Carol's presentation today brought up the really interesting issue of racial/ethnic/national stereotypes in The Woman Warrior. This point relates directly to Professor Suh's precaution of not making sweeping generalizations about cultures or people based on the texts [because, as we can see, sometimes the representation isn't always very flattering], which is a truth that we may only be hearing because of the classroom setting. After all, Elaine H. Kim introduces her critical analysis of Asian American Literature (aptly titled Asian American Literature) by telling a story about a Chinese American friend of hers who, after The Woman Warrior came out, had friends from other backgrounds telling her that, because they read the book, they "understand" her better.
This matter of how people read ethnic literature brings up an old question that Asian American Studies scholars have grappled with for decades: do readers and writers have to choose between ethnic heroism or feminism? Think about the question with Murayama's and Okada's problematic portrayal of women on the one side and Yamamoto's "Seventeen Syllables"/"Yoneko's Earthquake" and Kingston's more troubling depictions of characters who live in the intersection of race and gender struggles on the other.
So, finish reading Woman Warrior, read "Come All Ye Asian American Writers of the Real and the Fake" this weekend, and, for a special pat on the back, read Chin's less academic version of his Kingston critique (http://www.chintalks.blogspot.com/) and let me know your thoughts. (Chin's blog entry on Kingston is based on an interview with her, so you can get a sense of what she has to say about her telling of the Fa Mu Lan tale.) I'm curious to see what you all think.
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2 comments:
on the question of ethnic heroism or feminism, it's difficult because with our society's prominent multicultural discourse, there's always the possibility that something a writer puts out will be reflective of their race.
so barely related, say william hung. if he was white it wouldn't have been an issue. because he was asian and spoke with an accent the media ate him up.
hope that makes sense.
hmm... so chin seems really upset that kingston altered the story of fa mu lan. I don't see what the big deal is because Kingston did acknowledge that she altered it to make it a bit more feminist. I dont know, what do you think?
p.s. i totally agree with what mary rose said about william hung. the media focused only on ridiculing his extreme "asianness" which the rest of the world (including myself) found funny
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