Chinatown Children during World War Two in The Jade Peony
Zhen Liu Shandong University (China) [email protected]
A Journal of Canadian Literary and Cultural Studies ISSN 2254-1179 VOL. 7 (2018) pp. 25-35 • ARTICLES 6ƮƛƦƢƭƭƞƝ $ƜƜƞƩƭƞƝ 29/05/2017 26/01/2018
.ƞƲưƨƫƝƬ Asian Canadian literature; Chinese Canadian literature; Canadian literature
$ƛƬƭƫƚƜƭ In The Jade Peony (1995) Wayson Choy captured vividly the lives of three children growing up in Vancouver’s Chinatown during the 1930s and 1940s when the Depression and the Second World War constituted the social backdrop. In the article, I argue that the Chinatown residents exemplify WKHW\SHRIYXOQHUDELOLW\GH¿QHGE\-XGLWK%XWOHUDVXSDJDLQVWQHVVDQGHVSHFDLOO\WKHFKLOGUHQ LQWKHQRYHOVXIIHUIURPDJUHDWHUYXOQHUDELOLW\DVWKH\DUHFDXJKWXSLQWKHFURVV¿UHRIERWKVLGHV *URZLQJXSLQWZRFRQÀLFWLQJFXOWXUHVDQGUHVWULFWHGWRWKHOLPLQDOFXOWXUDODQGSK\VLFDOVSDFHWKH children are disorientated and confused as if stranded in no man’s land. More importantly, in their serious struggles, the children show great resilience and devise their own strategies, such as for ming alliance with others, to survive and gain more space in spite of the many restraints imposed on them.
5ƞƬƮƦƞƧ En The Jade Peony (1995) Wayson Choy captura vívidamente las vidas de tres niños que crecen en el Chinatown de Vancouver durante las décadas de 1930 y 1940, con la Gran Depresión y la Segunda Guerra Mundial como telón de fondo social. En el artículo, argumento que los residentes HQ&KLQDWRZQHMHPSOL¿FDQHOWLSRGHYXOQHUDELOLGDGGH¿QLGDSRU-XGLWK%XWOHUFRPR³XSDJDLQVW ness”(2) y especialmente, que los niños en la novela sufren una gran vulnerabilidad al estar atra pados en medio del fuego cruzado mantenido por ambos sectores. Ya que crecen en dos culturas HQFRQÀLFWR\UHVWULQJLGDVDOHVSDFLROLPLQDOFXOWXUDO\ItVLFRORVQLxRVHVWiQGHVRULHQWDGRV\FRQ fundidos como si hubieran sido abandonados en tierra de nadie. Sobre todo, en sus serias luchas, los niños muestran una gran resiliencia y trazan sus propias estrategias, como formar alianzas con RWURVSDUDVREUHYLYLU\JDQDUPiVHVSDFLRDSHVDUGHODVPXFKDVUHVWULFFLRQHVTXHVHOHVLPSRQH
26 [2254-1179 (2018) 7, 25-35] In The Jade Peony (1995) Wayson Choy captured vividly the lives of three children WKHWZRFRPPXQLWLHV&KLQHVHDQG-DSDQHVH&DQDGLDQVZHUHQRWDOOLHVDWWKDWWLPHEXW growing up in Vancouver’s Chinatown during the 1930s and 1940s when the Great enemies, competing for opportunities and for space.2 Depression and the Second World War constituted the social backdrop.1 I argue that in the ,Q³3UHFDULRXV/LIH9XOQHUDELOLW\DQGWKH(WKLFRI&RKDELWDWLRQ´-XGLWK%XWOHUGH¿QHV book the children are uniquely vulnerable as they are caught up in wars on many fronts: vulnerability as: &KLQDLVDWZDUZLWK-DSDQ &DQDGDVHQGVWURRSVWRWKH(XURSHDQEDWWOH¿HOGV WKHLUVXUYLYDO space, Chinatown, is surrounded by hostility as the larger society does not recognise the ZKHQ ZH DUH XS DJDLQVW DQRWKHU SHUVRQ RU JURXS ¿QG RXUVHOYHV LQYDULDEO\ OHJLWLPDF\RIWKHLUH[LVWHQFH PHDQZKLOHWKHVHFRQGJHQHUDWLRQFKLOGUHQDVGHSLFWHGLQ joined to those we never chose, and must respond to solicitations in languages WKHERRNDUHFRQVWDQWO\LQWLPLGDWHGDQGEHOLWWOHGE\WKH¿UVWJHQHUDWLRQLPPLJUDQWVZKR we may not understand or even wish to understand. This happens, for deem themselves to have better cultural capital and do not hesitate to use it to keep the instance, at the border of several contested states but also in various moments later generations in their places; and lastly, the children also engage with personal wars RI JHRJUDSKLFDO SUR[LPLW\²ZKDW ZH PLJKW FDOO ³XS DJDLQVWQHVV´²WKH UHVXOW while growing up, encountering sexism, awakening sexuality and cultural confusion. We of populations living in conditions of unwilled adjacency, the result of forced see the children are disorientated and confused as if stranded in no man’s land trying to HPLJUDWLRQRUWKHUHGUDZLQJRIWKHERXQGDULHVRIDQDWLRQVWDWH VRUWRXWLGHQWLW\LVVXHVDQG¿QGDZD\WRVXUYLYHJHQHUDWLRQDOFRQÀLFWV0RUHLPSRUWDQWO\LQ their serious struggles, the children show great resilience and devise their own strategies Indeed, we see Chinatown residents in the novel exemplify this type of vulnerability as their to grow up in spite of the many restraints imposed on them. community is under threat, surrounded by the hostile wider Canadian society and adjacent In the sequel, All that Matters (2004), Choy explains that the Chen family came to the unsympathetic Little Tokyo. Meanwhile, the Vancouver Chinatown is also located in to Vancouver in 1926 because of famine and civil wars in China. They came to settle in DPXOWLUDFLDODQGGLYHUVHFRPPXQLW\ZKLFKFRXOGZHOOH[HPSOLI\WKHQRWLRQRID³FRQWDFW Chinatown in Vancouver, along with the many bachelor male labourers who were forced to zone”.30DU\/RXLVH3UDWWGH¿QHVWKHFRQWDFW]RQHLQKHUImperial Eyes DV³WKHVSDFHRI remain in Canada as they could not afford the passage home. Alena Chercover observes: imperial encounters, the space in which peoples geographically and historically separated ³'LVHQIUDQFKLVHG RVWUDFL]HG DQG H[SORLWHG E\ WKH KRVW QDWLRQ HDUO\ &KLQHVH VHWWOHUV come into contact with each other and establish ongoing relations, usually involving clustered in the less desirable periphery of Vancouver. This space then became known FRQGLWLRQVRIFRHUFLRQUDGLFDOLQHTXDOLW\DQGLQWUDFWDEOHFRQÀLFW´ )RU3UDWWWKHFRQWDFW as ‘Chinatown’” (6). This ghettoised Chinatown, to a certain extent, provides shelter and zone is propitious to producing literate art forms. However, Renisa Mawani, in Colonial cultural space for its residents. However, its isolation and independence are only delusive, ProximitiesGUDZLQJXSRQ*XKD+LQGHVVDQG+RPL%KDEKD¶VWKHRULHVDERXWWKHFRORQLDO EHFDXVHLWLVIDUIURPZKDW0DU\/RXLVH3UDWWGH¿QHVDV³VDIHKRXVHV´ZKLFKSURYLGHV FRQWDFW]RQHEHLQJDSODFHRIIHDUDQGDQ[LHW\H[SODLQVWKDW³1RPDWWHUKRZDPELJXRXV ³VRFLDO DQG LQWHOOHFWXDO VSDFHV ZKHUH JURXSV FDQ FRQVWLWXWH WKHPVHOYHV DV KRUL]RQWDO and unfounded these apprehensions, the uncertainty and contingency of colonial contacts homogenous, sovereign communities with high degrees of trust, shared understandings, and their potentially destabilizing effects often engendered illiberal reactions from colonial temporary protection from legacies of oppression”. Indeed, although the residents took administrators and bureaucrats, including discipline, force and violence” (14). Thus, Chinatown as a safe zone for themselves, thinking they could be at home within it, it was %XWOHU¶VGH¿QLWLRQRIWKHYXOQHUDELOLW\RISHRSOHZKRDUHIRUFHGWROLYHLQSUR[LPLW\WRRWKHU VHHQ E\ RXWVLGHUV DV D FRQVSLFXRXVO\ XQUXO\ VSDFH7KH VHOIVHFOXGHG &KLQDWRZQ ZDV groups in a contact zone could also be understood from the perspective of the dominant subject to the surveillance of the wider society, and maintained rather tense relationships SRZHU7KH\DOVRGRQRWOLNH³LQWLPDWHSUR[LPLWLHV´ 0DZDQL DPRQJVWGLIIHUHQWUDFHVGXH ZLWKWKHLUQHLJKERXUVVXFKDVWKH-DSDQHVH&DQDGLDQV:LWKKLVWRULFDOJUXGJHVEHWZHHQ 2 This changed in a later period than in the novel in the 1970s when different ethnic minorities united XQGHUWKHEDQQHURI³$VLDQ&DQDGLDQ´ 3 Moreover, in Colonial Proximities5HQLVD0DZDQLWKHRUL]HV%ULWLVK&ROXPELDDVDFRQWDFW]RQH 7KHDXWKRU&KLQHVH&DQDGLDQ¿FWLRQLVW:D\VRQ&KR\VHFRQGJHQHUDWLRQZDVERUQLQ9DQFRXYHU ZKHUH³DSODFHRUUDFLDOPL[WXUH²DSODFHZKHUH(XURSHDQVDERULJLQDOSHRSOHVDQGUDFLDOPLJUDQWV in 1939. He currently teaches at Humber College in Toronto. According to his autobiography Paper came into frequent contact, a conceptual and material geography where racial categories and Shadows, Choy was born and raised in Chinatown in Vancouver before the family moved to Ontario UDFLVPVZHUHERWKSURGXFHGDQGSURGXFWLYHRIORFDOO\FRQ¿JXUHGDQGJOREDOO\LQÀHFWHGPRGDOLWLHV ZKHUHWKH\UDQD¿VKDQGFKLSUHVWDXUDQW of colonial power” (5).
A Journal of Canadian Literary and Cultural Studies 27 WRWKHIHDUDERXW³UDFLDOKHWHURJHQHLW\´ZKLFKLVVHHQDVDWKUHDWWR³UDFLDOSXULW\´DQGZLOO :RQJ6XNDQG,VWD\HGODWHWRFDWFKWKHQHZVUHHO&KLQDZDVDWZDU¿JKWLQJ XQVHWWOHDQGEOXUWKH³UDFLDOWD[RQRPLHVDQGERXQGDULHV´XSRQZKLFKOLHWKH³ELRSROLWLFVRI WKH-DSDQHVHLQYDGHUV:RQJ6XNOLNHGWRVWDUWWKHFODSSLQJZKHQHYHU&KLDQJ VWDWHUDFLVP´ 7KHUHIRUHLWLVQRWKDUGWRLPDJLQHWKHWHQVLRQLQHDUO\WZHQWLHWKFHQWXU\ .DLVKHNDSSHDUHGRQWKHVFUHHQ7KHQZHZRXOGDOOKLVVWKHHQHP\LIWKH\ Chinatown with the mutual mistrust and repulsion. showed up, especially if General Tojo marched into view, or if we saw the I argue that the children in the novel suffer from such vulnerability as they are not ZHVWHUQGUHVVHG-DSDQHVHJRLQJLQDQGRXWRIWKH:KLWH+RXVHFKDWWHULQJ RQO\XSDJDLQVWWKHZKLWHVRFLHW\EXWDOVRVHHQDV³HQHPLHV´RU³WUDLWRUV´ZLWKLQ&KLQDWRZQ away with the Americans. If enough Chinatown people were there, the hissing ,WFRXOG EH VDLG WKDW WKH\ DUH FDXJKW XS LQ WKH FURVV¿UH EHWZHHQ WKH WZR VLGHV ,Q WKH ZDVDVORXGDVWKHFODSSLQJ*URZQXSZKLWHSHRSOHFODSSHGHYHU\WLPHWKH\ novel, Meiying, the youngest brother Sekky’s babysitter is asked why she knows so much saw President Roosevelt, Chinatown people booed every time they saw the DERXW WKH ZDU WR ZKLFK 0HL\LQJ DQVZHUV ³$UHQ¶W ZH DOO DW ZDU"´ Jade 261). Indeed, -DSDQHVHDQGFKLOGUHQFKHHUHGHYHU\WLPH0LJKW\0RXVHVKRZHGXS,DOZD\V Choy suggests that though no battles took place on Canadian territory during the Second looked forward to the Petunia Pig cartoons and Only the Shadow Knows World War, people in Chinatown during the period were at war on different fronts, as mystery serial. (Jade 45) SDWULDUFKDO RSSUHVVLRQ UDFLDO GLVFULPLQDWLRQ DQG FXOWXUDO FRQÀLFW WXUQHG SHRSOH DJDLQVW HDFKRWKHU$PLGVWVXFKFRQIXVLRQVDQGFURVV¿UH&KLQDWRZQEHFRPHVDEDWWOH¿HOGIRU With the war as the backdrop of their daily life, the tensions between people of different WKHFKLOGUHQ7KHZDULVQRWRI¿UHDQGVPRNHEXWRIUDFLVWDWWDFNVDQGGLVRULHQWDWLRQLQ races and nationalities are manifested directly and openly. It is interesting to note that forming one’s identity. Winning over allies seems to be especially important for the children people who share the same physical space, such as the cinema hall, identify different to live and grow as they are neither experienced nor resourceful on their own and the allies from the screen, but do not seek connection with those with whom they share the political and economic conditions are extreme. Indeed, I extend the use of the words ally DFWXDOSODFHDQGWLPH&KLDQJ.DLVKHNWKHWKHQSUHVLGHQWRI&KLQDZDVFOHDUO\VXSSRUWHG and alliance here from cooperation between states, often in a military context, to mean the E\WKH¿UVWJHQHUDWLRQODERXUHUV$QGWKH&KLQHVHLPPLJUDQWVGRQRWWU\WRKLGHWKHLUDQWL IRUPLQJRIVWUDWHJLFDOSHUVRQDORUVRFLDOUHODWLRQVKLSVRIWHQZLWKDYLHZWRDI¿UPLQJPXWXDO -DSDQHVHIHHOLQJV:KLWH&DQDGLDQVDOVRH[SUHVVWKHLUDI¿QLW\ZLWK$PHULFDE\FODSSLQJDW interests or defending against a common enemy. In relation to The Jade Peony, I am the appearance of President Roosevelt. especially interested in the capricious nature of an alliance, with its members constantly The deciding factor in the different countries’ choice of allies is common interest changing their perspective and commitments. Moreover, though the children in the novel UDWKHUWKDQMXVWLFH)RULQVWDQFHLWZDVDIWHU3HDUO+DUERXUZDVDWWDFNHGLQ WKDWWKH are not really at war, the danger is similar: put one foot wrong and there may be serious 86GHFODUHGZDURQ-DSDQ,QWKHVWRULHVWKHIDWKHULVH[FLWHGWRKHDUWKHQHZVRQWKH consequences. There can be casualties too, such as Meiying, who died tragically. We also UDGLR ³µ7KHWLGHKDVWXUQHG¶)DWKHUVDLGµ$PHULFDLVJRLQJWREH&KLQD¶VDOO\¶´ Jade 264). see that the Chinatown residents, represented in the book by the Chen family, constantly &KLQDDQG-DSDQKDGEHHQDWZDUDFRQÀLFWNQRZQDVWKHVHFRQG6LQR-DSDQHVH:DU form and reform alliances, permanent or temporary, against the enemy, which turn out to since 1937, and the Chinese immigrants’ excitement over America’s and then Canada’s EHDÀRDWLQJFDWHJRU\ZLWKVKLIWLQJERXQGDULHV GHFODUDWLRQRIZDUDJDLQVW-DSDQLVWKHUHIRUHXQGHUVWDQGDEOH4 It meant not only that China I have chosen to focus my reading on the idea of being at war, and especially on then stood a greater chance of winning but also that they, as Chinese immigrants, could the forming of alliances, because the historical period presented in Choy’s story seems to hope for better treatment in Canada. In comparison, the children’s world seems more have been a time when the lines between enemy and ally were very distinct, and when VRFLDO SROLWLFDO DQG UDFLDO FRQÀLFWV ZHUH HVSHFLDOO\ LQWHQVH 7KHVH FRQÀLFWV ZHUH RIWHQ 4 7KH)LUVW6LQR-DSDQ:DUIRXJKWEHWZHHQWKH4LQJ(PSLUHDQGWKH(PSLUHRI-DSDQKDSSHQHG XQGHUVWRRGLQPRUHVLPSOL¿HGEODFNDQGZKLWHWHUPVWKDQZDVWKHFDVHLQODWHUGHFDGHV in 1894 and lasted till 1895, ended with China’s grave losses. )RUH[DPSOHLQWKHVWRU\/LDQJGHVFULEHVGLIIHUHQWUHDFWLRQVIURPWKHDXGLHQFHWRZDUGV 5 Cartoons can also be politically charged, and are not always innocent. Among those that Choy’s Liang enjoys, Petunia Pig is relatively uncontroversial, but Mighty Mouse, an American superhero, the newsreel that is shown after movies: ZDVVKRZQLQZDUWLPH¿OPV¿JKWLQJHQHPLHVWKDWFOHDUO\UHSUHVHQWWKH1D]LV&DUWRRQVFDQDOVREH UDFLVWDVLQWKHFDVHRIWKH)X0DQFKXFRPLFVWULSVRQHRIWKHVSLQRIIVIURP6D[5RKPHU¶VRULJLQDO novels.
28 [2254-1179 (2018) 7, 25-35] innocent. Kids, regardless of their background, like cartoons. Liang, the Chinatown girl, ,QWKHFLW\GXPSRQ)DOVH&UHHN)ODWVOLYLQJLQPDNHVKLIWKXWVWKLUW\WZR2OG OHDUQV WR DSSUHFLDWH$PHULFDQPDGH FDUWRRQV LQ (QJOLVK DV VKH JURZV XS LQ &DQDGD5 &KLQDEDFKHORUPHQWULHGWRVKHOWHUWKHPVHOYHV GR]HQVPRUHZHUHG\LQJRI +RZHYHU HDFK ¿JKWLQJ WKHLU RZQ EDWWOHV WKH HWKQLF PLQRULWLHV IDLOHG WR UHFRJQLVH WKH QHJOHFWLQWKHRYHUFURZGHGURRPVRI3HQGHU6WUHHW7KHUHZHUHQR'HSUHVVLRQ importance of forming alliances.6 jobs for such men. They had been deserted by the railroad companies and In addition, I argue that, though the novel is written from the perspective of children, it betrayed by the many labour contractors who had gone back to China, wealthy is hardly a children’s book. In The Presence of the Past: Memory, Heritage, and Childhood DQGIRUJHWIXO7KHUHZDVDORFDO9DQFRXYHUE\ODZDJDLQVWEHJJLQJIRUIRRG in Post war Britain,9DOHULH.ULSVH[SODLQVKRZERRNVDERXWFKLOGUHQUHÀHFWDQDGXOWZRUOG a federal law against stealing food, but no law in any court against starving ³FKLOGUHQDUHLPDJLQHGDQGLPDJHGE\DGXOWVDQGZKDWLVWKHUHE\UHYHDOHGLVDSURIRXQGO\ to death for lack of food. The few churches that served the Chinatown area LPSRUWDQWLQVLJKWLQWRWKHFXOWXUH¶V OLWHUDO VHOIXQGHUVWDQGLQJ´ $SDUWIURPWKHIDFWWKDWWKH were running out of funds. Soup kitchens could no longer safely manage the novel talks about many complicated issues, such as the Depression, the Chinese Exclusion QXPEHUVOLQLQJXSIRUQRXULVKPHQW¿JKWLQJHDFKRWKHU&KLQDPHQ>VLF@ZHUH Act of 1923, the Second World War, and suicide, I argue that the children’s world is in fact an shoved aside, threatened, forgotten. (Jade 10) analogy of the adults’ reality as the children’s frustration about not being treated as equals is also acutely felt by the adults. People of Chinese ancestry were not recognised as citizens Since the Chinatown residents had to rely entirely upon the community’s inner resources in Canada until 1947 when the Canadian government repealed the Chinese Exclusion Act WRVXUYLYHLQGLI¿FXOWWLPHVVXFKDVGXULQJWKH*UHDW'HSUHVVLRQWKH\KDGWRVWLFNFORVHO\ and granted them the right to vote in federal elections. Choy’s novel recaptures a Chinatown, WRJHWKHUWRWKHHIIHFWRIIRUPLQJDJKHWWRLVHGUHVLGHQWLDO]RQHZLWKLQWKHFLW\,Q³'RHV which, in the view of white Canadian society, was a tumour that the city would prefer doing 6KLUOH\7HPSOH(DW &KLFNHQ )HHW"´ 0LFKHOOH +DUWOH\ DUJXHV ³7KH GHSULYDWLRQ RI ULJKWV without. With their rights unrecognised and their existence often ignored, Chinese Canadians DQGIUHHGRPVWKDWWKH&KLQHVHIDFHGUHVXOWHGLQDFORVHNQLWLQVXODUFRPPXQLW\IRUWKH felt deeply humiliated because of this vulnerability that they were unwillingly subject to. remaining residents, a community that both took care of its own and closely watched its They were, to some extent, treated as if like children who do not enjoy full rights and who boundaries” (64). What isolated Chinatown was a double layer of barriers constructed should be told off and punished when caught up doing mischiefs. Chinatown residents called XSRQLWVSK\VLFDOERUGHUV²DOD\HURIVHOILVRODWLRQIURPZLWKLQLQWHQGLQJWRVFUHHQRIIWKH -XO\ WKHGD\ZKHQWKH&KLQHVH([FOXVLRQ$FWFDPHLQWRHIIHFW³+XPLOLDWLRQ'D\´ judgemental white gaze, and a layer of forced exclusion from the mainstream society that 7KHLURQ\RIWKLVQDPHLVFOHDU -XO\ZDVDOVR'RPLQLRQ'D\ QRZ³&DQDGD'D\´ DQG actively ignored its existence. The forming of a physical shield, such as Chinatown, renders PDUNVWKHDQQLYHUVDU\RI&RQIHGHUDWLRQ,QKHUDUWLFOH³7KH+HDOLQJ(IIHFWVRI&KLOGKRRG them more vulnerable because the fact that they are displaced is made more obvious. 1DUUDWLYHLQ:D\VRQ&KR\¶VThe Jade Peony´&KULVWLQH/RUUHDUJXHV ³7KHQDUUDWLRQDOORZV The stories depict a society organised by Confucian beliefs and located in Vancouver’s the intellectualisation of the conclusion, and occasionally the pain, of childhood experience, Chinatown.7$WWKDWWLPHWKLVGLVWULFWZDVPDLQO\LQKDELWHGE\¿UVWJHQHUDWLRQLPPLJUDQWV ZKLFKUHÀHFWVVRPHWLPHVIDLWKIXOO\VRPHWLPHVLQDGLVWRUWHGZD\WKHFRQIXVLRQDQGSDLQRI and was isolated by a distinctive culture and social organisation that differed from Canadian the adult world that surrounds it” (72). In the book, the children are at times frustrated with norms.8 The family that the stories revolve around is a typical Chinese family in Chinatown the adults who either ignore them or antagonise them by calling them useless or brainless, which, I argue, could be seen as a projection of the frustration of the adult community. 7 &RQIXFLDQLVP JUHDWO\ LQÀXHQFHG WUDGLWLRQDO &KLQHVH FXOWXUH ,W KDV HIIHFWLYHO\ VXSSRUWHG D )RUH[DPSOHLQWKH¿UVWSDUW/LDQJREVHUYHVWKHHPEDUUDVVLQJVLWXDWLRQWKDWPDQ\ patriarchal system. In fact, during Confucius’ own time, about 2,500 years ago, his teachings ZHUHQRWZLGHO\DFFHSWHG+RZHYHULQWKH+DQ'\QDVW\ %&(²&( WKH¿UVWHPSHURU &KLQHVHDGXOWV¿QGWKHPVHOYHVLQ declared China a Confucian state and other ideologies were banned because the government saw the potential of Confucianism for maintaining order, thus facilitating its sovereignty. Since then, &RQIXFLDQLVPKDVEHFRPHWKHVWDWHHQGRUVHGLGHRORJ\DQGKDV¿OWHUHGLQWR&KLQHVHDQGPDQ\ other Asian countries’ cultures. 8 )RUH[DPSOHDVWKHIDPLO\DWWKHFHQWUHRI&KR\¶VQRYHOLVQRWYHU\DIÀXHQWDQGERWKWKHSDUHQWV 6 It was not until the 1970s people from various ethnic groups formed the idea of coalition between need to work hard to support the relatively large family (of seven members), readers may wonder GLIIHUHQWHWKQLFJURXSVDQGIRXJKWXQGHUWKHEDQQHURIDQ³$VLDQ&DQDGLDQ´LGHQWLW\ why they still seek to adopt a son and also why the character known as Stepmother sees it as
A Journal of Canadian Literary and Cultural Studies 29 EXWXQXVXDOE\&DQDGLDQVWDQGDUGV7KHZLGRZHGIDWKHUJRHVWR&DQDGDZLWKKLV¿UVWVRQ Liang observes her mother, in a rather detached tone: and his grandmother, as paper relatives to a man whom the children would later call Third Uncle. The Uncle also arranges for a wife procured from China to come to join the family. Stepmother was a young woman when she came to Canada, barely twenty 7KLVVHFRQGZLIHJLYHVELUWKWRDGDXJKWHU-RRN/LDQJ7KHQWKHIDPLO\DGRSWDUHFHQWO\ DQGDGR]HQ\HDUV\RXQJHUWKDQ)DWKHU6KHFDPHZLWKQRHGXFDWLRQZLWKD RUSKDQHGER\-XQJ6XQ0HDQZKLOHWKHVHFRQGZLIHZKRPDOOWKHFKLOGUHQLQFOXGLQJWKH village dialect as poor as she was. Girls were often left to fend for themselves in WZRELRORJLFDORQHVFDOO6WHSPRWKHUJLYHVELUWKWRDQRWKHUER\6HN/XQJ6KHLVRQO\ the streets, so she was lucky to have any family interested in her fate. Though relieved of the duty of reproduction with a miscarriage. my face was round like father’s, I had her eyes and delicate mouth, her high 7KHERRNLVGHYRWHGWRVWRULHVRIFKLOGUHQZKRDUHVHFRQGJHQHUDWLRQLPPLJUDQWV forehead but not her high cheekbones. (Jade 5) 7KLVHPSKDVLVRQDVSHFL¿FJHQHUDWLRQDQGDJHJURXSLVRIYLWDOLPSRUWDQFHWRWKHQRYHO EHFDXVH¿UVWO\WKHVHFRQGJHQHUDWLRQFKLOGUHQDUHH[SRVHGWRGRXEOHZRUOGV²&KLQDWRZQ $V/LDQJLVRQO\DFKLOGKHUNQRZOHGJHDQGXQGHUVWDQGLQJRIWKHDGXOWZRUOGLVLQÀXHQFHG DQG&DQDGD²DQGWKHFRQÀLFWEHWZHHQWKHP%RWKZRUOGVZHUHFUHDWHGE\RWKHUVDQG by other adults’ teachings. Here she judges her mother inferior because of her lack of require the children’s participation and cooperation. And secondly, as children, they are still HGXFDWLRQDQGSRRUFRPPDQGRIODQJXDJH$QGLWVHHPV/LDQJWKLQNVWKDW³KHUIDPLO\´ forming their identity and personality while they struggle to grow up. This means that they LV NLQG HQRXJK WR WDNH WKH PRWKHU LQ DV ³JLUOV DUH RIWHQ OHIW WR IHQG IRU WKHPVHOYHV LQ are at a most critical and vulnerable stage of life. the streets” (5). Liang feels superior to her mother, as she belongs with the family more In the book, women are oppressed gravely by the patriarchal system. This oppression than Stepmother does, and this belonging is made visible through her resemblance to her is most effective as it turns the female members against each other, preventing them from father. Though she also takes after her mother, she obviously does not feel much related UHDOLVLQJWKDWWKH\VKRXOGIRUPFRDOLWLRQVZLWKRQHDQRWKHUIRUWKHLURZQEHQH¿W&KHUFRYHU WRKHU/LDQJH[SODLQV ³6KHZDVEURXJKWRYHUWRKHOSWDNHFDUHRI3RK3RKDQGWRNHHS argues: father appropriate wifely company; but soon the young woman became more a wife than Gender constrictions, like the bounds of ethnicity and class, related to cultural DFRQFXELQHWR)DWKHUPRUHDVWHSGDXJKWHUWKDQDKRXVHVHUYDQWWR*UDQGPRWKHU´ and institutional sexism both within the Chinese diaspora and within the The fact that Stepmother is brought over to Canada initially as a concubine and a house VRFLRSROLWLFDOIUDPHZRUNRIWKHKRVWQDWLRQ%RWKVWUXFWXUHVHUHFWEDUULHUVWKDW VHUYDQWWRWKHIDPLO\HQVXUHVWKDWVKHUHPDLQVLQIHULRUDQGLQVLJQL¿FDQWWKRXJKWKHIDPLO\ deny Chinese women access to knowledge, power, wealth, public space, and LVJHQHURXVHQRXJKWR³SURPRWH´KHUWREH6WHSPRWKHUWRWKHFKLOGUHQ even physical wellness. (8) 3RK3RKKDYLQJLQWHUQDOLVHGSDWULDUFKDOEHOLHIVEHFRPHVDIDLWKIXOGHIHQGHURIWKH system, despite having herself been oppressed by its injustice. She actively subordinates ,QWKHQRYHO3RK3RKWKHJUDQGPRWKHUZLWKKHUDJHDQGVXSHULRULW\LQFXOWXUDOFDSLWDO WKHRWKHUIHPDOHPHPEHUV7KHUHIRUHLQWKHERRNWKHZRPHQ¶VDUP\²6WHSPRWKHU3RK ODQJXDJHDELOLW\DQGFXOWXUDONQRZKRZ LVGRPLQDQWZLWKLQWKHIDPLO\$V6HNN\REVHUYHV Poh and Liang—are turned against each other. Liang observes shrewdly: ³%HFDXVHRIKHUDJHWKHZLU\DQFLHQWODG\ZDVWKHRQHSHUVRQ)DWKHUZRXOGQHYHUSHUPLW any of us to defy” (Jade 147). Liang, because she carries the family name, comes second 3RK3RKEHLQJRQHRIWKHIHZHOGHUZRPHQOHIWLQ9DQFRXYHUWRRNSOHDVXUH within the women’s hierarchy. Stepmother, who remains nameless and seldom speaks in LQKHUVWDWXVDQGEHFDPHWKHDUELWUDWRURIWKHROGZD\V3RK3RKLQVLVWHGZH the novel, is put at the bottom of the family order. VLPSOLI\RXUNLQVKLSWHUPVLQ&DQDGDVRP\PRWKHUEHFDPH³VWHSPRWKHU´7KDW LVZKDWWKHWZRER\VDOZD\VFDOOHGKHUIRU.LDPZDVWKH)LUVW6RQRI)DWKHU¶V )LUVW :LIH ZKR KDG GLHG P\VWHULRXVO\ LQ &KLQD DQG -XQJ WKH 6HFRQG 6RQ an obligation to give birth to more children. It is, in fact, a Confucian decree that a proper family had been adopted into our family. What the sons called my mother, my mother should increase its numbers to ensure and honour the ancestral lineage. Another example is the burial ceremony and the custom of bringing the bones back to where the person was born. In the EHFDPH7KHQDPH³6WHSPRWKHU´NHSWWKLQJVVLPSOHRUGHUO\DV3RK3RKKDG novel, traces of Confucian idealism pervade Choy’s depiction of the society in Chinatown. However, GHWHUPLQHG)DWKHUGLGQRWSURWHVW1RUGLGWKHVOLPSUHWW\ZRPDQWKDWZDVP\ EHFDXVHWKHQDUUDWRUVDUHVHFRQGJHQHUDWLRQ&%&FKLOGUHQFXOWXUDOH[SODQDWLRQVRIWKLVNLQGDUH
30 [2254-1179 (2018) 7, 25-35] mother seem to protest, though she must have cast a glance at the Old One (PSKDVLVLQJWKDW/LDQJLV&KLQD3RK3RKEHOLHYHVLQWKHH[LVWHQFHRIDWLHWKDWZLOOELQGD and decided to bide her time. That was the order of things in China. (6) Chinese to her country under any circumstances. China has been engaged in a series of ZDUVDQGWKHUHIRUHDOORIWKH&KLQHVHHYHQWKH&DQDGLDQERUQ/LDQJPXVWEHDVVRFLDWHG Here, the patriarchal oppression of Stepmother is exposed as she is effectively alienated with the outcome of the war. It also shows how Canada has failed to assure of its residents LQWKHFRQWH[WRIWKHIDPLO\:LWKWKHSUHWH[WRI³VLPSOLI\LQJ´WKLQJVLQ&DQDGD6WHSPRWKHU of security and belonging to the point they would alienate themselves and their offspring. is deprived of her natural title of mother to her two biological offspring. However, as Liang )UXVWUDWHGDERXWEHLQJXQGHUYDOXHGDQGXQUHFRJQLVHG/LDQJVHHNVDI¿UPDWLRQDQG DFFXUDWHO\SRLQWVRXWWKHVLPSOL¿FDWLRQLVPDGHRQDFFRXQWRIWKHWZRROGHUER\V,QIDFW affection from outside the family. Her relationship with Wong Suk, who comes to Canada WKHXVDJHRIWKHWHUP³VWHSPRWKHU´LVWRUHPLQG6WHSPRWKHURIKHULQIHULRUSRVLWLRQ DVDQLQGHQWXUHG&35ZRUNHULVHPSRZHULQJWRERWKRIWKHP7KH\IRUPDQDOOLDQFH ³,ZDV $WWKHVDPHWLPHWKHUHVHHPWREHRQJRLQJZDUVEHWZHHQ3RK3RKDQG/LDQJDV happy. I knew our adopted relationship was a true one: Wong Suk would otherwise have 3RK3RKHQGHDYRXUVWRPDNHKHUJUDQGGDXJKWHUUHFRQFLOHKHUVHOIWRKHURZQLQIHULRULW\ EHHQRQO\RQHRIWKHPDQ\GLVFDUGHGEDFKHORUPHQRI&KLQDWRZQ²DQG,EDUHO\WROHUDWHG ³µ-RRN/LDQJLI\RXZDQWDSODFHLQWKLVZRUOG¶*UDQGPRWKHU¶VYRLFHKDGWKDWH[DVSHUDWLQJ E\3RK3RKZRXOGPHUHO\EHDXVHOHVVJLUOFKLOG´ 6WUHQJWKHQHGE\WKLVIULHQGVKLS OHWPHUHPLQG\RXWRQHµGRQRWEHERUQDJLUOFKLOG¶´ /LDQJREVHUYHV ³:KHQHYHUVKH Liang is able to gain resources outside the family, which is determined to restrain the ZDVDORQHZLWKPHWKH2OG2QHVQDSSHGDWZKDWVKHVDZDVP\ODFNRIKXPLOLW\´ %\ development of her subjectivity. Liang’s external resources for support and sustenance SXUSRVHO\DQWDJRQLVLQJKHUJUDQGGDXJKWHU3RK3RKPHDQVWRNHHS/LDQJUHDOLVWLFDQG DUHIURP:RQJ6XNZKRVXSSOLHVDI¿UPDWLRQDQGDIIHFWLRQDQG6KLUOH\7HPSOHZLWKZKRP WRXJKLQSUHSDUDWLRQIRUWKHKDUGUHDOLW\IRUJLUOVLQWKHZRUOG7KHUHIRUH3RK3RKUHSHDWV /LDQJLPDJLQHVGHYHORSLQJDIULHQGVKLS ³,WZDVDIDFWWKDWZHZHUHERWKQHDUO\QLQH\HDUV her admonishment, determined to make an impression on Liang: old” (Jade 46). However, Liang is not the only child in the family to identify herself with a Western role model. She imagines her grandmother’s disappointment at witnessing the ³0R\XQJJLUO´6KHVDLGDVLI,ZRXOGQHYHUOHDUQDWKLQJKRZHYHUPXFK, FKLOGUHQ¶V IDQWDVLHV ³This useless only-granddaughter wants to be Shir-lee Tem-polah; ZDQWHGWREHWDXJKW³7RRPXFKVSRLO´>«@ the useless Second Grandson wants to be cow-boy-lah. The First Grandson wants to be ³7RRIXVV\´3RK3RKVDLGKHUEDFNWRPH³8VHOHVV´ Charlie Chan. All stupid foolish!” 7KH&DQDGLDQ%RUQ&KLQHVH &%& FKLOGUHQVWDUWWR LQWHUQDOLVHVRFLDODQGFXOWXUDOLQÀXHQFHVIURPWKHLUHQYLURQPHQW /LWHUDOO\³0R\XQJ´PHDQV³QRXVH´7KLVDFFXVDWLRQRIEHLQJXVHOHVVSDUDGR[LFDOO\VHHPV )RUH[DPSOH/LDQJLVSDLQHGE\WKHIDFWWKDWZKDWVKHVHOILGHQWL¿HVZLWKGRHVQRW WREHDPL[WXUHRIUHSURDFKDQGDEOHVVLQJWKDW3RK3RKJLYHVWRKHUJUDQGGDXJKWHU)RU UHÀHFWZKDWVKHLVRUDWOHDVWORRNOLNH H[DPSOH3RK3RKUHIXVHVWRWHDFK/LDQJDQ\RIKHUVNLOOV ³%XWDOOKHUZRPDQO\VNLOOVVKH ZRXOGNHHSDZD\IURPPHNHHSWRKHUVHOIXQWLOVKHGLHG µ-REWRRJRRGIRUmoyungJLUO¶´ I looked again into the hall mirror, seeking Shirley Temple with her dimpled ([SORLWHGLQ2OG&KLQDDVDVODYHJLUO3RK3RKDFTXLUHVKHUGRPHVWLFDELOLWLHVQRW VPLOHDQGSHUIHFWZKLWHVNLQIHDWXUHV%OXQWO\UHÀHFWHGEDFNDWPHZDVDEURDG IRUVHOIIXO¿OPHQWEXWWREHXVHGFUXHOO\E\RWKHUV$OWKRXJKVKHH[SUHVVHVKHUFRQFHUQ sallow moon with slit dark eyes, topped by a helmet of black hair. I looked DQGORYHLQDURXJKPDQQHUKHUFDOOLQJ/LDQJ³PR\XQJ´WRVRPHH[WHQWLVDGLVJXLVHG GRZQ-XWWLQJRXWIURPDWRRODUJHWDIIHWDGUHVVZHUHWZRVSLQGO\OHJVPDWFKHG blessing, suggesting Liang will not be used as her grandmother has been. by a pair of bony arms. Something cold clutched at my stomach, made me 7KHROGWLPHU3RK3RKEHOLHYHVWKLQJVZRQ¶WFKDQJHLQ&KLQDWRZQVLQFHWKH\DUH swallow. (Jade 41) Chinese and will remain Chinese: Growing up in a country whose mainstream culture is different from their family culture, the ³7KHUH¶VQRZDULQ&DQDGD´,VDLG³7KLVLV&DQDGD´ &KLQDWRZQFKLOGUHQHVSHFLDOO\WKRVHORFDOERUQDUH³DWZDU´ZLWKLQWKHPVHOYHVWU\LQJWR 3RK3RKVLJKHGGHHSO\JDYHPHDFRQGHVFHQGLQJORRN FRPHWRWHUPVZLWKWKHLUVHOILPDJHDQGLGHQWLW\7KLVLVQRWDOZD\VHDV\DVWKHSUHYDOHQW ³YouQRW&DQDGD/LDQJ´VKHVDLGPDMHVWLFDOO\³you China. Always war in China.” (34) YDOXHVDQGDHVWKHWLFVGRQRWUHFRJQLVHWKHLU³NLQG´VLQFHWKH\DUHQRWUHÀHFWHGSRVLWLYHO\LQ
A Journal of Canadian Literary and Cultural Studies 31 PDLQVWUHDPLPDJHV&KDUOHV7D\ORUH[SODLQV ³(TXDOUHFRJQLWLRQLVQRWMXVWWKHDSSURSULDWH ³-XQJ6XPLVWKHPRRQ´3RK3RKVDLG>«@ PRGHIRUDKHDOWK\GHPRFUDWLFVRFLHW\,WVUHIXVDOFDQLQÀLFWGDPDJHRQWKRVHZKRDUH ³7KHPRRQ"´0UV/LPEOXUWHG³,PSRVVLEOH´>«@ GHQLHGLW>«@7KHSURMHFWLRQRIDQLQIHULRURUGHPHDQLQJLPDJHRQDQRWKHUFDQDFWXDOO\ The Old One slowly lifted her teacup and gently focused on me, her gaze full distort and oppress, to the extent that the image is internalized” (36). Liang describes her RINQRZLQJP\VWHU\ RZQLPDJHLQWKHPLUURUDVIHDWXULQJD³VDOORZPRRQ´IDFHDQG³VOLWGDUNH\HV´XVLQJWKH Western terminology usually applied to describe Asian facial features at that time. She not -XQJLVSHUSOH[HGE\3RK3RK¶VDQQRXQFHPHQWWKDWKHLVWKHPRRQWKHyin sign for female, only uses the terms, but also internalises the values attached to them: that they meant darkness (or shadow) and softness; instead of being the sun, the symbol for the yang, ³XJO\´DVVKHUHDOLVHVZLWKGLVPD\:LWKUHJDUGVWRPDNLQJ/LDQJIHHOLQIHULRUDQGXJO\ male, the light and the powerful, as he obviously takes to activities which build physical LW VHHPV DV LI &KLQDWRZQ FXOWXUH UHSUHVHQWHG E\ 3RK3RK DQG &DQDGD IRUP ZHDWKHU VWUHQJWK3RK3RKVHHPVWREHDEOHWRVHHWKHXQGHUO\LQJQDWXUHRI-XQJWKDWKH³LV´yin LQWHQWLRQDOO\RUQRW DQHIIHFWLYHFRDOLWLRQZLWK3RK3RKDWWDFNLQJKHUIRUEHLQJDJLUORIQR though he manifests many yang features. This essentialist view contradicts contemporary use and Canada promoting an ideal child image of a blonde, chubby, lovely girl. liberal thinking which proposes that one’s conscious choice of actions, rather than some ,Q WKH VHFRQG SDUW RI WKH QRYHO -XQJ UHODWHV VHYHUDO VWRULHV WKDW LQÀXHQFH WKH LQQHUHVVHQFHGH¿QHVWKHVHOI+RZHYHUWUDGLWLRQDO&KLQHVHWKLQNLQJDFWXDOO\FUHDWHVD forming of his self, such as believing in ghosts, luck, and physical strength. In this section, VSDFHIRU-XQJWRIDFHKLVKRPRVH[XDOLW\VLQFH3RK3RKWKH³VWDQGDUGEHDUHU´RIWKHROG I will concentrate on his sexual awakening and coming to terms with his homosexuality. ways, can appreciate his nature, thinking the transgression in his sexuality extraordinary $OWKRXJK VKH FRQWLQXDOO\ UHSURDFKHV /LDQJ 3RK3RK¶V DWWLWXGH WRZDUGV KHU DGRSWHG rather than abnormal. JUDQGVRQLVDI¿UPDWLYH ³$IWHUHLJKW\HDUVRIOLYLQJZLWKKHUVLQFH,ZDVIRXUVKHQHYHU /DWHULQKLVVWRULHV-XQJFRPHVWRUHDOLVHWKDWKHKDVUHDODIIHFWLRQWRZDUGVDQRWKHU stopped appraising me with her faded eyes; her glance, still watchful, searching” (87). ER\ )UDQN
32 [2254-1179 (2018) 7, 25-35] 6HNN\ H[SODLQV WKDW WKH VHFRQGJHQHUDWLRQ FKLOGUHQ ZKR ZHUH ERUQ LQ &DQDGD 6HNN\ DOVR H[SODLQV WKDW WKH (QJOLVKVSHDNLQJ VHFRQG JHQHUDWLRQ DUH SRWHQWLDO DUHFRQVLGHUHGDVEUDLQOHVVDQGDUHPLVWUXVWHG ³$OOWKH&KLQDWRZQDGXOWVZHUHZRUULHG ³WUDLWRUV´WKDWWKH\PD\EHWUD\&KLQDWRZQSHRSOHWRWKHZKLWHVRFLHW\ over those of us recently born in Canada, born ‘neither this nor that,’ neither Chinese nor Canadian, born without understanding the boundaries, born mo no—no brain” (Jade Mo nos went to English school and mixed with Demon outsiders, and even like 152). Therefore, being brainless or mo no does not refer to a person’s intelligence but is them. Wanted to invite them home. Sometimes a mo no might say one careless closely associated with one’s ability to walk within social boundaries. Taking for granted word too may, and the Immigration Demons would pounce. One careless the traditional ways and values, the elders do not realise that their own perceptions and word—perhaps because a mo no girl or a mo no boy was showing off—and views were acquired through life experience in Chinese society. They then think of the two the Immigration Demons would come in the middle of the night, bang on the generations who were born and raised in Canada as stupid, not knowing better. Moreover, family door, demand a show of pile of documents with red embossed stamps. LWVHHPVWKDWFDOOLQJWKHVHFRQGJHQHUDWLRQFKLOGUHQmo no is a strategy that the elders Then the Immigration Demons would separate family members and ask trick use to instil a sense of inferiority in them, so that they will remain humble and respectful TXHVWLRQV7KHQFHUWDLQ³IDPLO\´PHPEHUVZRXOGGLVDSSHDU+RXVHKROGVZRXOG WRZDUGVWKHROGRUGHU%\WDNLQJDGYDQWDJHRIWKHQHZJHQHUDWLRQV¶ODFNRIOLIHH[SHULHQFH EHEURNHQXS-REVZRXOGEHORVW-DLODQGVKDPHDQGVXLFLGHVZRXOGIROORZ DQGOLQJXLVWLFSUR¿FLHQF\WKHHOGHUVRUWKHDXWKRULWLHVLQ&DQDGDFRQVWUXFWSXUSRVHIXOO\ (Jade DIDOVH³UHDOLW\´²WKDWWKHORFDOERUQFKLOGUHQDUH³mo no”. They enforce this concept by constantly reprimanding and humiliating them with this disparaging term whenever they 7KLV VLWXDWLRQ WXUQV WKH (QJOLVKVSHDNLQJ &KLQDWRZQ FKLOGUHQ LQWR SRWHQWLDO WUDLWRUV WR PDNHDQ\PLVWDNHVGXHWRLQVXI¿FLHQWNQRZOHGJHRUODFNRILQVWUXFWLRQ6HNN\DVZHVHH the Chinese community as children tend to misplace their trust and be careless with the PLVWDNHQO\WDNHVRXWKLVDQJHUDJDLQVW&KLQHVHQHVV²ZKLFKKHLVQRW³JRRG´DWEHLQJ disclosure of information. Chinatown parents purposely withhold some information from ,Q6HNN\¶VOLWWOHVL[\HDUROGKHDUWKHIHHOVLWLVXQIDLURIWKHIDPLO\WREHVR³IRFXVHG children. Children, therefore, are excluded from the centre of Chinatown life and sensitive on the way I stumbled over calling my adopted Gim Sam Gons (Gold Mountain uncles) VHFUHWVDUHNHSWDZD\IURPWKHP'DYLVREVHUYHV ³WKHVHFUHWVRIWKH&KLQDWRZQLQKDELWDQWV their proper titles” (145). It seems to him that Chinatown family life is to some extent more become another effective border that separates the insiders from the mainstream world on GLI¿FXOWWRFRSHZLWKWKDQOLIHLQWKH(QJOLVKZRUOG%HLQJDOHVVH[SHULHQFHG&KLQDWRZQ WKHRXWVLGHDVZHOODVJHQHUDWLRQVZLWKLQ&KLQDWRZQIURPHDFKRWKHU´ ³&KLQDWRZQ´ resident, Sekky is bewildered not only by the overwhelming addressing system in Chinese Choy shows how discriminatory policies in Canada not only segregated Chinatown from based on the addressee’s gender, age, status and kinship to the addresser, but also by the rest of Canada but also divided Chinese Canadian people within Chinatown. the importance of addressing people correctly. However, addressing a person by his or Choy complicates the old and new paradigms. In his book, it is not simply that the her proper title is a very important part of Chinese social custom, since it maintains the QHZZLQVRYHUWKHROGRUWKHROGJLYHVZD\WRWKHPRGHUQ)RUKLPERWKWKHROGDQGWKH order of patriarchal hierarchy, upon which basis Confucian society functions. As Sekky QHZDUHYDOXHG,Q6HNN\¶VVWRULHVKHEHFRPHV3RK3RK¶VDOO\LQSUHSDUDWLRQIRUKHURZQ REVHUYHV ³(YHU\&KLQHVHSHUVRQLWVHHPHGWRPHKDGDQHQLJPDWLFVWDWXVDQRUGHURI death as they would go on scavenging trips in search of glittering objects in garbage bins. SRZHUDQGUHVSHFWP\VWHULRXVO\DWWDFKHGWRKLPRUKHU´ /HHH[SODLQV ³0LVQDPLQJLV They conceal their trips from the other family members as they think scavenging brings therefore an act that suggests a potentially rebellious refusal to submit to the community’s VKDPHVRQWKHP$IWHU3RK3RK¶VGHDWK6HNN\DWWHVWVWKDWKHFDQVHH3RK3RK¶VJKRVW social standards. Wittingly or not, Sekky casts himself as a dissenting subject who needs in the household. Eventually, the father is persuaded by Third Uncle to baisen—a ritual to be disciplined and molded until he partakes (and consents) fully in the discourse of FHUHPRQ\WRSD\WULEXWHWRWKHGHDGRIWKHIDPLO\ ³µ7KHIDFWLV¶7KLUG8QFOHVDLGWR)DWKHU &KLQHVHQHVV´ ,QGHHG WKH &KLQHVHQHVV ZLWKLQ &KLQDWRZQ LV DQ DUWL¿FLDO FRQVWUXFW ‘you haven’t paid your respects properly to your dead mother. You must baisen, you must that is made true by the reinforcement of each of its participants. Sekky’s seemingly trivial bow3D\\RXUUHVSHFWV$OOWKLVSROLWLFDOWDON\RXWDONRQHZRUOGRQHFLWL]HQVKLS A Journal of Canadian Literary and Cultural Studies 33 is not only ceremonial: people have to be sincere. As in the book, the father has to arrange her own loyalty to the community. The mother is a widow and lives on the community’s a second baisenIRU3RK3RK$IWHUWKHVHFRQGbaisen, the family is no longer disturbed and benevolence. The community’s persecution of Meiying (as imagined by Sekky) not only DOVR6HNN\¶VOXQJLQIHFWLRQLVFXUHGLQVWDQWO\7KLVSDUWRIWKHQDUUDWLYHP\VWL¿HV&KLQDWRZQ UHÀHFWVWKHLULQWROHUDQFHRIGLVOR\DOW\EXWDOVRWKHLUKDWUHGWRZDUGV-DSDQHVHSHRSOHDW life since its superstition is proved to be not entirely baseless. It seems that the old does that time: to the point of causing maximum pain to their own kind. Meiying transgresses win over the new but I argue that Choy includes this in order to emphasise the importance VRFLDOHWKQLFDQGSK\VLFDOERUGHUVE\JHWWLQJLPSUHJQDWHGE\D-DSDQHVHER\6KHGLHV of cultural legacy. RQDWWHPSWLQJDVHOIDERUWLRQEHFDXVHWKHER\LVIRUFHGWRUHORFDWHVKRUWO\DIWHU&DQDGD $IWHU 3RK3RK¶V GHDWK WKH IDPLO\ DUUDQJH IRU WKH QHLJKERXU¶V DGRSWLYH GDXJKWHU GHFODUHVZDUDJDLQVW-DSDQ+HUGHDWKSRUWUD\VDVHULRXVSK\VLFDOFRQVHTXHQFHUHVXOWLQJ Meiying, to babysit Sekky. However, it turns out Meiying uses this arrangement to her from breaking social taboos. DGYDQWDJHDVVKHLVLQORYHZLWKD-DSDQHVH&DQDGLDQER\.D]XRDQGVRVKHFDQXVH As Sekky learns to like Meiying’s boyfriend, who plays baseball well and with whom 6HNN\DVDSUHWH[WWRJRWR-DSDQWRZQWRYLVLWKHUER\IULHQG0HL\LQJZLQV6HNN\RYHUWREH he shares pleasant memories, a question becomes inevitable: her ally with her knowledge of how the war is going, and he promises her to never tell on KHU+RZHYHUWKHZKROHWLPH6HNN\XQGHUVWDQGVWKHJUDYHQHVVRIWKHPDWWHU ³(YHU\RQH ,DVNHG)DWKHU³$UHDOO-DSVRXUHQHP\HYHQWKHRQHVLQ&DQDGD"´ knew the unspoken law: Never betray your own kind. Meiying was Chinese, like me; we 6WHSPRWKHUVDWVWLIÀ\ KHUVHWRIIRXUNQLWWLQJQHHGOHVVWRSSHGFOLFNLQJ)DWKHU ZHUHRXURZQNLQG>«@6KHZDVDtraitor+HUER\IULHQGZDVD-DSDPRQVWHURQHRI VKXIÀHGKLVQHZVSDSHUVZLWKDXWKRULW\ WKHHQHP\ZDLWLQJLQWKHGDUNWRGHVWUR\DOORIXV>«@I, Sek-Lung,could turn her in” (Jade ³ 34 [2254-1179 (2018) 7, 25-35] 'XULQJWKHZDU-DSDQHVH&DQDGLDQVVXIIHUHGIRUFHGXSURRWLQJDQGUHORFDWLRQDQGZHUH /HH&KULVWRSKHU³(QJDJLQJ&KLQHVHQHVVLQ:D\VRQ&KR\¶VThe Jade Peony.” Canadian FDWHJRULVHGDV³HQHP\DOLHQV´E\WKH&DQDGLDQJRYHUQPHQW WKHUHZDVQRDWWHPSWRQWKH Literature 3ULQW SDUWRIWKH&KLQHVHDV³UHVLGHQWDOLHQV´WRIRUPDQ\DOOLDQFHZLWKWKHLUIHOORZLPPLJUDQWVWR /RUUH&KULVWLQH³7KH+HDOLQJ(IIHFWVRI&KLOGKRRG1DUUDWLYHLQ:D\VRQ&KR\¶VThe Jade request their civil rights from the government. Peony.” Commonwealth Essays and Studies Print. In conclusion, in The Jade Peony Choy chronicles a period of history when Chinatown Mawani, Renisa. Colonial Proximities: Crossracial Encounters and Juridical Truths in was on the verge of modernisation, transformation and assimilation. Though the elders British Columbia, 1871-19219DQFRXYHU 8%&3UHVV3ULQW attempt to preserve and enforce the old order within the boundaries of Chinatown, new 3UDWW0DU\/RXLVH³$UWVRIWKH&RQWDFW=RQH´Profession 3ULQW ZD\VDQG&DQDGLDQFXOWXUHDUHVHHQWREH¿OWHULQJJUDGXDOO\LQWR&KLQDWRZQOLIH,WVHHPV ---. Imperial eyes: Travel writing and transculturation. London: Routledge, 2007. Print. the allies that people seek to form are untenable as they are based on shifting sands 7D\ORU&KDUOHV³7KH3ROLWLFVRI5HFRJQLWLRQ´Multiculturalism: Examining the Politics of ZLWKHQHP\EHLQJDÀRDWLQJFDWHJRU\DQGWKHLUFRXUVHVEHLQJIDOVH2QO\E\DFFHSWLQJLWV Recognition(G$P\*XWPDQQ3ULQFHWRQ 8QLYHUVLW\RI3ULQFHWRQ3UHVV YXOQHUDELOLW\RUXSDJDLQVWQHVVWKURXJKDEVRUSWLRQRIWKHFRQÀLFWLQJFXOWXUHVDQGIRUPLQJ 73. Print. DOOLHV ZLWK WKH HQHPLHV &DQDGD DQG -DSDQHVH &DQDGLDQV RI WKH VHFRQGJHQHUDWLRQ Ty, Eleanor, and Christl Verduyn. Introduction. Asian Canadian Writing Beyond Autoeth- children, did Chinatown become prosperous yet indistinct, losing itself out in history. nograhpy. Ed. Eleanor Ty and Christl Verduyn. Waterloo: Wilfrid Laurier University 3UHVV3ULQW Works Cited 9DXWLHU 0DULH ³&DQDGLDQ )LFWLRQ 0HHWV +LVWRU\ DQG +LVWRULRJUDSK\ -DFTXHV 3RXOLQ $QGHUVRQ .D\ - Vancouver’s Chinatown: Racial Discourse in Canada, 1875-1980. Daphne Marlatt, and Wayson Choy.” Colby Quarterly 3ULQW 0RQWUHDO 0F*LOO4XHHQ¶V8QLYHUVLW\3UHVV 3ULQW %XWOHU-XGLWK³3UHFDULRXV/LIH9XOQHUDELOLW\DQGWKH(WKLFVRI&RKDELWDWLRQ´The Journal of Speculative Philosophy 3ULQW &KHUFRYHU $OHQD ³µ+LV 3DSHU )DPLO\ .QHZ 7KHLU 3ODFH¶ 'LDVSRULF 6SDFH LQ :D\VRQ Choy’s All That Matters.” Postcolonial Text 3ULQW Choy, Wayson. The Jade Peony. Vancouver and Toronto: Douglas & McIntyre, 1995. Print. 'DYLV5RFtR*³%DFNGDLUH &KLQDWRZQDV&XOWXUDO6LWHLQ)DH0\HQQH1J¶VBone and Wayson Choy’s The Jade Peony.” Revista Canaria de Estudios Ingleses 43(2001): 3ULQW ---³&KLQDWRZQDV'LDVSRUD6SDFHLQ6.</HH¶VDisappearing Moon Café and Wayson Choy’s The Jade Peony.” China Fictions/English Language: Literary Essays in Diaspora, Memory, Story.(G5REHUW/HH$PVWHUGDP 5RGRSL 3ULQW ---³,QWHUZHDYLQJ6WRULHV :D\VRQ&KR\´Tricks with a Glass: Writing Ethnicity in Canada. (G5RFtR*'DYLVDQG5RVDOtD%DHQD$PVWHUGDP 5RGRSL 3ULQW +DUWOH\0LFKHOOH³'RHV6KLUOH\7HPSOH(DW&KLFNHQ)HHW"&RQVXPLQJ$PELYDOHQFHLQ Wayson Choy’s The Jade Peony.” Essays on Canadian Writing Print. Krips, Valerie. Presence of the Past: Memory, Heritage and Childhood in Postwar Britain. London: Garland Publishing, 2000. Print. A Journal of Canadian Literary and Cultural Studies 35 36 [2254-1179 (2018) 7, 25-35]