A Tree of Sacrifices in The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan

Each sacrifice a person chooses to inflict upon themselves is like a pump of  oil slowly trickling down and wrapping itself around the gears and shifts. When the liquid works its way down into the crevices of each part, it represents a sacrifice settling in, and could have affects one may never foreshadow. A sacrifice is differentiated from a compromise due to the high probability of becoming an inescapable commitment for life, in favor of another person. In the poignant novel, The Joy Luck Club, Amy Tan paints the lives of four mother-daughter pairs who had been robbed of their hometown by foreigner’s and forced to renounce some of their pride, as well as take decisions they never would have thought to have come across. Through her brilliant vignettes, she delineates eight people whose lives differ, yet all their strings essentially wrap around the same bamboo tree; they believe to have failed to accomplish their goal they so arduously worked for: “I wanted my daughter to have the best combination: Chinese character and American circumstances. How could I know these two things do not mix''(Tan 254). Specifically, Waverly Jong has gained high approbation at a tender age, yet at times sheds her consideration for others; although she had attained financial independence rooting from affirmative action, naturally materialistic views settled in as well.  

To outsiders, the word “America” either evokes motivation or dread.  Giving up tranquil mornings surrounded by familiar places, the aroma of red bean soup, and rich culture, to only be thrown into a totally different one in exchange for the uncertainty of opportunity. In stark contrast to Lindo’s uprising in social status, Waverly has built an empire independently, but at the cost of losing her Chinese soul and customs; allowing her Chinese blood to flow in the arteries, and the American in her veins. From a young age, Lindo had created a hostile environment, with the intentions of pressure equating to an improved result. She instilled a competitive spirit that stays within Waverly for all her life, however she still holds a bone over Waverly’s head for her to obey. With Waverly’s prodigal skills in chess, Lindo habitually announces to anyone around her how accomplished and sagacious her daughter had become at such a young age. Conversely, Waverly feels exploited, and the impermissible red button had been clicked : “ I said under my breath, ‘I wish you wouldn’t do that, telling everybody I’m your daughter.’ My mother stopped walking… ‘ So shame be with mother?’ … I looked down. ‘It’s not that, it’s just so obvious. It’s just so embarrassing.’ ‘Embarrass your daughter?’ Her voice was cracking with anger… ‘Why do you have to show me off, then why don’t you learn to play chess?’...I jerked my hand out of my mother’s tight grasp and… ran until it hurt and I realized I had nowhere to go, that I was not running from anything” (Tan 101-102). Coupled with past trauma, Lindo’s isolation from her family for decades, and sacrificing her happiness in order to maintain her family’s reputation in their minimal hometown, grows her dependency on having the perfect family. Being a victim of arranged marriage to gain reverence and power, she is in awe of how the adventitious nation had shaped her daughter at such a young age to be of high regard. The perfect circumstances as one might attest, but attributes may differ. With Lindo being a first generation immigrant, she has become accustomed to the assimilation process of living in a new country, but for Waverly, the nation had ripened her every thought. With Waverly’s strict protestation, reformation and gaining social recognition hastily, her Chinese character was caught in the wind. Her mother is taken aback by the harsh rejection her daughter perceives of her and Waverly unknowingly shatters her pride.  Lindo does not want her daughter to slip away like the sand in between your hands while standing on the beach among the crisp San Francisco wind. Like the red candle that burned out on her marriage day. Waverly eventually discerns her mother’s intents when she believes she has been running from no one all this time. Contrastingly, Lindo fails to realize that the nook where Waverly’s Chinese self, runs as free as the mind, is her obstinance. Their common trait is passed along, and hits a brick in their wall of understanding. Yet the incident proceeds to shed the petals of their sayings, to only stand atop the pistil of intentions.

It is truly a privilege to be living in a country where all forms are accepted. Where the differences in man do not hinder your goal of success in life. With the contrasting lives of Waverly and Lindo Jong, Lindo is proud to have provided Waverly with a life presenting equal opportunities despite gender, and no dependency on financial assistance, but at the cost of capitalistic views. Being brought up in communist China, Lindo had been compliant for many years under the influence of communist values: “No big celebration was held when I first arrived...Instead, Huang Taitai hurried me upstairs to the second floor and into the kitchen, which was a place where family children didn’t usually go. This was a place for cooks and servants. So I knew my standing.” (Tan 49). Lindo is constantly flooded with her mother-in-law’s persistent reprimands and judgements. Hence, a strong wave of gratification flushed over her when Waverly had grown up to become a successful tax attorney, without the need to go through degradation, condescending thoughts, or financial reliance on intermittent external factors. Now, Waverly can breathe freely among the California poppies filled with fresh and modern perspectives around her, eliminating the anguish of facing moments of imperialism, and open to perpetual freedom. Holding the title as the “most successful” within their conclave, Waverly starts to value materialistic objects and is depicted when her apartment is described with an emphasis on having many clothes scattered and raving about a mink jacket nonchalantly, while she knows quite well that many cannot afford the luxury product. Amy Tan includes these details more vividly about Waverly, to push the narrative of how she displays an avaricious nature, inadvertently cementing the barrier with her mother. Lindo believes that Waverly has outgrown the bone that was held above her, causing disparities in their communication. This leads to debris of unresolved conflict feigning through the air, yet the tumultuous experience is eventually shedding the light of its once thought impenetrable skin.

What makes each one of our lives so unique, are the decisions we take. The paths we endure to change the course of our journeys’, accept mistakes, and continue to evolve our thinking. Waverly and Lindo Jong have a complicated relationship that stems from unresolved tensions from striving to achieve the best of both worlds; American circumstances and Chinese character. Conversely, Waverly has only shattered pieces of the mirror. Due to the success in her career, she has made a name for herself, to the detriment of losing respect at times, and exploiting the opportunity of equality, to only gain a dependency on inanimate affections. In lieu of identifying and correcting faults alone, through Waverly and Lindo’s healing relationship, she has a new partner to confer to. Sometimes, sacrificing the actions your mind speaks, and opening your heart may be the only way to fully blossom.