Genre
Fiction
Setting and Context
Written in the context of Chinese history
Narrator and Point of View
Third-person narrative
Tone and Mood
Tense, distressing, depressing, desperate, cynical
Protagonist and Antagonist
The central character is Li-ling.
Major Conflict
The main conflict is that Li-ling's father commits suicide, leaving her a small girl with his piano memories.
Climax
The climax is when Li-ling manages to piece together her family history and connection back in China.
Foreshadowing
Ai-Ming’s appearance foreshadows Li-ling’s acceptance to learn her family history back in China.
Understatement
Cultural heritage is understated. Living in the West does not mean that one should forget about her roots. Despite living in Canada, Li-ling does everything possible to learn about her family roots in China.
Allusions
The story alludes to culture change and diversity.
Imagery
The description of the sky depicts sight imagery. The author writes, “The sky was so white, as if all colors had been sheared away, there were paper flowers in the trees and on the ground, on the coats of everyone around them, and the air smelled not of dust but a rich and mouth-watering broth.”
Paradox
The main paradox is that despite Li-ling living in Canada, she is passionate about her roots in China.
Parallelism
N/A
Metonymy and Synecdoche
The piano is a metonymy for good memories.
Personification
N/A
