“Mencius’ Mother” follows Mencius on his journey from boyhood to manhood. During this time, his mother plays a role in shaping the man he becomes. She determines where he grows up and what he does and the kinds of things he learns. Through this parenting, she is also praised alongside her brilliant son. However, I… Continue reading Reflecting on “Mencius’ Mother”

My ICR assignment this semester is the IPS Newcomer program. Every Wednesday, I visit the school from 9:00 am – 11:30 am. I spend the majority of the time (around 9 – 10:30) in a seventh grade math class, and the remaining time in an art class. Today was the first day of my assignment.… Continue reading ICR 9/29

Something else that stuck out to me from “Alive” was how the government tried to rebuild after the earthquake. In our culture, we place a lot of emphasis on grief and taking the time to mourn after a loss. In recent years, there has been much more awareness surrounding mental health and how to maintain… Continue reading Alive Part 2

I thought that the story “Alive” was one of the most interesting pieces we read for this week. Something that stuck out to me was a rule the author mentioned after the earthquake, “all citizens must abide by the law and help one another. Any looter caught will be executed on the spot.” I thought… Continue reading Alive Part 1

I liked reading these stories and deciphering the differences between the culture here in the United States and the culture within the story. In one of them, I think it was “Alive,” there was a part that said the husband was well respected by his neighbors because he didn’t beat his wife. I found this… Continue reading Ha Jin “Alive”; “Broken;” “Bridegroom”

I find this story very odd. The mother and son are very strange. The mother is very controlling of the son at the beginning then starts to be controlling over his relationship with his wife. What I don’t understand is why the daughter-in-law went to the mother about seeing her naked when she could have… Continue reading Mencius’ Mother

Clearly, this man is very unhappy with his wife and his wife is unhappy with him. The wife does not seem to be meeting the standards of the husband and the husband complains a lot about his wife. He complains about the servant and how he didn’t have another daughter to do the servants work… Continue reading Letter from Feng Yen to his Brother-in-law

The documentary Small Happiness is about how women are treated in China and the long-standing role that they are forced to play. I found the documentary very eye-opening and it introduced me to new information on Chinese culture. In China, most married couples are arranged by their parents. If the parents of the girl think… Continue reading Small Happiness

In this reading, I could see the perspective of both points and want to analyze them here. One side of the argument from the literati said, “But now in the provinces the salt, iron, and liquor monopolies, and the system of 
equitable marketing 
have been established to compete with the people for profit, dispelling 
rustic
… Continue reading Salt and Iron Debate

The short essay titled “Mencius’ Mother” really brought to light the role of women in Chinese culture. Mencius’ mother tells Mencius that a woman should cook, make clothes, take care of the children, and watch over the parents-in-law, and that is it. Outside of the home, she should have zero responsibilities. She also explains that… Continue reading Mother of Mencius, Letter From Fen Yeng, and Ha Jin Stories