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THE WOMAN WARRIOR: FREE STUDY GUIDE / SUMMARY
LITERARY ELEMENTS
SETTING
The book is set in the present time in Oakland, California, but the
characters also visit San Francisco, California, and, in memory, they
visit the past in a small village in Canton, China.
CHARACTER LIST
Major Characters
Maxine Kingston
The Chinese-American protagonist of the book. She is seen in
the memoirs at different ages, From a young girl to a mature woman.
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Brave Orchid
Maxine's mother, who is a very strong-willed Chinese-American
woman. In China, she was a medical doctor, and in the United States, she
owns a laundry with her husband and in her older years, works in the tomato
fields as an itinerant farm worker.
Minor Characters
The Woman Warrior
A figure from folklore, who proves her filial piety (a strong
virtue of Chinese culture: meaning to show respect and care for ones parents
and ancestors) by saving her family and her village in China.
Moon Orchid
Brave Orchid's sister, who comes as an elderly woman, from Hong
Kong to the United States in order to join her husband, who had abandoned
her years ago.
No Name Woman
Maxine's father's sister, who became pregnant in China by an
unknown man who was not her husband and who committed suicide and infanticide
after bearing her child.
CONFLICT
Protagonist
Maxine, a second generation Chinese-American, struggles with her split
nationality and with her female gender.
Antagonist
Brave Orchid is the antagonist for much of the memoirs, but only because
she personifies the Chinese heritage with which Maxine struggles.
Climax
Maxine confronts her mother, Brave Orchid, and accuses her of all the
difficulties of being born Chinese-American.
Outcome
The memoirs end in comedy, for Maxine reconciles with her mother and her heritage
and is able to weave together an identity rich both in Chinese heritage
and new American values.
Downloadable / Printable Version
The Woman Warrior by Maxine Hong Kingston: Free BookNotes Summary
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TheBestNotes.com Staff. "TheBestNotes on The Woman Warrior".
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. 15 May 2008 |