User:DOOMmarine2000/sandbox

This is a summary of an article over Amy Tan's story "Fish cheeks". The story is about a young Chinese girl who gets a crush on the Ministers son named Robert. She is soon shocked to learn that Robert and his family will be visiting for dinner on Christmas eve. She is embarrassed and ashamed of her Chinese heritage. She is fully aware of the cultural differences between her family and Roberts. The story tries to teach us that you should never be ashamed of your culture and background.

Imagery

In this short story, Amy Tan uses descriptive word choice to create a vivid mental picture for the readers. Doing so has allowed readers to be able to picture how this Christmas dinner took place and how embarrassed Amy felt during the dinner. Since Amy’s family was Chinese, they didn’t have the typical holiday foods that come to mind when we think of a Christmas dinner. The main dish that had Amy the most embarrassed was the “slimy” cod with “bulging” eyes. When the fish was brought out, Amy’s dad poked the fish under its eye and announced that the fish cheeks were Amy’s favorite part. Amy recalls her embarrassment from this moment and states that she wished she could disappear.

Tan not only uses imagery during the dinner scene, but she also uses it when describing Robert. In the introduction, she introduces Robert as a boy that is, “as white as Mary in the manger.” The use of figurative language helps us see that there is a vast difference between Amy and Robert without reading the rest of the story. Amy also wishes for a “slim new American nose” in the introduction, which shows Amy’s own insecurities in how she sees herself and what she wishes she could be.

Amy also displays imagery when describing the different types of food that her mother is preparing for the dinner. She describes the color of the veins that her mother was pulling out of prawns, the spongy look to the tofu, and even a plate of squid with intricate cuts. With this use of imagery, readers are able to learn more about Chinese culture and what they enjoy to eat but also get to compare and contrast American to Chinese culture. Since Robert is American, we can see why Amy might feel anxious about what he and his family thinks about what they eat for the holidays.

Plot
As the plot in "Fish Cheeks" progresses, new characters and problems arise that the main Character, Amy, Struggles to handle. During the exposition, you learn that the main character is a girl and that she has a crush on the minister's son, Robert. At this point in the story her name is not yet mentioned. Her parents invite his family over for dinner and she becomes upset when she leans the news because she is afraid of what his white American family will think of their Chinese Christmas. When the action of the story starts to rise and her mother begins to prepare for the dinner, Amy's worries continue to grow and all of the usual foods that her family makes become foreign as the kitchen is filled "with appalling mounds of raw food"(1). When the story reaches its climax, both of the families are eating dinner and Amy has lost all hope. Her family acts different and doesn't show the same manners as Roberts family. Her father pulls the tender fish cheek from the fish and offers it to Amy because it is her favorite and this caused her to want to vanish from the dinner. As the Christmas dinner goes on she feels more ashamed and doesn't know what to do. Once the night is over she is in silence and not sure what to even say. It is not until later that she realizes how special that meal was for her. She resolves all the hard feelings when she realizes that all the foods that were made for that meal were her favorite and she should have enjoyed the meal instead of worrying so much about the guests.

Theme paragraph for group project

The theme for Amy Tans "Fish Cheeks" is one of tradition as well as heritage and also fear and embarrassment. In the beginning the reader learns that the main character is a young Chinese girl living in America, but her name is not yet known. The reader soon discovers that she has a crush on the ministers son. The son is named Robert. To her surprise her family invites Roberts family over for Christmas dinner but she is extremely worried about how Roberts family will react to the cultural differences. Here we already see a bit of theme. Amy, the main character, is very worried about their differences. We see this a lot in todays society when two different types of people merge. Fear and rejection are on her mind. At this point Amy is very embarrassed by the food being served, and the Chinese tradition being shown to Robert and his family. Some theme here would be the cultural differences they share. It is hard for Amy to be comfortable due to the fact that her family and Roberts family are so different. Her anxiety is worsened when her father burps loudly in front of the guests but he says that it is a polite custom in china which shows you are happy with the meal that was served. I understand Amy's dilemma here. Its very awkward at times when two families meet and they are very different compared to each other. For instance what might be acceptable behavior in one family may not be in the other. After Robert and his family leave Amy has a talk with her mother about the whole situation and she tells Amy that "the only shame is to have shame". She also tells Amy to be proud of who she is and where she is from. I believe the main theme here is to be yourself and be proud of your background even if it differs from others. Heritage is a very special thing and I think this poem shows that rather well.

Chernin, Kim. The Hungry Self. Women, Eating and Identity. New York: Times Books, 1985

Hsiao, Pi-Li. ‘‘Food Imagery in Amy Tan’s The Joy Luck Club and The Kitchen God’s Wife. Feng Chia Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences,No. 1, Nov. 2000. Print.

Kevra,Susan. "From raw to cooked: Amy Tan's Fish cheeks." 24,Aug. 2015. Accessed 14,Feb. 2019.https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/aaldp/vol6/iss1/5/