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Therefore, this paper will analyze the differences between Chinese and American cultures from the aspects as follows: education methods, views of love and marriage, values and language expression, and also explore the causes of the differences between the Chinese and American cultures. The purpose is to strengthen the exchanges and cooperation between different cultures on the basis of understanding of cultural differences.
This paper is composed of five parts. The first part is a brief introduction, including the introduction, research status, the significance of this study. The second part is a brief introduction to the author and the movie The Joy Luck Club. In the third part, the author will analyze the differences between Chinese and American cultures reflected in the movie. In the fourth part, the paper will explore the reasons for the differences between the Chinese and American cultures. The last part is a conclusion.
II. Brief Introduction to The Joy Luck Club
2.1 Brief Introduction to the Author
Amy Tan is a Chinese American woman. She was born in Oakland, California, in 1952, two and a half years after her parents immigrated to the United States. In addition to the direct effects of Chinese cultures from the first generation Chinese immigrants in her family and friends, the primary, secondary and higher education Amy Tan accepted completely belongs to American culture. After obtaining a master’s degree in English linguistics, Amy Tan devoted herself to writing novels. And at the age of 37, The Joy Luck Club, her first novel, established her as a best-selling author in American fiction. Now, she lives in San Francisco with her husband and writes novels, for example The Bonesetter’s Daughter, The Kitchen God’s Wife, and The Hundred Secret Senses.
2.2 Brief Introduction to the Movie
The Joy Luck Club is a beloved international best-selling novel which explores the relationships between four Chinese women and their Chinese-American daughters in the United states. Published in 1989, The Joy Luck Club was enthusiastically received by critics and the public. It landed on the New York Times best-seller list for nine months. It was nominated and then selected as a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award and the National Book Award. In addition, it also received the Bay Area Book Reviewers Award for Fiction and the Commonwealth Club Gold Award. The book has been translated into 25 languages, and has been made into a movie.
In the movie, the mothers’ characters, Su Yuan Woo, An Mei Hsu, Lindo Jong and Ying-ying St. Clair once lived in China and immigrate to America, while their daughters, Waverly, Lena, June and Rose, grow and live in American circumstances. The mothers, who were born in China, had experienced a hard time. They have a Chinese traditional thinking which makes them sometimes difficult to adapt themselves in the American’s way of life. The daughters are born and grow in America. They have the American’s way of thinking. So, the daughters often have a difficulty in understanding their mothers. There are a lot of conflicts in different aspects, such as education methods, views of love and marriage, senses of value and ways of language expression etc. As time goes by, after a series of misunderstandings and conflicts, they begin to understand each other. The two generations go into harmony with their efforts of love.
The Joy Luck Club is a name of a Chinese group. The members of this group are the four mothers. They like to organize family parties and play mahjong. In this game they hope to be lucky, and that hope is their only joy in their sadness. That is why they call their party The Joy Luck Club.
The movie The Joy Luck Club was completed in 1993 and achieved great success at the box office. It was ranked 48 in terms of box-office income in the fiscal year of 1993. It generated approximately $32,901,136 in the U.S. domestic market alone. The New York Times’ Century Box Office ranked this movie as one of the Top Three Movies of that year. ( May 6 ) It was adapted from the novel, and directed by Wayne Wang. The movie retains the major part of the story, but changes some details to cater to the Hollywood and the American dominant culture.