“The Joy Luck Club”: Film Analysis

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Mother-Daughter Relationship
The Essence of Storytelling and Tradition
Fate and Independence
Parental Sacrifice
Conclusion
References

Introduction

The Joy Luck Club revolves around the story of four Chinese women who migrated to America to look for new life. They all live in San Francisco, and each one of them has a Chinese-American daughter whom they love a lot and wish the best for them. At the movie’s beginning, the four women, Tsai Chin, Kieu Chinh, France Nuyen, and Lisa Lu, sit down in an open place, playing Mahjong while narrating their past stories. The four different stories make the entire movie, considering that it unfolds how they are connected and how their relationship affects their daughters. Since the film is highly feminine, it explains the importance of the mother-daughter relationship, the essence of storytelling and tradition, fate and independence, and parental sacrifice.

Mother-Daughter Relationship

The central focus of The Joy Luck Club movie is the multifaceted relationship between daughters and their mothers. When telling their stories, it is clear that there is an inherent bond between the four women and their daughters, despite the cultural and generational problems they encountered over time. For example, when Suyuan, June Woo’s mother, died, the inherent bond between June and her deceased mother encouraged her to understand her mother’s life well. Since her mother migrated to America when June was not born, she did not know much about her mother’s past life (Wang, 1993). However, she finds more about her mother, including her other twin sisters, from her mother’s three friends. While still alive, Suyuan showed her friends the undying love she had for her daughters, and this confession later helped June find her twin sisters, who were left in China during WWII. Although Suyuan left her daughters in china during Japanese inversion to save their lives, her bond with them was always strong, despite the physical distance. This material and emotional sacrifice portray the length that some mothers go to honor the survival of their daughters. Therefore, the movie shows that the connection between mothers and their daughters subsists beyond worldly activities and personal events.

The Essence of Storytelling and Tradition

People tell stories to make sense of life and understand the world around them. The movie has four segments of different stories, which helps the viewers understand the lives and cultures of the main characters. We realize that the four women migrated from China to America through each story due to political instabilities. The viewers can understand the importance of adoring other people’s cultures through the stories. For instance, despite being raised in Chinese culture, the four women still value the American culture and would like their daughters to adore them. To justify this statement, Suyuan says, “In America, I will have a daughter just like me. Nevertheless, nobody will say her worth is measured by the loudness of her husband’s belch. Over there, nobody will look down on her because I will make her speak only perfect American English” (Wang, 1993 00:35:46). Therefore, viewers can learn from the movie that adoring other people’s culture is essential, considering that it would open more life opportunities and strengthen personal relationships.

Fate and Independence

The concept of fate and independence fills the film, considering that the main characters dither between the traditional acceptance of one destiny and the free will to decide their fate in life. When Suyuan died, the Chinese tradition preferred June Woo to take her mother’s place and follow in her footsteps. However, the concept of fate and independence changed all these by making June follow her ways to track her late mother’s history (Bloom, 2009). Unfortunately, through fate, she meets her twin sisters in the Joy Luck Club, of which she could fail to find them suppose she could choose to follow the Chinese cultural restrictions. As a result, fate is a power beyond human beings’ supremacy, controlling what happens to people’s lives.

Parental Sacrifice

Parental sacrifice refers to how parents, especially mothers, prioritize their children’s needs at the expense of their own lives. The Joy Luck Club portrays that all the aspects of parental love require some level of sacrifice. It shows that women always sacrifice themselves for the good of their children, which would later strengthen their bonds. For instance, the most significant parental sacrifice in the film is when Suyuan decides to leave her twin daughters in a safe place to be rescued during WWII, the Japanese invasion of China. She narrates that, at that mysterious moment, she was nearly dead due to dysentery, and the only way she could save her babies was by leaving them by the roadside (Bloom, 2009). Therefore, her willingness to prioritize her babies’ lives before her own life guaranteed their rescue.

Conclusion

In conclusion, most parents should view the Joy Luck Club as a positive and instructive film. It highly portrays how parents should handle their children, despite their challenges. It shows the essence of storytelling, considering that June found her mother’s origin through listening to the stories her mother used to tell other women. Furthermore, as the film shows, parental sacrifice and the concept of independence are important to people’s lives. For instance, by sacrificing her life during WWII, Suyuan was able to save the lives of her twin daughters. In addition, by being independent, June, through fate, was able to reunite with her twin sisters in The Joy Luck Club.

References

Bloom, H. (Ed.). (2009). Amy Tan’s The Joy Luck Club. Infobase Publishing.

Wang, W. (1993). The Joy Luck Club. Buena Vista Pictures.

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