mei meet in school and a friendship is soon born. Adeline decides to never tell Wu Chun-mei about her family so that she will seem as normal as them and not be looked down upon by her friends and classmates. At home things were good again due to the fact that her father, Niang, and half-siblings had gone back to Tianjian again after World War 1 was done for the summer to reclaim his property. Adeline and her other siblings are left in the caring hands of her Aunt Baba and YeYe(grandfather). All is well or so it seems until her three brothers decide to begin having a more normal life. " They refused to submit anymore,"pg 60. They began seeing themselves as the rulers of the home and began torturing Adeline in new ways.
The relationship between Adeline and her three brothers seemed relatively understandable and relatable to the sibling relationships nowadays but then they did something that was very disgusting. They peed in her lemonade and forced her to drink this. Now i don't know how brothers would behave but i believe that they took their "joke" way to far. I don't know anyone who in their right mind would force someone to drink their urine. I thought that although it was disgusting it was also rather insightful Adeline explaining it, it forced me as the reader to really understand her pain and torture.
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