Essay Sample: The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan

The root of Rose Hsu Jordan's problems is her inability to make decisions and her lack of confidence. In the Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan, readers follow the life of Rose Hsu Jordan, as well as seven other women including Rose’s mother, An-Mei Hsu. At a young age, Rose loses her ability to be decisive and assertive; she is “ without wood”. In Chinese culture, there are five elements that make up a person. “Without wood” means the person does not have a strong backbone; they spread themselves in every direction lacking the ability to be an independent, strong-willed individual. Rose is not born without these traits. Her lack of confidence and decisiveness is the result of the life-changing ordeal she experiences as a child. Rose is instructed to watch her younger brother, Bing, at the beach. As he falls into the water and drowns, Rose freezes. She does not have the ability to talk, move, or notify anyone of the situation. The death of Rose Hsu Jordan’s brother deprives her of confidence and her decision making abilities, which she does not regain until she acknowledges, during her divorce, how vulnerable she is to her husband Ted and multiple other people in her life.

As a child, Rose’s life changes tremendously in a matter of seconds. She is instructed to watch her brother, however, she gets distracted and does not realize what Bing is doing until he is in the process of failing into the harsh, unforgiving waters. Rose is unable to move or communicate, and her family does not discover the situation until it is too late. Rose’s decisiveness and confidence are immediately drained from her, “She loses faith in herself and at most has hope, which is passive, waiting for what will happen to happen,” (Amy Tan "Joy Luck Club").  Additionally, Rose begins to disconnect from her mother at this point. An-Mei is faithful and strong, having a completely different ideology than Rose, believing she is able to accomplish anything she wants. Rose’s pessimistic view of her own abilities and incompetence in regards to decision making and responsibility leads to relationships falling apart, “ I never believed there was ever any one right answer, yet there were many wrong ones, ” (Tan 126). Eventually, her husband Ted is tired of Rose’s refusal to take responsibility in their relationship which leads to contentious issues between them. Rose witnesses her marriage fall apart because of her unhealthy habits. The disintegration of her marriage ignites a spark in Rose prompting her desire to change.

Rose Hsu Jordan has a tendency and desire to avoid conflict with everyone in her life, especially her mother, An-Mei. Unfortunately, a combination of her mother’s knowledge and the abysmal experience of the divorce is the only cure for Rose’s “without wood” issue that began years before. For a long time, Rose blocks An-Mei out of her personal life and relies on psychiatrists to resolve her issues. It is not until the final agreements of her divorce are being formed that Rose finds her voice and listens to her mother’s advice. She recognizes and admits to herself that she is a person “without wood”, however that will no longer hold her back. In the divorce, both Ted, her former husband, and Rose want the house.  After several days of preparation, Rose overcomes her biggest fears of conflict and confrontation and delivers her premeditated discourse to Ted, “ You can’t just pull me out of your life and throw me away,” (Tan 218).  Ironically, it is the intense conflict of Rose’s divorce that triggers her to overcome her internal conflict and gain back her decisiveness. Rose refuses to acquiesce to the arrangements Ted has created without her. By doing this, Rose not only shows her authentic self, but also reveals she is beginning to listen to her mother. An-Mei references weeds earlier in the novel when describing how Rose does not have control of her life, an effect of her being “without wood”.  However, Rose’s remark shows how she now has control and is accepting of her true self, “Having connected with her essential self, Rose knows what she wants and is able to express it,” (Amy Tan "Joy Luck Club").  She enjoys the new found feeling of authority that she can obtain from communication even if it means external conflict.

Change is a long and difficult process that happens through experiences, especially  mistakes, and requires growth. Rose takes decades to recover from the tragic incident with Bing and handles her grief in an entirely different way than An-Mei. An-Mei turns to faith and hope, never able to truly see his disappearance into the ocean as death. An-Mei is able to preserve her confidence, strength, and gain knowledge through hardship. However, An-Mei never controls Rose which is essential to Rose eventually escaping her vicious cycle of vulnerability and fear,   “You must think for yourself, what you must do. If someone tells you then you are not trying,” (Tan 140). Rose’s change was catalyzed by an external event, her divorce, and guided by her mother’s advice. The impetus for the change had to come from her essential self, “Rose is unable to make choices concerning the divorce and retreats into sleep. One function of sleep is that it allows us to contact our unconscious selves; our hidden or suppressed parts may become available to us temporarily,” (Amy Tan "Joy Luck Club"). Although An-Mei’s advice could have liberated Rose from her unfavorable marriage much earlier, it would have prevented her from truly changing. Rose’s mother, although not assertive nor officious, has an equal if not greater impact on Rose’s character development and transformation than Ted and their lamentable divorce has. Rose has to connect to her culture, using Ani-Mei as a bridge,  accepting the knowledge it provides,  in order to live her life to the fullest.

Rose spends decades of her life feeling apprehensive, living in fear of potential issues and misfortunes. This fear results in an absence of confidence, decisiveness, and strong relationships. Fortunately, external conflict with her husband Ted pushed Rose to gain back her voice and finally follow through with a decision she independently made. Although Rose will always be “without wood”, considering it seems impossible to obviate the trait that has controlled her for so long, she now is truly aware and faces her fears, taking control. Living a life in fear of making bad decisions can paralyze a person and prevent them from making good choices that can enable them to have their best life.