Comparison of Technique in Fiction to the Woman Warrior
Chapter 1: Conception: The Origin of a Story The origin of a story may come from a plethora of triggers in life such as a notebook, memory, or even pure intuition. In Kingston’s novel, The Woman Warrior, she primarily uses her memory to recall the legend of Fa Mu Lan, a Chinese girl who took her father’s place in battle illegally (21). Kingston uses this familiar Chinese story that leaves a “direct personal impression” on her and links it to her own imagination (Lanning and Macauley 3). This fabricates the origin of a story that gives the reader insight on how Kingston feels about Chinese society.
In the second chapter of The Woman Warrior Kingston positions her hair into a bun fashion, wears the male armor and consequently portrays herself as a male to all the soldiers while still possessing feminine qualities just as Fa Mu Lan had. The Fa Mu Lan myth opens many windows of opportunity for Kingston’s personal imagination to engage in the story. According to Lanning and Macauley, when Kingston began thinking of including the story of Fa Mu Lan into her novel, “perhaps the first question” she should have asked herself is whether or not the story is able to “touch some sensitive spot” in her memory, feelings or beliefs (17). Kingston would most likely agree that the story of Fa Mu Lan does touch her memory, feelings and beliefs because the story revolves around one of the themes of the book: the role of women in Chinese society.
Lanning and Macauley also suggest that a writer ask themselves if the story begins to suggest a series of events to come (18). The story of Fa Mu Lan suggests a series of events to come because when the old couple brings out a traditionally Chinese meal and asks if Kingston wants anything to eat, Fa Mu Lan (Kingston) responds by declining, and reveals she would prefer to have chocolate chip cookies (Kingston 21). This divulges that not only is Kingston dealing with having to balance the Chinese and American cultures, but that
In the second chapter of The Woman Warrior Kingston positions her hair into a bun fashion, wears the male armor and consequently portrays herself as a male to all the soldiers while still possessing feminine qualities just as Fa Mu Lan had. The Fa Mu Lan myth opens many windows of opportunity for Kingston’s personal imagination to engage in the story. According to Lanning and Macauley, when Kingston began thinking of including the story of Fa Mu Lan into her novel, “perhaps the first question” she should have asked herself is whether or not the story is able to “touch some sensitive spot” in her memory, feelings or beliefs (17). Kingston would most likely agree that the story of Fa Mu Lan does touch her memory, feelings and beliefs because the story revolves around one of the themes of the book: the role of women in Chinese society.
Lanning and Macauley also suggest that a writer ask themselves if the story begins to suggest a series of events to come (18). The story of Fa Mu Lan suggests a series of events to come because when the old couple brings out a traditionally Chinese meal and asks if Kingston wants anything to eat, Fa Mu Lan (Kingston) responds by declining, and reveals she would prefer to have chocolate chip cookies (Kingston 21). This divulges that not only is Kingston dealing with having to balance the Chinese and American cultures, but that
Cited: Kingston, Maxine Hong. The Woman Warrior. New York: Random House Inc., 1976. Macauley, Robie, George Lanning. Technique in Fiction. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1987.