George 1

Christina George
Ms. Smit
12 AP Literature
November 2, 2014
The Duty of Women:
[An Analysis of a feminist perspective on Tans The Joy Luck Club]
Amy Tan in The Joy Luck Club uses her clever and relatable stories of several womens
experiences to portray not only the difficulty of adjusting to a new home, the difficulty of being
accepted by loved ones, but also the preconceived role of women society reinforces. In many
Asian countries, women have a certain guideline to tell them exactly how to act and what to do.
Feminism is the promotion of women's rights based upon social and political guidelines. The
American society has a more lenient and freeing outlook on the role of women. Many times, as
seen in the novel, these women are strictly used to what their old life like was in their home that
is now miles away. The role of mothers and their daughters in particular is very much explored
through the inside look of several women. Daughters are often looked upon to act like their
mothers, submissive and passive. Throughout the book, each woman goes through several
alterations that often shake their preconceived notions about America. The American culture is
one that is truly unique to the mix of people and principles from other countries to form a wellbalanced and cohesive nation. Women were seen as a chess piece and were played as pawns for
bearing children, and being submissive to the views of servile women. Tan uses the experiences

George 2
of several women and their situations to illuminate the one-sided and subservient role that
women often find themselves in.
Jing-Mei Woo is faced with a difficult task of continuing her mothers Joy Luck Club
that she came up with in China. She finds this mission especially daunting because her
relationship with her mother was cut short when she passed away. The time with her mom while
she was alive was superficial and Jing-Mei looks back at her mother has a harsh and insensitive
woman. She recollects her constant criticism of others and their inability to connect with each
other was apparent. Jing-Mei recalls her disapproval of her treatment and realizes the unfair
quality of it, I had always assumed we had an unspoken understanding: that she didnt really
mean I was a failure, and I really meant I would try to respect her opinions more. But listening to
Auntie Lin tonight reminds me one again: My mother and I never really understood one another
(Tan27). Feminists would note that Jing-Meis mother, a thick-skinned character, to be seen as
the bad guy. Throughout Jing-Meis story, she is led to China where her mother was so involved,
to find her lost twin sisters. It is through this that Jing-Mei realizes the unaffectionate ways of her
mother was often masked because her mother had extremely high expectations for Jing-Mei.
Feminists may argue that although this mother had a deep love for her daughter, she was
portrayed as an unaffectionate mother. Her mother gifted her with a jade pendant, which JingMei shrugged off at first. It was after her mothers death she realizes that this subtle action was a
grand gesture to show the true love her mother felt towards her. Along with this Jing-Meis
journey to her mothers home led her to finding her mothers heart and genuine concern she had
for her beloved daughter.
Aside from the aspect of immigration and isolation, Tan exemplifies the difficulties that
women have to go through in their native countries. Particularly, Lindo reflects on her

George 3
relationship with her mom and her demanding childhood. She was chosen a husband at the age
of two and her mother often times referred to her as her mother-in laws daughter. Because I was
promised to the Huangs son for marriage, my own family began treating me as if I belonged to
somebody else (Tan45). This was the obvious hint to Lindo that she was no longer part of her
own family, but now property of a new family that her parents had forcefully decided for her.
She was supposed to be a submissive girl to not only to her own family, but to her chosen
husbands family. Through a feminist lens, it is clear the discrimination that Lindo faces. She is
clearly unhappy with the expectations of the treatment of her own family. Lindo was not allowed
to create or choose her own destiny and her disapproval was hidden by her obedience to her
family. I was actually a very obedient child, but sometimes I had a sour look on my faceThis
is when my mother would say, Such an ugly face. The Huangs wont want you and our family
will be disgraced. And I would cry more to make my face uglier (Tan 45). Despite these
strenuous challenges she faced, she was expected to remain loyal and sweet. Her mother-in law
was adamant about Lindo blessing her with grandchildren and Lindo was surrounded by constant
criticism from her husbands family. It is depicted that Lindo was just a mere figure to bring
offspring for the needy mother-in law and stood as a servile figure the Huang family.
The lack of power Tan illuminates in The Joy Luck Club depicts a role of women that is
very much contained and restricting. Women are constantly fighting for the recognition of this
power conflict that is explored throughout this novel. Through the narratives of Jing-Mei and
Lindo, readers gain different perspectives on how women are portrayed miniscule in the
importance of daily life. The concerned mother was portrayed unaffectionate and uninterested.
Although Jing-Mei did not realize the importance of this strong-willed mother in her life while
her mother was alive, the adventure to China revived her hope in her mother. Also, Lindos

George 4
entire life was planned out from childhood and the unhappiness she felt from these events was
forced to be buried in order to please society. Tan allays this inequality and punctures the minute
role of women through her depictions of various women dealing with these challenges.