The Good Earth Review
The Good Earth Book Review
“The Good Earth”, by Pearl S. Buck, details the life of a poor farmer and his bond with his land in the turn of the twentieth century. It also brings attention to the lifestyle and customs of the typical Chinese family of this time period.
This is a story of how hard work pays off and turns a poor family into an envied and prosperous one, despite the hardships they face and endure. It begins on Wang Lungs Wedding Day. As a peasant famer, he is not in a social high class that would allow him to a pulchritudinous wife. He is arranged a marriage with a slave from a wealthy house. Her feet were never bound and appears mostly hideous to Wang Lung. Gradually, he’s learns to admire his hard-working and frugal wife. With their hard work and savings, Wang Lung climbs up the economy ladder after returning to their home and buying additional land to farm on. To Wang Lung, land is forever. Land cannot be taken away.
I marvel at how beautifully the novel was written. Especially being that the book was written in a different time, makes the book more fascinating. However, I wish that O-lan, Wang Lung’s wife, had been the main character of the story. I feel that O-lan had been more of hero of the story. Without her, Wang Lung wouldn’t have been able to buy all of the new land, and she kept working in the fields even though she had just given birth, showing her strong willpower. She’s the kind of character that made me feel like a slacker.
Buck wrote about the China she saw, the day to day work and customs, the glory of sons to their families and the disregard to their daughters. I had known what foot binding was before reading the book, but I never realized how many people were affected by the process and how unattractive it was considered if someone’s feet were not bound. The irony of the story was the rise and fall of the House of Hwang, where O-lan had grown up as a slave, resembles Wang Lung’s own story. There is definitely something to be
“The Good Earth”, by Pearl S. Buck, details the life of a poor farmer and his bond with his land in the turn of the twentieth century. It also brings attention to the lifestyle and customs of the typical Chinese family of this time period.
This is a story of how hard work pays off and turns a poor family into an envied and prosperous one, despite the hardships they face and endure. It begins on Wang Lungs Wedding Day. As a peasant famer, he is not in a social high class that would allow him to a pulchritudinous wife. He is arranged a marriage with a slave from a wealthy house. Her feet were never bound and appears mostly hideous to Wang Lung. Gradually, he’s learns to admire his hard-working and frugal wife. With their hard work and savings, Wang Lung climbs up the economy ladder after returning to their home and buying additional land to farm on. To Wang Lung, land is forever. Land cannot be taken away.
I marvel at how beautifully the novel was written. Especially being that the book was written in a different time, makes the book more fascinating. However, I wish that O-lan, Wang Lung’s wife, had been the main character of the story. I feel that O-lan had been more of hero of the story. Without her, Wang Lung wouldn’t have been able to buy all of the new land, and she kept working in the fields even though she had just given birth, showing her strong willpower. She’s the kind of character that made me feel like a slacker.
Buck wrote about the China she saw, the day to day work and customs, the glory of sons to their families and the disregard to their daughters. I had known what foot binding was before reading the book, but I never realized how many people were affected by the process and how unattractive it was considered if someone’s feet were not bound. The irony of the story was the rise and fall of the House of Hwang, where O-lan had grown up as a slave, resembles Wang Lung’s own story. There is definitely something to be