Joy Luck Club HC&L Study Guide

By Amy Tan

 

Feathers from a Thousand Li Away

What image does a swan suggest? What might the swan feather represent in the story?

What hopes does the mother have for the swan in the new country?

How is the mother affected by the immigration process?

What emotions is the mother feeling at the end of the story?

What tone does this vignette set for the opening of the novel?

 

"The Joy Luck Club," Jing-mei "June" Woo

What is the Joy Luck Club that June is invited to join?

Why does Suyuan organize the club in the first place?

Briefly describe a typical Club meeting.

Why does Suyuan choose the words "joy" and "luck" for the name of her group?

Why does the San Francisco Joy Luck Club play the stock market?

What might be June's reaction to hearing her mother say, "Your father is not my first husband. You are not those babies"?

What does June's mother mean why she says that Auntie An-mei "isn't stupid, but she has no spine"?

June's mother says, "Each person is made of five elements." What three elements does she describe and what does each represent?

How does June know which seat at the mah jong table was her mother's place?

What does the story of Auntie An-mei's trip to China reveal about Communist China?

What 'gift' do the Aunties give June and why is it a cause of fear for all of them?

What is the meaning of the word "refugee"?

 

"Scar," An-Mei Hsu

What are An-mei's earliest perceptions of her mother and father?

Why is she taught that her mother is a ghost?

How did An-mei's neck become scarred?

What is her reaction when her mother returns?

Why does An-mei's mother cut her arm and put her flesh in the soup?

What kinds of emotional scars does An-mei carry from her earlier years?

 

"The Red Candle," Lindo Jong

What are the advantages and disadvantages to arranged marriages?

Why does Huang Taitai treat her future daughter-in-law so poorly?

What is the significance of the red marriage candle?

Why does Huang Taitai remove all of Lindo's gold bracelets and how does it make her feel?

List the three parts of Lindo's "dream" that convince Huang Taitai to end Lindo's marriage to her son.

Lindo says, "I sacrificed my life." What sacrifices does she make?

 

"The Moon Lady," Ying-Ying St. Clair

What does Ying-ying St. Clair think of the way her daughter has turned out?

The Moon Lady is a mythological figure that sees that secret wishes are fulfilled. What parallels to her do we have in American culture?

Why doesn't Ying-ying's mother come to get her on the dock after she smears her clothes with turtle blood?

When Ying-ying finally sees the Moon Lady up close, what is her reaction?

 

The Twenty-Six Malignant Gates

What is the mother's attitude toward the girl?

What is the daughter's attitude toward her mother and her mother's warning?

Why does the girl fall off the bicycle?

 

"Rules of the Game," Waverly Jong

What does Waverly learn from playing chess?

Explain the significance of the wind references.

What move is she planning at the end of the chapter?

 

"The Voice from the Wall," Lena St. Clair

How is Lena controlled by her fears?

How is she affected by her mother's gruesome stories about the basement and the baby?

Lena is half-Chinese, half English-Irish. How is her life different from that of her friends whose parents are both Chinese?

What realization does Lena come to about her neighbors?

At the end of the story, how is Lena pulling her mother back to life?

 

"Half and Half," Rose Hsu Jordan

The three oldest boys are called Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Why is the last son called "Bing" and not "John"?

In what ways are all the chapters in this section about children who are predisposed to danger?

Why does An-mei Hsu return to the ocean the next morning to try to find Bing?

Why does she write Bing's name in erasable pencil in the Bible?

Is there a parallel between An-mei's losing faith in the Bible (at least on the surface) and the child's losing faith in the Moon Lady earlier in the book?

Why is the Bible kept so clean?

 

"Two Kinds," Jing-mei "June" Woo

Why does June's mother pressure her so strongly to excel at the piano?

How does June react to the unspoken competition between her and Waverly?

Why does June tell her mother she wished she were dead, even though she knows how much it will hurt her mother's feelings?

 

American Translation

What is peach-blossom luck?

Why will the marriage happiness turn the opposite way?

Mirrors show us reflections of ourselves. Why, then, is the daughter surprised to see "her own reflection looking back at her"?

 

"Rice Husband," Lena St. Clair

What is Lena afraid that her mother will see during her visit?

What is Lena's response to her mother's superstition about not eating all of her rice?

Why does Lena feel responsible for Arnold's death?

In what ways does money play an important role in Lena's and Harold's marriage?

Why doesn't Lena resent Harold's taking credit for her "theme eating" idea?

Why does Lena cross out the words "ice cream" on the refrigerator door?

 

"Four Directions," Waverly Jong

In what ways does Waverly's mother wear her down by "the strength of her will"?

Waverly again describes the time when she lost her edge in chess. How are her memories different this time? Or are they?

What does Waverly find appealing about Rich?

Why does Waverly's trick (introducing him to Auntie Suyuan) work with her mother?

Describe three important Chinese customs Rich violates at dinner which  Waverly believes are insults to her mother?
Do you think Lindo will actually join Rich and Waverly on their honeymoon? Why/Why not?

 

"Without Wood," Rose Hsu Jordan

What is the significance of Rose's dream about Old Mr. Chou at the beginning of this chapter?

Why does Rose let the garden become so overgrown? Why does she like it that way?

Why does Rose decide not to sign the divorce papers?

What is the role of Old Mr. Chou in the second dream, and why does he resurface this way?

Why are weeds spilling out at the end?

 

"Best Quality," Jing-mei "June" Woo

Suyuan gives June her jade pendant. How does June react at first?

What does June think of Waverly in this chapter?

Why does June's mother say, "Only you pick that crab. Nobody else take it. I already know this. Everybody else want best quality. You thinking different."?

 

Queen Mother of the Western Skies

The grandmother says, "But later I threw away my foolish innocence to protect myself. And then I taught my daughter, your mother, to shed her innocence so she would not be hurt as well."  Why did she do this?

How can a person lose innocence but not hope?

 

"Magpies," An-mei Hsu

What is the moral of the turtle story?

How does An-mei view life in her uncle's house?

Compare her first impressions of her new home with her impressions several months later.

Why is Second Wife so powerful in the household?

What is the significance of the pearl necklace?

Why does An-mei's mother plan her death to occur just before the lunar new year?

 

"Waiting Between the Trees," Ying-Ying St. Clair

What side of Ying-ying's personality do we see at the beginning of this chapter?

In what ways is Ying-ying's name (Clear Reflection) appropriate?

Why is Ying-ying called the  "tiger lady"?

 

"Double Face," Lindo Jong

Why doesn't Waverly like it when Mr. Rory says she and her mother look alike?

Why did her mother think she couldn't marry a Cantonese boy?

What is the mother's attitude toward her daughter and Mr. Rory at the end of the story?

 

"A Pair of Tickets," Jing-mei "June" Woo

How does June regard her father as they travel to China?

Why does Canning Woo have what is called a "milk name"?

What are the translation of the names of the three daughters of Suyuan?

What is June's reaction to the story her father tells about Suyuan leaving the babies by the side of the road?

Did Suyuan get her "long-cherished wish"?

 

Tan's original title for the novel was "WIND AND WATER". Which do you prefer and why?

Study Guide Questions adapted from the Prestwick House Inc. teaching materials. Please alert Mrs K if you find typos in this format. Thanks!