Such an attitude was culturally based on the belief that women cannot continue the family name, but only bury it within some other family’s name. The novel shows how in her very young age, the girl respected the authority of her father referring to him as “the great Father.” In the perspective of the modern views on the relationships between men and women Jade’s father’s attitude towards his daughter and the other women of his family could be called highly sexist. The strict and demanding attitude of her father made Jade constantly seek for his approval. At the same time, he willingly took credit for all the success his youngest daughter gained over time. This mission was complicated by the fact that her parent was traditionally demanding and hard to impress he was also convinced that giving praise to Jade for her achievements was needless. Her father’s authority was out of the question in every single matter this way, the strength of his influences and his unlimited control over different aspects of Jade’s life overpowered all other impacts.Īs a result, through the course of her life, Jade Snow Wong was under the constant pressure to please her father and gain his recognition for everything she did.
Jade grew up having a very strong father figure in her life. Jade Snow Wong’s family was not an exception. In a traditionally patriarchal society, men are always in charge of all decisions, while women are put into a submissive and weak position and disciplined strictly. This brings the reader to a multi-dimensional theme of the social and gender role of females and the Chinese culture and society and the ways they are viewed and treated by males. The novel follows the complicated relationships within Jade’s family where she, as the youngest child had to obey everyone else, besides, as a female she was to blindly respect the authorities of the male members of the family – her father and her older brother.
This could be the result of the difficulties the author experienced writing about her own life experiences and intimate details and expressing her deep feelings. The novel is written from a narrator this way, Jade Snow Wong refers to herself in the third person. Jade Snow Wong’s novel called “Fifth Chinese Daughter” was first published in 1945 and is an autobiographic work introducing the author’s life and obstacles she had to face on her way of becoming a renowned and recognized author. Instead they preferred to stick to the old traditions of their original society and culture that is known as one based on patriarchal relationships. Even though Wong’s family lived in the United States, her parents did not adopt any western behaviors or beliefs.
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