The Joy Luck Club Notes Questions and Answers

The Joy Luck Club Notes Questions and Answers Jing Mei Woo is the daughter of __ Woo, who started the Joy Luck Club. Jing Mei's American name is __. Suyuan; June Jing Mei's father asked her to be the 4th corner of the Joy Luck Club mahjong table after her mother died. Her corner was in the __ direction, where things begin. East The organization, who got its name from the hope of becoming lucky (which was their joy), created by Suyuan Woo in Kweilin with 3 other women to escape the fear & uncertainty of the war between China & Japan by playing mahjong, feasting, and telling stories is known as the Joy Luck Club Jing Mei Woo's mother was a refugee who carried her valuables & 2 babies in a __ to Chungking until it broke. She lightened her load & only had __ __ __. Then, she wore them & the 2 babies were slung across her __. wheelbarrow; 3 silk dresses; shoulder Jing Mei's mother lost her 2 babies, who were Jing Mei's half-sisters. They sent her money so she could travel to __ __ & visit them for the first time. There, Jing-Mei will tell them about Suyuan, which even she doesn't know about. Hong Kong Who did Suyuan Woo want her daughter to be like? What was Jing Mei criticized for? Waverly Jong; not finishing college An-mei Hsu's grandmother, Popo, told her that her mother was a ghost. What did this mean? What did this cause? anything forbidden to talk about; her to forget about her mother completely. When An-Mei Hsu's mother loosened her braids, brushed her hair, & felt her smooth-neck scar, her mother cried. How did An-mei get her scar? Where did it occur? boiling soup pot wavered & spilled on her neck when she was 4; at dinner when her mother arrived to take her daughter back When Popo was dying, what did An-Mei Hsu's mother cook Popo as an attempt to heal her? What were some ingredients? What happened to Popo? soup; herbs, medicines, flesh from An-mei Hsu's mother's arm; "flew away with her illness" (died) What happened to Lindo Jong when she was only 2? Who was Huang Taitai? Who was Lindo betrothed to? matchmaker came to family; Lindo Jong's future mother-in-law; Tyan-yu (baby) What does Tyan-yu mean & how does his family treat him? sky-leftovers; watch carefully, make all decisions, spoiled Lindo Jong left her family when she was ___ because her house was damaged by a ___ from the Fen River. She went to live with Tyan-yu's family, where she was treated as a __. 12; flood; servant What was Lindo Jong's dowry to the Huangs? heavy furniture & bedding Lindo Jong was married at __. How did she feel? How many people came? Why? 16; crying; barely any; Japanese invaded & lightning & thunder caused confusion of bombs What is the red candle & what does it promise? What did it look like? marriage bond; can't divorce/ remarry after spouse dies; 2 ends, carved names of couple A __ watched the red candle, but thunder scared her off. If no ends blow out, the marriage is ___. Lindo Jong blew the candle out. After positive announcements, Lindo realized she must have __ the wick since she wasn't watching it. servant; imperishable; relit Did Lindo Jong ever provide a grandchild for Huang Taitai? no What plan did Lindo Jong make to escape her marriage without breaking her family's promise? nightmare; ancestors said candle blew tyan's end out; observed grandpa's painting & said planted black spot on his back to kill him (mole), her teeth fall out until she couldn't protest about leaving (rotted tooth from 4 years ago), servant girl had imperial blood (tyan's true wife) Ying-Ying St. Clair kept so quiet throughout her life that even her daughter doesn't see or hear her. This was because of her fear of voicing __ __. selfish desires. Who is the Moon Lady Ying-Ying St. Clair is so excited to see when she was 4? lady who lives on moon & grants secret wish if one sees her on special date Amah, Ying-ying's nurse, dressed her in a silk yellow outfit with black bands, but stripped it off her when she covered herself in __ __. turtle blood Ying-ying St. Clair fell overboard, but fishermen caught her in their __. After trying to help find her family, they brought her __. Feeling alone & lost Ying-ying watched a play being staged about the Moon Lady, & recalled her wish to be __. net; ashore; found Where did Waverly Jong, daughter of Lindo Jong, live? San Francisco's Chinatown on Waverly Place When the Jong family went to the annual Christmas party held at the First Chinese Baptist Church, there was a bag full of wrapped gifts to pick from. What was Waverly's gift? What did her older brother, Vincent, get? 12 pack of Lifesavers; chess set After losing when playing with her brothers, Waverly studied chess & learned moves from Lau Po. How did she meet him? Who was he? alley on way home to school; one of men in group of chess players there While she beat the players from the alley, crowds gathered & Waverly was invited to __. Waverly Jong became the National Chess Champion at age __. tournaments; 9 Clifford, Lena St. Clair's dad, knows few phrases in Mandarin, & Ying-ying never learned English. How did her mother communicate? What did Clifford often do? gestures, glances, halting English; put words in her mom's mouth Lena St. Clair understands her mother's words in __, but when translating, Lena alters __ __ & translates Ying-ying's odd expressions into English words to more __ thoughts. Mandarin; English meanings; mainstream When Clifford received a promotion, the St. Clairs moved from Oakland to __ __. Their apartment, built on a steep hill, disturbed Ying-ying with a feeling of "imbalance." What did she do constantly because of this "imbalance"? San Francisco; rearrange furniture Through the walls in her bedroom, Lena heard the girl next door, Teresa Sorci, arguing with her mom. What did Lena St. Clair imagine what's happening to her? Whenever Lena saw Teresa, what could she never see a trace of? being killed/ beaten; blood/bruising After moving to the new apartment, Lena's parents announced that Ying-ying was pregnant. How did each parent react? What happened to her baby boy at birth? What ultimately happened to Lena's mom after this? dad= excited, happy; mom= scared (her fear); died; fell apart physcologically One day, Teresa knocked on the St. Clairs' door, went to Lena's room, climbed onto the window ledge, explained her mom locked her out & announced intentions to sneak back through her bedroom window to shock her. What did Lena hear later that night? yelling accusations, sobbing, & laughter with joy & love An-mei Hsu carried a white leatherette Bible with pride for many years. What has become of this Bible? serves to prop up one of the kitchen table legs in her apartment Ted, Rose Hsu Jordan's ex-husband, made all decisions. What happened to cause Ted, a dermatologist, to lose his confidence & begin forcing Rose to make decisions? When Ted became angry when Rose resisted, he accused her of__ & __, & asked for a __. losing a malpractice lawsuit; responsibility, blame, divorce Who was Bing Hsu? What happened to him? What happened to Rose Hsu's mother's faith from this? Rose's 4-year-old brother; drowned at sea on beach vacation; disappear from efforts to get her son back What happened when Rose Hsu was watching her brothers on the beach to cause her to lose focus on Bing? What efforts did An-Mei Hsu do to get Bing back? gave permission for Bing to cross reef to see dad, who was fishing; Matthew, Mark, & Luke started fight; offerings of sweet tea & blue sapphire ring by tossing them into the ocean An-Mei Hsu believed in the "ability to do whatever she put her mind to." This is known as Nengkan Rose Hsu Jordan realizes "fate is shaped half by __, half by __" She ends the chapter by recalling flipping through the Bible & seeing ... expectation, inattention; "Bing" written in the "Deaths" section, in light pencil