Essay Questions

Why is the author finding it difficult to co-exist with both her Chinese community and the Americans?

The author is a Chinese national who lives in America. Consequently, the author embraces the Chinese American culture because that is where she belongs. Unfortunately, the Americans do not accept her fully despite leading a westernized lifestyle because she is of Chinese origin. Assimilating to the American lifestyle does not exclude one from racial discrimination. On the other hand, the author finds rejection from her community in China because she is considered alien since she is partly American. The author is not happy with the way people want to remain with a fixed mindset because of culture. According to the author, the local Chinese and Americans must change their attitudes and embrace diversity.

How is gender discrimination among the key themes discussed by the author?

At the beginning of the book, the author documents the racial prejudice she went through while growing up. However, the reader realizes that the author also suffered from gender discrimination because society expected her to stick to women's specific roles. Throughout her lifetime, the author noticed that men run this world because women's voices do not matter at any decision-making level. Therefore, the author calls for equal treatment of women regardless of race and gender.

How does the author illustrate the ambiguity of racism?

Unfortunately, the author discovers that her people can reject one during her lifetime because they consider her foreign. Ironically, the author faces rejection in her home because the locals say that she is partly American. Therefore, racism is ambiguous because it is based not only on skin color, ethnicity, or gender but also on one's behavior and beliefs.