Wild Swans, Essay Example

Cultural perspectives are an important part of society because it is how we learn of the differences in attitudes, ideas, and principles of different cultures. Chinese culture is one I have some familiarity with, however, Jung shared three generations of struggle that took place over time, and spread some light on how the struggle for the evolution took place. Every culture has their point in history where right and wrong can be challenged. The end of the book challenges the role of Mao and whether he made positive or negative changes to society. This class taught me that cultural perspectives change, and what we view to today as proper will change in time, just like China’s cultural perspective changes in Wild Swans.

The basis of the story starts with Yu-fang, the grandmother Chang was raised in the traditional Chinese culture. This was during the time when thefemale’s feet were bound.  Being raised in a poor family, her father had his plans to get rich. He would sell her as a concubine to the warlord General XueZhi-heng.  During this time in China, it was acceptable and normal for the practice of women to live in the house with a man, unmarried, to serve as a sexual being. These women could be treated in manner different manners from a second wife to a prostitutedepending upon the man they ended up with the sad part about this change was that the use of concubines was not abolished until 1971.

The reason that Yu-fang’s father pursued the avenue of using his young daughter as a concubine was based on how he could benefit. It would gain social status and quality of life. In China, even to date, social status is a significant part of society. This does not differ much from the cultural perspective that we know in America as well. Social status portrays wealth, and wealth allows a person to be seen and treated in a different manner than those who do not have money. This is an important cultural perspective that transfers from culture to culture. The means that one gets the social status definitely varies based upon location. Yu-fang’s father had the option to push his daughter off I the life of being a sexual servant and she had no say in the matter. The fathers dictate how things will be, and that is how things will be.

Jung’s grandmother was ‘married’ off to the General and forced to live in a wealthy house with the servants, and not allowed to communicate with her family.  She was not the favorite person in the house, and she tried to stay out of the way to prevent causing problems. The general did not see the young girl for six years, he made an appearance for a conjugal visit and Chang’s mother was conceived. The culture in China put a great value upon the off-springs of concubines.  Jung’s grandmother gave birth to her mother. The general became ill and wanted the baby to come live in the big house. His health status did not allow the grandmother to deny his request. He wanted the baby to stay in the house.  Because she did not want her child to grow up in that world, she fled to her parents and said that the baby died. She was declared free and later remarried for love. “When he asked my grandmother if she would mind being poor, she said she would be happy just to have her daughter and himself: ‘If you have love, even plain water is sweet” (Jung).  This cultural perspective shows that in some countries, such as China love is not necessarily a reason to be married.

The book’s theme shifts to Jung’s mother. At the young age of 15, she begins to work for Mao’s Red Army. The mother met Chang’s father at the Communist party of China. They married but because of the Communist rule they weren’t allowed to spend too much time together.  They moved to Chang father’s hometown and Chang’s mother walked the whole way while the father rode. She was pregnant and lost her baby. She then had Jung and four other children. She was a participant in the revolution for cultural change in China. As a result he promised to never disregard her anymore. This was a time when Mao was getting his footing as a political powerhouse, and changing the culture of China. The idea of the Chinese culture that was once viewed as acceptable began to be seen differently, and challenged as a result.

And lastly, we have to discuss the life of Chang. The story of Chang began around the revolution. She joined the Red Guards even though she suffered from some of the brutal actions.
“Wherever we went as we traveled down the Yangtze we saw the aftermath of the Cultural Revolution: temples smashed, statues toppled, and old towns wrecked. Litfie evidence remained of China’s ancient civilization. But the loss went even deeper than this. Not only had China destroyed most of its beautiful things, it had lost its appreciation of them, and was unable to make new ones. Except for the much-scarred but still stunning landscape, China had become an ugly country” (Jung). This shows that cultural change is not free. Cultural perspectives evolve and what we once held as valuable can lose value overnight.

Chang followed Chairman Mao and his decisions, however she did not know if she really believed them or not. But she followed him and did her job. Chang’s parents had a different view than Mao, and they became a target for attack as a result of their opposition. Her parents became targets of public struggle and torture. Chang saw her father deteriorate and eventually died. This directly made Chang question Mao and the Revolution of China. She returned home to go to the university and shortly after Mao died. “People had been acting for so long they confused it with their true feelings. I wondered how many of the tears were genuine”(Jung). Chang said that she felt exhilarated by Mao’s death.Chang moved to England to study where she still lives today and visits her family in China occasionally. The end of the story shows how cultural perspectives sometimes come with a price tag. For Chang, involving herself within the cultural revolution of China essentially cost her – her parents.

The Chinese people followed Chairman Mao and all of his decisions. This is because opposing them came with a hefty price tag as Chang’s parents learned. The people clearly could see that Chairman Mao had some problems and created problems that are occurring even now. However, they were to follow him as a person of leadership and supported his values for change. Even if the methods were forceful and potentially violent. The cultural perspectives of China varied based on the involvement in the actual revolution. Chang showed that her views shifted after she saw different things play out. The cause she once supported treated her parents poorly and it made her question Mao completely.

Different people have different views on the same things, because we all have different cultures. The cultures that we are familiar with will also influence how we view things and what we think.  The events that took place in this book were normal for China. The characters acted in a manner that was culturally acceptable. Other cultures would not look favorably on these things because their cultural perspective is based upon what they know and are familiar with. There is no right and wrong in cultural perspectives, but it is important to learn of other cultures and their ways of life in order to truly respect our own.

This book exposes how people, culture and nations change through time. The reading specifically speaks to me as it gives me an idea on how people in the East deals with cultural traditions that are specifically bound to keep them grounded and likely are not allowed to live life the way they want to. Freedom seems to be a luxury. Up to this day of modern living, the Chinese community continues to cling to particular cultures that do not only involve the need to follow particular rules of the society, but are also bound to make countless effects on how they live their lives. I have seen people [not only from Chin] to be specifically crushed because of these rules. Social status, being accepted by the family and so and so forth, are only among the few situations that people living under the condition of cultural limitations have to deal with. I personally believe that humans should be given the chance to live life in freedom, not being controlled by the constraints of the society for them to realize their full potential. Sure they need to be guided at times, but putting them in a situation that makes it impossible for them to grow or even realize their best potentials is something unacceptable, especially in relation to the hope of people aiming to find their way to realizing their own worth as a person.

Work Cited

Chang, Jung. Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China. 1991. Print.