9/9 "Toll of the Sea" At 9:30 she says that she will only speak in English because that is wha they speak in America. This highlights the assumption that everyone in America needs to speak English to fit in, and often does not accept other languages, especially during that time period, during early times of colonialism in China. At 13:13 his friends call her "different" and oppose of them getting married. This shows how Asian Americans are perceived in America and by American soldiers, and the fact that interracial marriage is not accepted at that time.
at 44:00 the transformation of the son from Lotus Flower's son, who is wearing cultural clothes turns into an American child that Lotus Flower considers more fit for his father. Also, we can see the role of the new wife, who is displays white femininity and is a bridge between Allena and Lotus Flower in the awkward conversation where Allen meets his son with Lotus Flower.
We can see two major themes within this film. One is the view of Asian American women at that time as tragic and need to be helped. She sacrificed a lot for the American man (Allen?), and even gives her child to him. It also portrays China as belonging in a different, fantasized place, and creates the issue of East vs West. This therefore highlights the issue of a racial hierarchy that was emphasized during that time, especially with the power imbalance between white men and asian women.
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Shows common gender sterotypes 22:50. She waits for him to come back and only thinks about him and love, while he moved on with someone new in the US.
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Both he world of suzie Wong and toll of the sea have different approaches to a very similar theme in portraying women in a helpless and submissive manner, that is often highly sexualized.
9/23 "The World of Suzie Wong"
(8:00) Cultural difference where Mi Ling says that it is normal to obey her father and marry someone who she doesn't even know. The man questions it. We later learn that she lies because of cultural expectations, and how that is the life that she wants to have.
(40:00) he mentions a letter that lets him into places where he usually isn't known.
(52:45) At the dinner, the white man said to Robert to keep his nose out of them in order to be accepted by his own people. This means that they do not support interracial marriage, and repeatedly is against Robert's friendship with Suzie, just because she is Chinese.
(59:40) Suzie compares herself to the white girl and asks if she is still a virgin. This shows a gender discrepancy, and how women are expected to be.
(1:00:30-1:02:00) the navy man (Senate) beats and is violent towards suzie because she didnt want to go into the room with her. Robert then hits him too.
(1:03:01) Suzie wants to tell her friends that Robert beat her up, because she wants to show that he is jealous, and like it is a good thing?
(1:13:00) Suzie fights the girl because she was showing Robert affection for giving her change.
(1:21:50) Robert strips Suzie, and says that she doesn't know what real beauty is.
(2:01:20) Suzie wonders why the world killed her baby and not her, thinking that she is bad and deserves it.
now why did he propose at her baby's funeral????? her overall goal was for him to love her, and her whole self-worth is defined by him. This scene symbolizes her leaving her old life for him, which shows a common trope where the white man "saves" the Asian woman.
9/23 "Recuperating Suzie Wong" by Peter X Feng
Nancy Wong was offered many new roles for Asian women, in which they were the main characters. However, there was an issue with Suzie Wong, who was very sexualizes and portrayed as exotic, which is common to many stereotypes of Asian women. We also see a common trope where Asian women are in an interracial relationship with white men, similar to Lotus Blossom in Toll of the Sea. However, the title of this article comes to play, by Feng saying that we need to recuperate Suzie Wong, which means to understand her character more than the negative stereotypes that she portrays (43). For example, she uses her sexuality for the purpose of providing for her child, who we see in the end.
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While in the world of suzie wong, they end up together, we also see how both women lost their babies one way or another at the end. This helps us discuss the idea of sacrifice that is forced upon these women, in these traditional roles, where is is always asian American women being forced to sacrifice something for the false idea of love.
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