In the book, On Gold Mountain, Lisa See writes about the history of her one hundred-year-old Chinese-American family. This book first focuses on the life of her great-great-grandfather, Fong See, but later revolves around the lives of Fong See’s children and their children’s children, Lisa See involved.
While living in America, the See family finds success in their family businesses and prosper. Some may even say that the See family lived the ‘American’ dream.
The book totals up two different cultures intertwining into one, love, marriages, business and love affairs, racism, and the meaning of family. Each theme is brought up in the memoir and focuses on many characters’ lives to conceive these themes.
See does a wonderful job in providing to readers the authentic history of a hundred-year-old story but the historical facts that she adds in her memoir are a little distracting. I personally felt as if the historical facts kind of lowered my opinion of the memoir because it was taking over the stories of the characters’ lives. I sometimes found myself dreading to read the book because of the history it covered and not the actual story of the people’s lives. But overall, I enjoyed reading the book. I don’t think that I would necessarily recommend this book but it was interesting to discover facts about the Chinese history in America that I’ve never learned.
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Memoir: On Gold Mountain Section 3
MaiNou Vang
Ms. Peifer
Creative Writing hr. 3
In the third section of the book that I have read, the young See family is now all grown up. First, the book was relatively focused on the life of Fong See, the author’s great-great-grandfather but now the book is relatively focused on the life of Fong See’s children and his ex-wife, Letticie. Each son: Ming, Ray, Bennie, and Eddy married Caucasian women. Sissee alone did not marry. Ming married to a woman named Dorothy who was a party-goer, Ray married a woman named Leona, Bennie wed a girl named Bertha, and Eddy married Stella Copeland, the only sister-in-law in the See family that the author really wrote about. Letticie stayed unmarried after the separation with Fong See.
Since the separation, Ming and Ray decided to start a new business of manufacturing furniture and built their own goods. Later, Eddy and along with his two artistic friends, Tyrus and Benji, opened up a restaurant beneath their shop. Even during the Depression, the two businesses attracted customers and resulted in success.
Until now, I discovered that this memoir is also a story of love. Lisa See wanted the readers to understand the relationship of certain couples in the story. Since the separation, Fong See lived his life with his new wife and children, only occasionally meeting with his first family. Through the years, Letticie’s hatred towards Fong See grew but eventually died down and created a hole inside of her. Letticie’s “anger at him had long burned out, to be replaced by grief, then a final, horrible emptiness” (pg 174). Everyone knew that Letticie missed him as she “sat in a wicker chair at the back of her store on Los Angeles Street, looking out the window and wondering if Suie would stop by on his walk either to or from his compound” (pg 174). From this passage, you can see the desperation that Letticie had and how she yearned to be with her ex-husband. Later in the story, the core was based on Eddy and Stella. Stella loved her family but she thought she would live an easy life when she married Eddy because Eddy came from such a wealthy family. But effects of the Depression caused Stella to be a hard-working woman, just like how she used to be living with her intermediate family back then. A hard-working mom and wife, Stella found “a piece of stationary folded over and over again into tiny squares. A feeling of dread crept over her. Somehow she knew what it would be, as she unfolded the paper crease by crease” (pg 200). Eddy had been cheating on her with a married woman named Helen Smith. Stella’s first reaction was to scream. After confronting Helen, Eddy apologized and promised to never see her again. But only a few weeks after that, Stella received anonymous letters informing her that her husband and Helen were still momentarily together. With love and strength, Stella decided she would hang on and wait, “for she knew that if she left, she would not only be losing a husband, but also the only real family she had ever known” (pg 205).
The memoir is intriguing most of the time now. It covers less of the historical facts and focuses on the story and the characters’ lives which I genuinely am interested in.
Ms. Peifer
Creative Writing hr. 3
In the third section of the book that I have read, the young See family is now all grown up. First, the book was relatively focused on the life of Fong See, the author’s great-great-grandfather but now the book is relatively focused on the life of Fong See’s children and his ex-wife, Letticie. Each son: Ming, Ray, Bennie, and Eddy married Caucasian women. Sissee alone did not marry. Ming married to a woman named Dorothy who was a party-goer, Ray married a woman named Leona, Bennie wed a girl named Bertha, and Eddy married Stella Copeland, the only sister-in-law in the See family that the author really wrote about. Letticie stayed unmarried after the separation with Fong See.
Since the separation, Ming and Ray decided to start a new business of manufacturing furniture and built their own goods. Later, Eddy and along with his two artistic friends, Tyrus and Benji, opened up a restaurant beneath their shop. Even during the Depression, the two businesses attracted customers and resulted in success.
Until now, I discovered that this memoir is also a story of love. Lisa See wanted the readers to understand the relationship of certain couples in the story. Since the separation, Fong See lived his life with his new wife and children, only occasionally meeting with his first family. Through the years, Letticie’s hatred towards Fong See grew but eventually died down and created a hole inside of her. Letticie’s “anger at him had long burned out, to be replaced by grief, then a final, horrible emptiness” (pg 174). Everyone knew that Letticie missed him as she “sat in a wicker chair at the back of her store on Los Angeles Street, looking out the window and wondering if Suie would stop by on his walk either to or from his compound” (pg 174). From this passage, you can see the desperation that Letticie had and how she yearned to be with her ex-husband. Later in the story, the core was based on Eddy and Stella. Stella loved her family but she thought she would live an easy life when she married Eddy because Eddy came from such a wealthy family. But effects of the Depression caused Stella to be a hard-working woman, just like how she used to be living with her intermediate family back then. A hard-working mom and wife, Stella found “a piece of stationary folded over and over again into tiny squares. A feeling of dread crept over her. Somehow she knew what it would be, as she unfolded the paper crease by crease” (pg 200). Eddy had been cheating on her with a married woman named Helen Smith. Stella’s first reaction was to scream. After confronting Helen, Eddy apologized and promised to never see her again. But only a few weeks after that, Stella received anonymous letters informing her that her husband and Helen were still momentarily together. With love and strength, Stella decided she would hang on and wait, “for she knew that if she left, she would not only be losing a husband, but also the only real family she had ever known” (pg 205).
The memoir is intriguing most of the time now. It covers less of the historical facts and focuses on the story and the characters’ lives which I genuinely am interested in.
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Memoir: On Gold Mountain Section 2
MaiNou Vang
Ms. Peifer
Creative Writing hr. 3
In the next couple chapters that I have read so far, the story of Fong See, Lisa See's great-great-grandfather, starts to unravel in his success in America. Through the years, Fong See only became more wealthy and recieved fortunate events in his years.
Fong See and his wife, Letticie Pruett, gave birth to five children in all. First came the four oldest sons: Ming, Ray, Bennie, and Eddy. Then the last child of the See family was a young girl named Florence but later nick-named 'Sissee' by her brothers. The story starts to narrate the lives of Fong See's five children and how they grew up being in a Chinese-American family. The memoir shows some difficulties that the children faced while growing up in a dominant society that I believe still exist today.
The two older boys, Ming and Ray, went to high school together. Though they were obviously handsome and intelligent and born into an already financially stable family, the two still had trouble fitting in or finding friends in school. Because at the time the majority student population were white and were not sociably accepting of Ming and Ray because of their half-chinese blood, the young boys were not able to explore and be a part of any form of group of friends, etc. but "have been ignored, shunned, excluded" (pg. 136). I believe that even today, sometimes we still see this bias in schools between the student population. Though not so much anymore, there is still truth in what this passage was talking about.
In this section of the memoir, one thing I found that caught my attention was the disagreements that the two parents, Fong See and Letticie, had over their daughter, Sissee. Because Sissee is half-Chinese and half-Caucasian, obviously there were certain things that a mother and father would expect from their only daughter. Sissee's father is a traditional Chinese man versus her mother who is an American who wasn't born into a religious family. Fong See argued that his daughter must "not work, except to help her mother decorate baskets and do her embroidery" (pg. 91). To Fong See, he saw it that "No man would marry a Chinese girl if she didn't master the womanly arts" (91) which was her needlework and "needed to be trained to be virtuous, graceful, courteous, polite, and obedient" (89). On the other hand, Letticie argues back that Sissee "is an American girl..." (89). Letticie believes her daughter needs to have her fun and be a girl. I could understand this situation of Sissee because being a Hmong-American, I understand the two different cultures that clash together. Though I'm not half-Hmong and half-Caucasian, I grow up in a traditional Hmong family that lives in America. It is demanding and complicated for a young girl to try to fit in two different cultures but never really satisfying anyone because the two cultures are so different from one another. So to learn that in the past so long ago and then also in present times that families are still troubling over how to participate in two different cultures and live in peace, this will still be a problematic situation in years to come.
In the last couple chapters I read, the children grew up and started their lives and contributed to the F. Suie One Company owned by their father. Ming and Ray both got married and Bennie and Eddy had girlfriends.
The greatest change of all in the See family was that during a trip to China, Fong See had stayed overseas by himself for about two or so years. He built a hotel in China and for 'business' purposes, married a young girl by the name of Ngon Hung. It was said that Fong See only married Ngon Hung so he would have a trusted family to take care of and run the business of the hotel set in China but only Fong See would really know the truth. When Letticie discovered the second marriage, she signed for an official seperation with Fong See and lived with her five children. Fong See and Letticie divided the companies they had in America and suprisingly, were still able to become successful people despite the seperation.
On Gold Mountain, I soon realized, has a lot more depth than I had imagined. There are a lot of truths and theories in a certain event that happened so long ago that I, too have to wonder what really happened versus what didn't. I'm looking forward to how the author finishes this memoir.
Ms. Peifer
Creative Writing hr. 3
In the next couple chapters that I have read so far, the story of Fong See, Lisa See's great-great-grandfather, starts to unravel in his success in America. Through the years, Fong See only became more wealthy and recieved fortunate events in his years.
Fong See and his wife, Letticie Pruett, gave birth to five children in all. First came the four oldest sons: Ming, Ray, Bennie, and Eddy. Then the last child of the See family was a young girl named Florence but later nick-named 'Sissee' by her brothers. The story starts to narrate the lives of Fong See's five children and how they grew up being in a Chinese-American family. The memoir shows some difficulties that the children faced while growing up in a dominant society that I believe still exist today.
The two older boys, Ming and Ray, went to high school together. Though they were obviously handsome and intelligent and born into an already financially stable family, the two still had trouble fitting in or finding friends in school. Because at the time the majority student population were white and were not sociably accepting of Ming and Ray because of their half-chinese blood, the young boys were not able to explore and be a part of any form of group of friends, etc. but "have been ignored, shunned, excluded" (pg. 136). I believe that even today, sometimes we still see this bias in schools between the student population. Though not so much anymore, there is still truth in what this passage was talking about.
In this section of the memoir, one thing I found that caught my attention was the disagreements that the two parents, Fong See and Letticie, had over their daughter, Sissee. Because Sissee is half-Chinese and half-Caucasian, obviously there were certain things that a mother and father would expect from their only daughter. Sissee's father is a traditional Chinese man versus her mother who is an American who wasn't born into a religious family. Fong See argued that his daughter must "not work, except to help her mother decorate baskets and do her embroidery" (pg. 91). To Fong See, he saw it that "No man would marry a Chinese girl if she didn't master the womanly arts" (91) which was her needlework and "needed to be trained to be virtuous, graceful, courteous, polite, and obedient" (89). On the other hand, Letticie argues back that Sissee "is an American girl..." (89). Letticie believes her daughter needs to have her fun and be a girl. I could understand this situation of Sissee because being a Hmong-American, I understand the two different cultures that clash together. Though I'm not half-Hmong and half-Caucasian, I grow up in a traditional Hmong family that lives in America. It is demanding and complicated for a young girl to try to fit in two different cultures but never really satisfying anyone because the two cultures are so different from one another. So to learn that in the past so long ago and then also in present times that families are still troubling over how to participate in two different cultures and live in peace, this will still be a problematic situation in years to come.
In the last couple chapters I read, the children grew up and started their lives and contributed to the F. Suie One Company owned by their father. Ming and Ray both got married and Bennie and Eddy had girlfriends.
The greatest change of all in the See family was that during a trip to China, Fong See had stayed overseas by himself for about two or so years. He built a hotel in China and for 'business' purposes, married a young girl by the name of Ngon Hung. It was said that Fong See only married Ngon Hung so he would have a trusted family to take care of and run the business of the hotel set in China but only Fong See would really know the truth. When Letticie discovered the second marriage, she signed for an official seperation with Fong See and lived with her five children. Fong See and Letticie divided the companies they had in America and suprisingly, were still able to become successful people despite the seperation.
On Gold Mountain, I soon realized, has a lot more depth than I had imagined. There are a lot of truths and theories in a certain event that happened so long ago that I, too have to wonder what really happened versus what didn't. I'm looking forward to how the author finishes this memoir.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Favorite Childhood Place (revisit)
MaiNou Vang
Ms. Peifer
Creative Writing
12 February 2009
Now as I drive into
Favorite Childhood Place
MaiNou Vang
Ms. Peifer
Creative Writing Hr. 3
12 February 2009
Friday, February 6, 2009
Memior: On Gold Mountain Journal 1
MaiNou Vang
Ms. Peifer
Creative Writing Hr. 3
6 Feb. 2009
In the remarkably told memoir of the See family, Lisa See tells her 100-year-old Chinese and Caucasian family history in the novel, On Gold Mountain. In the beginning, before she started the memoir, she provided to readers a glimpse of her family. Lisa mentioned her aunts, her great-great grandfather who is on the cover of the book (which implies his importance in the book), and other relatives near and far. For this memoir, it required See to be totally committed into researching her family's past, as she pointed out, and how hard it would be to recieve the actual truth in a story that existed so long ago. With what I have read so far, I can clearly see the hard and exhausting studies and research See had to endure in order to write such a compelling story.
Beginning the memoir about See's great-great-great grandfather, Fong Dun Shung, he starts his life in the fresh land of "Gold Mountain", the chinese word for America. Briefly told, Fong Dun Shung's life in America is surrounded by herbs and Chinese men but also the abusive "fan gway", the white ghosts that roam the land of Gold Mountain. Fong Dun Shung's fourth son, Fong See, comes into the memoir as a determined young man. The memoir so far is relatively revolved around the life of Fong See. Through chapters 2-5, Fong See becomes a successful working man and prospers in the hard times of America. He was at first a merchant then became his own businessman. Here in America, Fong See found what his heart had been passionate about: a challenge, an adventure, and a love. Almost 19 years older than his betrothed, he happily married a young woman from Oregon named Letticie Pruett.
In this memoir, See characterizes Fong See as a very confident and courageous man. In detail, See conveys Fong See's character through his appearance, actions, and decisions. In chapter 2, even after his countrymen told him to beware of the "fan gway" when he attempted to go sign up for papers, Fong See had just signed official papers in order to run his own business. As celebration of his official papers, Fong See went to a photographer to take pictures. On page 33, it describes what Fong See felt during the process of taking his picture: "His clothes were western. Ever since he had observed the Victorian opulence on his first trip upriver, he had sensed that his place was in there among those white men and women in their finery, and not down in the dark, cramped quarters of the "China Hold," with his countrymen and their fears." In this passage, it proves how bold Fong See must have been in his time because he was wearing what a typical white man would in America. It shows that Fong See wasn't afraid of what others would think of him.
I think that women losing their identity is a very large theme in On Gold Mountain. From what I have read so far, almost half the women mentioned in the memoir have lost their identity or somewhat familiar. Fong See's wife, Letticie, was raised by her father and five sons after her mother had died of pneumonia. When she was 8-years-old, her father had also passed away from pneemonia. With only her brothers left who eventually got married and had their own family to take care of, Letticie ran away, no longer wanting to care for her stubborn brother, sister-in-law, and their kids. When she went to go work for Fong See and later wed to him, she sent a letter to her brothers back in Oregon to tell of her news. But unfortunately, they did not meet eye to eye: "Letticie wrote her brothers o fher marriage, and recieved a terse letter back, in which her family disowned her. How could she marry a Chinese? It was disgusting, they wrote, and she was no longer their sister. She knew she would never see or hear from any of them ever again" (pg. 57). Another example of women and loss of identity is when Fong See and Letticie had made a visit to Fong See's homeland, China. Fong See had three older brothers, one died of opium and the other two got married. Both of them had married a "no-name" girl. I assume that these girls were considered no-names because they were truly poor and their parents arranged the marriages for the money. Though this book doesn't really provide information on these no-name girls, it is evident that in the past, a lot of times women were bought into marriage, prostitution and lived with no identity.
The memoir so far has been interesting. It started off slow but I soon learned to be engaged in the reading. The book provides a lot of historical information that I didn't know happened and I think that for that reason, the historical reading in this book is also helpful. Lisa See did a wonderful job in providing readers detailed descriptions to fill in the history of her great-great grandfather.
Ms. Peifer
Creative Writing Hr. 3
6 Feb. 2009
In the remarkably told memoir of the See family, Lisa See tells her 100-year-old Chinese and Caucasian family history in the novel, On Gold Mountain. In the beginning, before she started the memoir, she provided to readers a glimpse of her family. Lisa mentioned her aunts, her great-great grandfather who is on the cover of the book (which implies his importance in the book), and other relatives near and far. For this memoir, it required See to be totally committed into researching her family's past, as she pointed out, and how hard it would be to recieve the actual truth in a story that existed so long ago. With what I have read so far, I can clearly see the hard and exhausting studies and research See had to endure in order to write such a compelling story.
Beginning the memoir about See's great-great-great grandfather, Fong Dun Shung, he starts his life in the fresh land of "Gold Mountain", the chinese word for America. Briefly told, Fong Dun Shung's life in America is surrounded by herbs and Chinese men but also the abusive "fan gway", the white ghosts that roam the land of Gold Mountain. Fong Dun Shung's fourth son, Fong See, comes into the memoir as a determined young man. The memoir so far is relatively revolved around the life of Fong See. Through chapters 2-5, Fong See becomes a successful working man and prospers in the hard times of America. He was at first a merchant then became his own businessman. Here in America, Fong See found what his heart had been passionate about: a challenge, an adventure, and a love. Almost 19 years older than his betrothed, he happily married a young woman from Oregon named Letticie Pruett.
In this memoir, See characterizes Fong See as a very confident and courageous man. In detail, See conveys Fong See's character through his appearance, actions, and decisions. In chapter 2, even after his countrymen told him to beware of the "fan gway" when he attempted to go sign up for papers, Fong See had just signed official papers in order to run his own business. As celebration of his official papers, Fong See went to a photographer to take pictures. On page 33, it describes what Fong See felt during the process of taking his picture: "His clothes were western. Ever since he had observed the Victorian opulence on his first trip upriver, he had sensed that his place was in there among those white men and women in their finery, and not down in the dark, cramped quarters of the "China Hold," with his countrymen and their fears." In this passage, it proves how bold Fong See must have been in his time because he was wearing what a typical white man would in America. It shows that Fong See wasn't afraid of what others would think of him.
I think that women losing their identity is a very large theme in On Gold Mountain. From what I have read so far, almost half the women mentioned in the memoir have lost their identity or somewhat familiar. Fong See's wife, Letticie, was raised by her father and five sons after her mother had died of pneumonia. When she was 8-years-old, her father had also passed away from pneemonia. With only her brothers left who eventually got married and had their own family to take care of, Letticie ran away, no longer wanting to care for her stubborn brother, sister-in-law, and their kids. When she went to go work for Fong See and later wed to him, she sent a letter to her brothers back in Oregon to tell of her news. But unfortunately, they did not meet eye to eye: "Letticie wrote her brothers o fher marriage, and recieved a terse letter back, in which her family disowned her. How could she marry a Chinese? It was disgusting, they wrote, and she was no longer their sister. She knew she would never see or hear from any of them ever again" (pg. 57). Another example of women and loss of identity is when Fong See and Letticie had made a visit to Fong See's homeland, China. Fong See had three older brothers, one died of opium and the other two got married. Both of them had married a "no-name" girl. I assume that these girls were considered no-names because they were truly poor and their parents arranged the marriages for the money. Though this book doesn't really provide information on these no-name girls, it is evident that in the past, a lot of times women were bought into marriage, prostitution and lived with no identity.
The memoir so far has been interesting. It started off slow but I soon learned to be engaged in the reading. The book provides a lot of historical information that I didn't know happened and I think that for that reason, the historical reading in this book is also helpful. Lisa See did a wonderful job in providing readers detailed descriptions to fill in the history of her great-great grandfather.
Sunday, February 1, 2009
The Names: A Memoir
From the excerpt The Names: A Memoir, written by N. Scott Momaday, the author describes in traditional story-telling of his childhood home and how it came to be with an imaginative mind. From the excerpt, I chose two passages that made an impression on me.
The first passage that I was attracted to was: "The light there is of a certain kind. In the mornings and evenings it is soft and pervasive, and the earth seems to absorb it, to become enlarged with light... There is something strange and powerful in it." This passage caught my eye because it paints a vivid image in my head of how the author percieves the nature of the sun and moon. To me, it seems like the light was of an importance to him or impacted him somehow. I understand because when I see a beautiful sunrise or breathtaking moonlight on a cool night, I become enveloped by the beauty. All the colors from the sun or moon comes to life. The image of the sunlight/moonlight is powerful because that single image can make us feel.
The other passage that I enjoyed was: "...for hail is beating down upon the door, and the roar of the wind is deafening, the earth and sky are at odds, and God shudders." I was interested in this passage because the author made everything turn into life by his compelling use of personification. To me, when it rained and I was only still a child, I would imagine the rain to be of God's tears. This passage reminded me of that childhood memory because rain to him wasn't just water pouring down; there is something more meaningful and essential to rain and thunder that only your mind can speak of.
The first passage that I was attracted to was: "The light there is of a certain kind. In the mornings and evenings it is soft and pervasive, and the earth seems to absorb it, to become enlarged with light... There is something strange and powerful in it." This passage caught my eye because it paints a vivid image in my head of how the author percieves the nature of the sun and moon. To me, it seems like the light was of an importance to him or impacted him somehow. I understand because when I see a beautiful sunrise or breathtaking moonlight on a cool night, I become enveloped by the beauty. All the colors from the sun or moon comes to life. The image of the sunlight/moonlight is powerful because that single image can make us feel.
The other passage that I enjoyed was: "...for hail is beating down upon the door, and the roar of the wind is deafening, the earth and sky are at odds, and God shudders." I was interested in this passage because the author made everything turn into life by his compelling use of personification. To me, when it rained and I was only still a child, I would imagine the rain to be of God's tears. This passage reminded me of that childhood memory because rain to him wasn't just water pouring down; there is something more meaningful and essential to rain and thunder that only your mind can speak of.
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