China Men: Study Questions

 

Reading Questions

 

As you read, consult the glossary of terms listed on the HCC website.  Most of the reading questions are devoted to the six non-italicized chapters.  Except for "The Laws," which we will be looking at closely, the non-italicized chapters are re-told and re-created myths, legends, fantasies, and parables.  As you read them, try to come up with their meanings and how they relate to the adjacent parts of the book.  But also let your imaginations go.  Enjoy them.  Also enjoy the book.  There are some funny parts.  You are allowed to laugh.

 

 

LECTURE III

 

“The American Father”

 

Where does Maxine’s father turn up “an American citizen” (237)?  What powers does the father have (238, 242)?    What is the father's profession?  What is the narrator's theory about males" (251)?  Is she right?  What does the father's ownership of a house and planting of a garden say about his relation to America (255)?

 

“The Li Sao: An Elegy”

 

Who is Ch’ü Yüan (256)?  What is his fate?

 

“The Brother In Vietnam”

 

 What happens to Japanese Americans during WWII (268, 273)?   What is the brother’s profession (277)?  Is he any more successful with his students than his father was with his in China?  Why doesn't the brother leave the country to avoid the draft (283)?  What happens to Chinese Americans when they "set foot on China, even just Hong Kong" (294)?    Kingston writes,  "Of course, the Center was elsewhere" (301).  What is Kingston doing to the belief that one group of people can be the center of the world? 

 

“On Listening”

 

 What is the last word of the book (308)?  How is the title of the last chapter related to the title of the first chapter?

 

Discussion Questions

 

1. In his defence of the Geary Act (1892), Representative Geary argued that “The first duty of governments is to their own citizens, and in securing to them the protection and the enjoyment of their life and liberty the consideration of the effect on other people is not of consequence.”  He also argues that “The protection of American labor is an essential duty of American government.”  Do you agree or disagree with Representative Geary?  How could you use China Men to support your beliefs?

 

2. In 1885 Minister Josiah Strong complained about the increase in immigration to the US because, according to him, it had created more and more official US citizens who were, nonetheless, not true Americans because they did not share American culture.  What would Kingston's response be to Minister Strong?

 

3. How does Kingston answer the question "Who is an American?"  Do you agree or disagree?  Why or why not?

 

4. One of the themes of the book is silencing.  What forces contribute to silencing?  What helps to break silence?  What is the role of listening in cultural understanding?  What is the role of talking? 

 

5. Some people are proposing to amend the citizenship clause of the 14th Amendment to deny birthright citizenship to the children of illegal immigrants born in the US. Do you agree or disagree with that effort?  Why or why not?  How has reading China Men affected your views one way or another?

 

6.  Is it possible for Kingston, a woman, to represent China Men?  Rather than claim to be "representative" of all Chinese Americans, indeed, all Americans, Kingston implies that each reader should represent him or herself.  How does she do so? 

 

7.  What do you make of Kingston's use of the term "white demons"?

 

8.  Share your own story about what it means to be an American.