Women Writers
Dr. Ramirez
Amy Tan's Kitchen God's Wife,
Chapters 12-15
1.Write for 10-15 minutes on moments
of shame in the reading. What leads up to these moments of shame?
Courtesy as a way of masking shame/coding
embarrassment
(Helen's remark about telling her
husband to not let Wen Fu defy social and legal codes)
Wen Fu's senseless and gratuitous
shooting of the pig
Wen Fu's rampage at the hospital
and Winnie's attempt to pick up the pieces and patch up relations
Wen Fu forces Winnie to kneel in
front of the other pilots to show his control over her
Shame is both shared and individual--family
feels shame for a member
2. Taonan-means impending disaster
Japanese bombing of Nanking--part
of Sino Japanese War; Japan's attempt to bomb China into submission
Journey from Nanking to Kunming
(near Burma)