Please enable JavaScript.
Coggle requires JavaScript to display documents.
Gilbert Grape vs. Li Cunxin (Comparative Essay + Exam Preparation) (Grape,…
Gilbert Grape vs. Li Cunxin (Comparative Essay + Exam Preparation)
Grape
Restrictions
Gilbert in a small town
tied down by family
memory of the father killing himself (haunted)
mother in general
Arnie
restrains himself out of love for his family
#
Character
falls in love with freedom through Becky
good person
#
works hard
headstrong
#
had an ability to love and nurture the important people in his life
could do good under difficult circumstances
#
Other People
Becky
helps him achieve his goals
helps him reach out and take risks
gets him to think about himself
"what do YOU want"
shows him that life isn't all bad in Endora
loves him regardless
unlike the mother (loves him IF he'll look after Arnie
#
unlike Mrs Carver (loves him because he won't go away)
#
Bonnie Grape
Mrs Carver
#
bound in a relationship he couldn't escape
when her husband dies Gilbert is free from both of them
Major Decisions
affair with Mrs Carver (and ending it)
Wanted his family to be proud of him
to take care of Arnie for his whole life
embracing his life
#
moving away from family responsibility to Becky
Luck
#
Becky broke down and saved their lives
all the right things happened at the right times
Li
Restrictions
born into poverty
family
#
#
communism
#
physical ability
restrains himself because he loves his family
not great housing situation
#
Character
good person
works hard
#
#
headstrong
perseverant
falls in love with freedom through America
#
independent
#
work ethic
ambition
#
#
high pain tolerance
#
Some innate characteristics in Li
things he would have inherited from his parents
determination
work ethic
resilience
vision
Other People
Li achieved his goals through hard work more so than Gilbert does
#
Teachers
Teacher Gao
hard on him and encouraged him to persist
gave him a new sense of determination
#
forced him to work harder
tough love
Teacher Xiao
kind
encouraging
opened up the western world to him
#
helped him realise the beauty of dance
Ben Stephenson
motivator
leader
voice of reason for young Li
gave him the opportunity to be free and see a different world
father figure
counsel
Elizabeth Mackey
didn't really positively affect him
lack of understanding
taught him about loss of a different kind to what he'd seen
green card only?
Parents (Niang and Dia)
industrious
loving
traditional
"the frog in the well"
inspiring
allowed the idea there is a better world
magnanimous decision - "there is nothing here but struggle"
#
Siblings
tension between them
one got out and another didn't (Cunyuan)
helped Li see the consequences of poverty through the fact they were trapped in the system
Major Decisions
to leave home
to always bring pride on his family
#
to try stupidly hard at dancing
Luck
#
accepted into the dance school
chance to go to America
Connected Themes
freedom comes at a cost
#
#
Gilbert's mother died
#
Li had to leave behind everything he knew and loved
#
Is Freedom worth the cost?
#
#
Gilbert ends up happy despite the death
#
Li becomes successful gets to be with his family and have a new family in a new life
#
#
City vs. Country
cities you can have anything you want
in the countryside it is impossible to avoid everyone else
the time in both stories is similar but they are very different
Government
Li can't say anything about the government
Gilbert has the freedom to say what he likes about anyone
Private enterprise
Destroys Li's life and family chances
Positively affects Gilbert
Love for families
both very loving of families
Gilbert had a genuine love despite the fact they were holding him back
#
Li had a love that he knew was based on pride from family
#
Other Factors
Genre
#
kind of biographical
drama
#
#
#
Gender
#
#
Becky breaks free from the gender stereotypes
#
Li's mother is the typical housewife
Ben is gay
#
Race
#
Li experiences a tiny bit of racism
#
Gilbert Grape is very white
not a huge issue in either text
Setting and Context
Grape
Mid-West/Country town in America
#
land of freedom and opportunity
#
ironic setting for the film
unclear time setting
certain aspects of the film look really old (eg. caravans)
other aspects are fairly modern
no mobile phones or technology are really present
seems like it is set in the 1990s but the town is a few decades behind
social context: not yet hugely acceptable to have people with disabilities around
obesity was taboo
#
time where perfection was still the only viable option for moving up in the world
very family focused society
#
people didn't "abandon" their families for opportunity
families weren't hugely encouraging of opportunities
Li
communist rule over China
strictly limited freedoms
#
everything was dictated by the government
the red guard
loyalists to Mao
often very young
killed or abused anyone who spoke out against Mao
the cultural revolution
destroyed everything at the beginning of Mao's reign
buildings and all history was worthless
the little red book
had to be memorised by all the children at school
punishment if it wasn't on their person
very family focused society
#
people had children to ensure they would be looked after when they grew old
#
#
everything (marriage/children) was done for advantage
the commune
ugly
very harsh inside
#
often starving
balanced out by amount of love there
no getting out
#
no nature around
each family had a one room house
parents regularly got sick from over-working themselves
Narrative Structure/Form
Grape
film
#
chronological narrative structure
freedom comes at the very end
#
Li
novel
#
chronological narrative structure
#
freedom comes about half way through the novel, the rest is freedom's consequences
#