My Brooklyn Grandmother Literary Analysis Essay

In “My Brooklyn Grandmother”, the author Lawrence Yep learns a cultural lesson from his grandmother which he later applies into his adult life. The lesson that the author’s grandmother teaches him is to take your work very seriously, and do it diligently and thoroughly, unlike the typical American. Even though his grandmother had “accepted her Americanized grandchild”, she teaches him different work ethic from the average American. For example, in paragraph 3 the grandmother demonstrates this idea of perfectionism and high standards when she feels uncomfortable if an entire plate of food isn’t finished. From the author’s experience, “If I didn’t clear the plate, she was bound to think something was wrong with the food. So, I would dutifully make my way through the pile of food”. This shows that the grandmother is uncontrollably expressing the standards from which she comes from and is slowly incorporating her characteristics into the author. 

Furthermore, the author learns this lesson throughout his child when he cooks rice with his grandmother. During these moments, the author observes how she was “fussiest about rice” and appeared to be very careful and engaged in the cooking. For example, when they were cooking rice together, the author appears impatient and irritated when his grandmother makes him swirl rice around in bowls of water 6 times to remove dirt, and even made him “look alertly for stray bits of chaff or even the occasional pebble that might slip by the processing machines.” The author also sees from an early age how detailed his grandmother is when she “rested her fingertip on the surface of the rice until the water came almost up to the knuckle of her index finger”, then was “allowed to soak for a half-hour before cooking” … She doesn’t even use precise measurements, but just simply waits until it is ‘perfect’ according to her standards. This may be because it warps a person’s sense of judgement to assume something is good enough if they just follow instructions and aren’t creative. “The result was rice of just the right consistency and density”. Although this idea of perfection seems unnecessary and strange to him, the author eventually learns to work diligently and do it properly. For instance, the author eventually recognizes a big difference between “instant” rice and the careful one his grandmother makes. “I’ve never been able to abide instant rice-which tastes so mushy to me. Brown rice tastes musty; and I’ve never been able to get the hang of a modern rice cooker.” The author makes it clear that he is letting is grandmother’s personality “soak in”, feeling unsatisfied with poorer quality work. Finally, the author realizes that the hard work is rewarding, seeing the pleasure it brings. When the author goes to college, his grandmother sends him homemade “care packages” which he enjoys much better than the poorly prepared instant rice. 

Finally, the author applies this lesson to his adult life throughout his writing career and at home. Because the author learned to put all his energy into doing something at high standards, he became “fussy” about how satisfactory his work is because he wants to do it so well (like his grandmother). “I think some of the fussiness over the rice carries over into my writing forcing me to write several drafts of a book until I’m satisfied.” Also, the author applies this lesson to when he cooks at home as well. Even though the author could easily settle for “modern rice cookers”, he is accustomed to his grandmother’s rice, which is made in a more patient, diligent, and caring manner. “Instead, I still make rice basically the same way my grandmother showed me, even measuring in the pot with a knuckle.” This is how the author applies his grandmother’s lesson to his adult life.

To conclude, the author’s grandmother teaches him to be patient and precise in his wok, and to do it properly. His grandmother demonstrates this when she teaches him how to make rice her way, mixing it in water until it looks good enough, letting it sit in water for half an hour, and simmering it for 20 minutes. The author applies the lesson he learns into his adult life when he writes and cooks. Instead of simply writing something and assuming it’s good enough, the author carefully goes back through his books and makes “several drafts” before he is even satisfied with it. The author also still makes his own rice the same way his grandmother does. Although it seems as though they are both acting ‘fussy’, it is important to know that engaging in what you do makes you hard working and is very rewarding.