The Woman Warrior: Exploring the Theme of Silence - Essay Sample

Introduction

Silence is a theme that has been used widely in the book The Woman Warrior as it can be noted in the various passages raised by the author throughout the book. The author starts the memoir by stating one of the remarks that were made by her guardian in which she said: “You must not tell anyone...what I am about to tell you” (1981, 3). The theme has various implications, and she presents the theme in different levels. In an example, the book manages to depict the silence that is portrayed by Kingston’s family members, the silence that she had to undertake during the time of her childhood, and the friends at school and in the neighborhood. According to the details given in this book, it can also be noted that a significant number of the Chinese can also be regarded as being mute a reflection of what is happening to the Chinese immigrants and the generation of American-Chinese in the United States. It is an indication that the Chinese immigrants and their offsprings have had to endure years of silence for various reasons, such as the desire to maintain their cultural values and beliefs. This is an indication that the author has relied on the theme of silence to depict the Chinese culture, the white American racists and the way that they have oppressed the Chinese- American women.

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Yaguchi, Yuko. "Singing Silence on the Planet with Maxine Hong Kingston’s The Woman Warrior." 新潟国際情報大学国際学部紀要= NUIS journal of intenational studies 3 (2018): 29-39.

According to Yuko, the Woman Warrior is crucial to understanding the Asian literature and the writer played a critical role in raising and supporting the silence theme in various aspects. Based on the assertions given by the author, it can be noted that Chinese Americans are depicted as silent and this is regarding the legal discrimination, social and economic factors, the unfavorable working conditions and inhumane treatment they have faced over the years. The Chinese started to immigrate to the United States in the early 1840s and played a key role in the development of the country like in the construction of railways, but despite these efforts, they have never been appreciated. The indigenous communities have always wanted the people of Chinese descent to remain in the background and be silent. According to the “The Chinese Exclusion Act,” it can be noted that the Chinese were the only group residing in the United States that were not given citizenship and this is despite living in the country for a long time and playing a critical role in its development. Failure to be given the citizenship was an indication that they were not supposed to have any voice in the country for they could not enjoy the same rights as the rest of the population. The silence that is depicted in the Chinese immigrants and the Chinatown in the book is a testament to the influence that is in the Act. Kingston gives a description of how the Chinese families have their secret as they were supposed to remain silent about some issues to avoid being in conflict with the American authorities for this would have led them being sent back to China. The writer states that “the Chinese I know hide their names; sojourners take new names when their lives change and guard their real names with silence.” There were instances that the Exclusion Act was abolished and this meant that the children of the Chinese immigrants were allowed to join them in the United States. Considering that their women were in China, they could not have their children in the United States and the issue of “paper son” arose where people would immigrate to the country as one of the immigrants. These details were supposed to be kept secret by all the parties involved. Another reason that Kingston portrays silence in these Chinese communities is by claiming that the “emigrants confused the gods by diverting their curses, misleading them with crooked streets and false names” (13). This is regarding the case where the Chinese migrated to the United States using fake names and identities, and they had to remain silent to ensure that they survived in the country in peace, otherwise, they would have been sent back to their home state. Kingston parents continually told her “Don’t tell,” for this was the only way that she would have managed to remain in the country. Silence and fear have engulfed the lives of these immigrants for a long time, and they always command their children to remain silent even though some of the off-springs do not understand why they are being commanded to remain silent. The fear and silence stemmed from the idea that they might be sent back to China or the racist white Americana were making their lives unbearable.

Myer, Chingyen Yang. "Breaking Silences: Telling Asian American Female Subversive Stories in Maxine Hong Kingston’s The Woman Warrior and Fae Myenne Ng’s Bone." Asiatic: IIUM Journal of English Language and Literature 11.1 (2017).

According to the author, the theme of silence has been employed is the case involving Kingston’s generation. They have a vague idea of China, and they cannot understand how the state’s values operate for they only manage to get their cultural heritage from their guardians and they failed to have the first-hand experience. Therefore, they had to remain silent as their seniors talked about the Chinese way of life, the cultural heritage and beliefs. Having an understanding of the sociohistorical background is crucial for the readers to have clear information on the writings made by Kingston considering that legal and law issues have silenced the generations of the narrator. The silence that is depicted by the Chinese community is an indication of the disconnection the minority groups are being subjected in the country. The silence of these Chinese immigrants is further depicted in the unfair treatment that they are subjected. In chapter 2 of the book, Kingston states how her boss in the art shop uses the word ”nigger yellow” as a reference to the one paint color. They are also referred to as “bananas” as they are depicted as being yellow on the outside and white in the inside. They are thus weak and remain silent for they cannot manage to defend themselves against the oppressors even though they are not happy with the way they are being treated. Kingston states that ‘I don’t like that word’ and stating this makes no impact since Kingston only states these worlds in her small and silent voice. At a later date, Kingston is employed in an association that deals with matters of land development and the firm decides to host a banquet in a venue that has been selected by NCAAP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) and CORE (The Congress of Racial Equality). Kingston fails to type the two words, and she is immediately fired. This is an indication that silence which in this book may translate to suffering without raising any complaint is a reflection of the sufferings that the Chinese people are experiencing.

The theme is clearly brought out in the case involving the workload that they are undertaking and the oppression that is accompanied by these issues. In the chapter titled “At the Western Palace”, Brave Orchid and the family are working in the laundry business where they are working for long hours, and they have to take shifts with the children. The working conditions are not conducive, and the workload is heavy, and this is another issue that makes them remain silent. The fact that Orchid feels that the work is difficult and yet she cannot talk about it shows that silence has to be maintained and this in contrast to when she was in China when she had the freedom to talk about the issues in life.

To further illustrate the theme on silence, Kingston explains about her mother’s life, Brave Orchid, where she states that her mother was a successful physician in China, but she had to take menial jobs in the United States like all the other immigrants. The workload is huge, and the poor working conditions mean that the workers do not have time, as well as, the interest to engage in matters touching on politics. They have to remain silent with their problems and work through them. The changes in the social activities and status in the community lead Brave to become silent and only to take orders as given without questioning. The issue of silence has been made worse by the language barriers for the Chinese immigrants finds it hard to express themselves and what they are feeling. They have limited themselves to the Chinatown which is a small neighborhood since they do not have the capability to exchange ideas with the whites in other parts of the country. They are regarded as being silent to the outsiders for they are consecrated in a section where they have separated away from the mainstream society. They are regarded as being mysterious to the American society considering that even their children are being taught in Chinese schools.

The first and second generations have had their issues to contend with, and they have led to their loves becoming miserable. In the last chapter of the book that is titled “A Song for a Barbarian Reed Pipe,” Kingston gives a description of her life as a second-generation Chinese immigrant and explain how her childhood was marked by issues of silence. She further makes an explanation about another “quiet Chinese girl,” a child to the immigrants who decides to remain silent all her life. It can be noted that even though the second generation is living a different lifestyle to their parents, they are still experiencing some issues that their guardians had to endure such as remaining silent despite life difficulties that are mainly triggered by their ethnic roots.

Kingston, Maxine Hong. The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of A Girlhood Among Ghosts. London: Pan Macmillan, 1981.

The writer states that the parents are quite harsh and rude to their children (second generation), and they often beat them up rather than explain things to them considering some of the Chinese cultural issues, such as matters relating to sex are not explainable. Additionally, the parents fail to have adequate time give explanations on all things and the children have to guess why they are being beaten, and they are lucky if they guess right. Kingston states that “...adults get mad, evasive, and shut you up if you ask.” The American- born Chinese find the culture mysterious due to the complicated issues and taboos that they have to endure all the time. They start to develop negative attitudes towards the beliefs and cultural values, and this causes confusion of their identity making them remain silent. They have to undertake things as described by their parents without questions for their American way of doing things is quite different from the Chinese. The adopted American values are causing lifts with the parents.

Loh, Yen Li. "Ghosts, Marriage, and Madness: The Immigrant Symbolic, Pregnancy as Feminine Epistemology, and the Death Drive in Maxine Hong Kingston's The Woman Warrior." Journal of Asian American Studies 21.2 (2018): 209-237.

The author states that silence is the main theme in this book, The Woman Warrior, for much of the details raised by Kingston are on the problems that they encountered over the years as Chinese immigrants and most of them led them to remain silent for they could not complain. The physical hardships, such as working for long hours is not the only thing that is aggravating the level of silence among Chinese immigrants. According to the writing in the book, it can be noted that the Chinese have failed to integrate and get assimilated to the American way of life. According to Kingston, her mother tends to carry the odd-shaped tomatoes home, the vegetables are planted in gardens and not lawns, and she tends to eat the items that are dedicated to the Gods, and all these are Chinese cultural values....