Tanjong Rhu
In Tanjong Rhu, motherhood was presented in a homely way. When Mr Li was a little boy, he and his mother would catch soft-shelled crabs on the beach and bring them home to cook with scallions and dried chilli, until their shells turned as red as chilli. Motherhood was also presented when she did everything step by step with no shortcuts. Example, when Mr Li's mother gave her offering to her late husband, she did it step by step.
The Martyrdom of Helena Rodrigues
In The Martyrdom of Helena Rodrigues, Motherhood was presented in a manipulative and possesive way which one might not know that he/she is threatened. Helena had the meek gentle face of a nun and the force of personality of an Empress Tzu Hsi. For example, when Aloysius came home late for work. Helena insisted that an entirely new dinner be cooked, since the warmed-over steaks had toughened. And when Aloysius died, Helena devoted all of her to George and George was kept tied to Helena's side. When George met a girl, Caroline, whom he was attracted to, she objected as George was cloe th his mother and so, he left Caroline.
Select two stories in which there is conflict between parent and child, and show how far there is some resolution if these differences at the end of the story
Lee
Lee was brought up in the states when her mother won custoday of her eight years ago, when she was an eight year old child. So having been brought up in the states, Lee is too used to the Western culture and was criticizing the people here in Singapore about their tacky dressing and how dull singapore is. And her dad, who wasn't as open as her. Tried his best to change her, to stop her swearing and tried to make her interested in the chinese culture. And so, they can't keep a converstaion for long. And in the end, he still thinks that ther is a little hope for Lee to change.
A history Of Tea
In history of tea, Beverly's real Grandfather was Reginald Jones, a real Englishman and wooed Beverly's Grandmother in spite of all her parents ovjections. When Grandmother was young, she wanted to be modern rather than languishing in the seculsion of her father's house. When Aunt Sherrie, Grandmother's child by Jones wanted to get married to Uncle Raja, a ceylonese, Grandmother objected that and told a story about Uncle Raja to the children that he was an oily man. And now, Beverly met this guy at Oxford and wanted to get engaged until her parents found out that his family was part jewish, and objected to a mixed marriage.
With reference to suitable stories, discuss how far change is shown to be either welcomed or, feared.
Lee
The relationship between a Singaporean father and his Americanized daughter, the eponymous character he hardly knows and who re-enters his life following the death of his ex-wife. The awkward, uneasy relationship between father and daughter dramatizes the clash between so-called "Asian" and "Western" culture. It suggest that as shorthand ways of understanding the world, these categories have both enabling and restrictive aspects. It is Lee's presence, moreover, that forces her father to confront and justify his life choices, to question things that he has hitherto passively and unthinkingly accepted.
How are young people and their ideals(perfect thinking/goal/perfect aim) presented in two stories in the collection? How far do you identify with these young people?
Evening Under Frangipani
At one level at touching love story that *bemoans the "barriers of pride that isolates each and every human being", the story also indicates the class and racial prejudice that keeps two people apart. In the face of intransigent social barriers, the individual has little choice but to confront the option of a lifetime to compromise and loneliness.
Hamid and the Hand of Fate
The tale of Hamid whose life is forever changed by a freaked accident which claims his right arm. A simple, lowly-educated young man, Hamid decides to be "sabar" and accepts his fate stoically. this decision does not prevent him from sensing that people around him are merely making use of him, hoping to benefit from his compensation money.
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