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摘要自从《喜福会》(1989)获得巨大成功之后，谭思美己成为家喻户晓的名字。之后谭恩美又相继出版了《灶神之妻》(1991)，《百种神秘感觉》(1995)，《接骨师之女》(2001)和《救鱼不淹死》(2005)。在《接骨师之女》出版之后，谭恩美宣布这部小说是她的自传性最强的小说。这部小说写于谭的母亲去世之后，小说中具有很多与谭恩美的真实生活经历相似之处。因此这本小说也备受国内外读者和文学评论家的广泛关注。目前关于《接骨师之女》这部作品的研究主要集中在探讨这部作品中的母女关系，文化冲突和身份认同等方面。在文学批评界中，女性的沉默受到越来越多的女性主义者和女性主义叙事学家的关注。本文在吸纳前人的研究成果的基础上，依据苏姗·兰瑟在《虚构的权威——女性作家与叙述声音》中提出的女性主义叙述声音理论，分析《接骨师之女》中女性所处的沉默地位及沉默背后的原因，阐述了作者如何运用作者型声音和个人型声音，帮助小说中的女性及作者本人树立了权威，进而论证了小说中的女性及作者本人如何以沉默的方式打破沉默从而实现了自我伸张。本文共分五章。第一章介绍了谭恩美现象，苏姗·兰瑟提出的女性主义叙述声音理论和课题研究现状并提出论点：小说中的女性及作者本人都以沉默的方式打破沉默，实现了自我伸张。第二章分析了美国华裔女儿露丝面对美国自人所处的沉默地位，沉默背后潜藏的种族歧视和露丝最后通过写自己的故事来打破她所处的沉默地位。在这本小说中作者谭恩美选择了使用作者型声音来讲述露丝的故事，作者在安排露丝打破沉默，实现自我伸张的同时，也为其本人树立了叙述权威，实现了自我伸张。第三章论述了移民母亲茹玲在美国强势文化下的沉默现状，沉默背后的种族歧视和性别歧视的原因，论证了茹玲最后如何通过具有浓厚中国文化气息的中国汉字和中国食物打破沉默，实现了自我伸张。第四章论述茹玲的生母宝姨在丧失说话功能及母亲身份之后所处的沉默地位，沉默背后的父权制度束缚以及宝姨最后只能以自杀来打破沉默，实现自我伸张。第五章结论指出华人(华裔)女性通过各种不同的沉默的方式：写自己的故事、写中国汉字、吃中国食物和自杀找到了自己原有的文化身份，民族身份和母亲身份，打破了她们在美国白人面前、在美国强势文化面前和中国父权制度面前的沉默地位，从而实现了自我伸张。关键词：沉默；自我伸张；写作：中国文化；自杀 AbstractSincethepublicationof砌PJoyLuckClubin1989．AmyTanhasbecomeahouseholdname．Succeedingthefirstsuccess．AmyTanpublished刀缸KitchenGod'sWifeinl991，砌eHundredSecretSensesinl995，玩BonesetteriDaughterin2001andSavingFishFromDrowningin2005．AfterthepublicationofTheBonesetter§Daugh陀rAmyTanhasannouncedthatthenovelishermostpersonalwork．nlenovelwaswrittenafterthedeathofTan’smotherDaisy．Inthisnovel．therealemanysimilaritiesbetweenthestoriesandTan’slifeexperiences．nlereforethishovelhasattractedincreasingattentionfromreadersandcriticshomeandabroad．Manyresearchstudieshavebeencarriedoutonthemother-daughterrelationship,theculturalconflictsandculturalidentity．Inliterarycircle，moreandmorefeministsandfeministnarrativetheoristspaytheirattentiontowomen’ssilence．Basedontheresearchachievementsofmanycriticsandreviewers．thisthesisaimstostudythesilentedstatusofthewomenin砌Bonesetter§Daughter,thereasonsbehindtheirsilences，howtheauthorusesauthorialvoiceandpersonalvoicetohelpthewomenandherselfestablishtheauthority,andfurtherexplorethesilentwaysthroughwhichmeybreaktlleirsilencesandsearchforself-assertions．TheoreticallythisthesismainlyreliesonthefeministpoeticsofnarrativevoiceadvocatedbySusanSniaderLanser,inhermasterpieceFictionsofAuthority：WomenWritersandNarrativeVoice．Thisthesisconsistsoffivechapters．ChapterOneintroducesthe‘‘AmyTanPhenomenon'’，Lamer’Sfeministnarrativevoices，andthestatusquoofrelatedresearches．ChapterTwoexploresRuth’SsilencebeforeAmericanwhites，theimposedsilencebyracismandthewayshefindsouttobreakhersilenceandputforwardherself-assertion,namelywritingherownstories．InthisnovelAmyTanchoosesauthorialvoicetotellRuth’Sstory,SOassoonasTanhelpsRuth’Sbreakhersilenceandaccomplishherself-assertion，shealsoestablishesauthorityforherselfandachieveherOWllself-assertion．ChapterThreeanalyzesLuLing’SsilencebeforedominantAmericancultureandthesilenceimposedbyracismandsexism。LuLingll AbstractfmaUybreakshersilenceandachievesherself-assertionthroughChineseculturalheritage：ChinesewordsandChinesefood．ChapterFourdemonstratesPreciousAuntie’sdumbnessandhersilentstatusafterlosinghermotherhood．UndertheeonfinememofChinesepatriarchy,theonlysolutionforPreciousAuntietobreakhersilenceissuicide．Tllisthesisconcludesthatthroughdifferentsilentways：writingstoriesforthemselves，practicingChinesewords，eatingChinesefoodandcommittingsuicide，theChinesewomen(orChinese·Americanwomen)findtheirculturalidentity,nationalidentityaswellasmotherhoodrespectively,andbreaktheirsilencesbeforeAmericanwhites，AmericandominantcultureandChinesepatriarchy,thusachievingtheirself-assertions．KeyWords：Silence；Self-assertion；Writing；Chineseculturalheritage；SuicideⅡI 学位论文独创性声明本人声明所呈交的学位论文是本人在导师指导下进行的研究工作及取得的研究成果。据我所知，除了文中特别加以标注和致谢的地方外，论文中不包含其他人已经发表或撰写过的研究成果，也不包含为获得直昌太堂或其他教育机构的学位或证书而使用过的材料。与我一同工作的同志对本研究所做的任何贡献均已在论文中作了明确的说明并表示谢意。学位论文作者签名(手写)：每妒睁高签字日期：》叼年Ip月叫钼学位论文版权使用授权书本学位论文作者完全了解直邑太堂有关保留、使用学位论文的规定，有权保留并向国家有关部门或机构送交论文的复印件和磁盘，允许论文被查阅和借阅。本人授权直昌太堂可以将学位论文的全部或部分内容编入有关数据库进行检索，可以采用影印、缩印或扫描等复制手段保存、汇编本学位论文。同时授权中国科学技术信息研究所将本学位论文收录到《中国学位论文全文数据库》，并通过网络向社会公众提供信息服务。(保密的学位论文在解学位论文作者签名：司东精签字日期：3，7年fy月雌日 AcknowledgementsIOWCagreatdebtofgratitudetOallthosewhohavehelpedmeinvariouswayswitIlmythesis．Firstandf．oremost．Iamgreatlyindebtedtomysupewisor，ProfessorLiaoHongzhongwhohaswarmlyofferedmespiritualsupport，enlighteninginstmotionandunremittingencouragement．Hiscommentsontheinitialandsubsequentdraftsofeachchapterwereconsistentlyinsightful．IamalsoindebtedtoProfessorsLinTianlun,OuyangMeihe，HuangHonking，YaoQian，LiuWenandDr．YuanXuesheng．neyhavecontributedmanyvaluablesuggestionswhichWgl'eincorporatedintothefinalversionofthisthesis．IanlalsogratefultothemfortheirencouragementduringmystudyatNanchangUniversity．1woddalsoliketoexpressmywholeheartedgratitudetomydearsisterandfriendswhohavehelpedmeincopyingmanyimportantreferencebooks．Theyweremostgenerouswitlltheirtimeindoingalotofworkforme．Ianlgratefultothemfortheirhelp． Chapter1Introduction1．1ABriefIntroductiontothe“AmyTanPhenomenon”andTheSincethepublicationof砌eJoyLuck∞f铲in1989．AmyTanhasbecomeahouseholdnalneintheChinese-Americanliteraryandcriticalcircles。ThehOVelimmediatelybecameabest—selleranddrewextensivecriticalattention．SucceedingthefirstSuccess,AmyTanpublished砒KitchenGod's缆詹。in1991，TheHundredSecretSenses国in1995．ThcBonesetter'sDaughter回in2001andSavingFishFromDrowning固in2005．LikethebookswrittenbyotherChinese—AmedcanwriterssuchasJadeSnowWongandMaxineHongKingston,Tan’Snovelsalsodealwiththemotifsofmother-daughterrelationships，women’Ssilences，culturalconflictsandculturalself-identity．Tan’SbookshavegeneratedpublicityandcontroversyintheUnitedStatesandAsianAmericanliteraturestudyfields，whichhasbeencalledlaterthe‘'AmyTanphenomenon．”San-LingWong，afamousChinese-Americanliteraturecritic，hasobservedtheChineseculturalelementsinAmyTan’Snovelsin‘“SugarSisterhood’：SituatingtheAmyTanPhenomenon'’．(1995)WongattributestheSUCCESSofAmyTan’Sworkstotheexplorationofmother-daughterrelationships，theOrientalismelementscateringforthewhitereadership，theuseofChineselegendsandhistoryaswellastheauthor'sAsian-Americancultoralidentitytoensurethecredibilityofhernovels．ShealsoassertsthatduringherexaminingTan’susageofChineseandChinese—seemingdetailsaswellasherstylisticandnarrativemodes，shefindsoutthatTan’SworksaretryingtomeettheneedsofthoseAmerican瞩，Iliteswhofindherworkcomfortinginitsreproductionofstereotypicalimages，andwhoareTan,Amy．TheJoyLuckClub．NewYork：BallantineBooks．1989．Tan，Amy．TheKitchenGod'swifeLondon：Hal'pet'Collins．1991．Tan．Amy．TheHundredSecretSenses．NewYork：Putnam,1995．Tan．Amy．TheBonesetter'sDaughter．NewYork：TheRandomHousePublishingGroup,2001．Tan,Amy．SavingFishFromDrowning．NewYork：Putnam,2005．I 曼坠￡!!!!塑!型!竺!竺attractedtoOrientalismfantasiesofOldChina(primitive，superstitious，mythic，traditional．anddisempowered)①．Wongconcludesthatthe“AmyTanphenomenon’’issupportedbyapredominantlywhitemiddle-classfemalereadership．TothoseremarksTanhasstatedherobjection．TansaysthatsomeAsianAmericancriticshaveinterpretedherworkascateringspecificallytotheprofoundOrientalistfantasiesoftheAmericanwhitereadershipbecauseshehasfictionalizedasenseofonelessthanperfectChinapastthroughthememoriesandexperiencesofthoseChinesemothersinhernovelsandbecauseshehasdiscussedsexismanddiscriminationintraditionalChineseculture．Tanalsoassertsthatherfictionshavebeentreatedbymanyleaders嬲ascholarlytextortouristguide．whichdirectlyandcontinuouslyreferencesbackanthoritativelytoChineseculture，legends，societyorhistory．Althoughshehassomepersonalexperienceandopinions，buttheydonotmakeheranauthorityconcerningChinao．AmyTanwasheminOakland，Californiain1951．HerparentsarrivedintheU．S．in1949andwenMandarin-Speaking．Tan’sparentsJohnandDaisywerethefastgenerationofChinese-Americans．TheymetandgotmarriedintheUnitedStates．BroughtupundertheinfluencesofbethChineseandAmeriCallcultures，AmyTanhasprofitedalotfromherparents,especiallyherfatherwhotoldherChinesefablesandfairytalesthatwerepresentedinherlaterworks．AndstorytellinghaslaterbecomethemostimportantnarrativeforminTan’snovels．TheBonesetter'sDaughterisAmyTan’sfourthnovel，publishedin2001．Initsfirstweek,thenOVelzoomedtothesecondplaceonthehestsellerlist．Afterthepublication,AmyTanhas&nnouncedthatthenovelishermostpersonalwork．ThenovelwaswrittenafterAmyTan’smotherDaisydied．Insideofthenovel，thereisthededicationtoTan’smotherandhergrandmother．AmyTanremembersthathermotherhadoncebeencontinuallytellingher,“Ithinkyouknowonly【a】littlepercentageofme'’．(I-Io22)TherearesomanysimilaritiesbetweenthestoriesinthenovelandTan’slifeexperiences．n忙novelisnotonlytherepresentationofTan'stenserelationshipwithhermother,butalsotherealportrayalofthousandsof。Ho．Wendy．／nHerMotherIHouse：咖PolitiesofAsianAmericanMother-daugh阳rWriting，Califomia：AltaMiraPress，1999。47．oIbid．48．2 竺!翌堡!!!!型!竺竺mother-daughterrelationshipsbetweenimmigrantmotherswhoarestrugglingtosurviveinthenewlandandAmericanborndaughterwhoareeagertobeAmericanized．Itisalsoaretrospectionofthefriendlyrelationshipofthetwocountries，andtheauthor'ssincerewishforthefuturerelationshipofthetwonations．Thenovelisathree-piececombinationofthemother'SChinesestorysandwichedwithinAmericanstories．Thenovelguidesthereaderstravelingfrompresent-daySanFranciscotopre-eommunistChinaandthenagainbacktopresent-daySanFrancisco．LikeTan’Spreviousthreenovels．TheBonesetteriDaughteronceagaindealswi血theoldthemeofmother-daughterconflicts，Sino—Americanculturalconflictsandwomen’Ssilencesbeforeracialandsexualdiscrimination．Chinesespeeches，feudalChina’SsuperstitionandmythsarcalsodemonstratedandtheimageofbonespenetratesallOVerthenovelfromthebeginningtotheend．1．2ABriefIntroductiontoSusans．Lanser’SNarrativeVoicesInhermasterpieceFictionsofAuthority：Women’脚nersandNarrativeVoice(1992)，SusanSniaderLamer,arenownedAmericancontemporaryfeministnarratologist，hasexploredthreepatternsofnarrationinawiderangeofnovelsbywomenofEngland,France，andtheUnitedStatesfromthe1740stothepresent．Drawinguponnarratologicalandfeministtheory,Lansershedsflewlightonthehistoryof‘'voice’’鹤anarrativestrategyandasameansofattainingsocialpower．AccordingtoSusanS．Lanser，‘'narrativevoiceisasiteofcrisis，contradiction,orchallengethatismanifestedinandsometimesresolvedthroughideologicallychargedtechnicalpractices．”(Lanser7、LamerorganizesherworktOfocusonchangingproblemsandpatternsinthearticulationofthreenarrativemodeswhichshecalls，respectively,authorial，personal，andcommunalvoice．Byauthorialvoice，sheusesit‘'toidentifynarrativesituationthataleheterodiegetic，public，andpotentiallyself-referential．’’(Ibid15)Itisalso‘‘extradiegetic'’andpublic，directedtoanalrateewhoisanalogoustoareadingaudience．LanserchoOSCSthetermtosuggestthat3 Chapter1IntroductionSuchavoice(re)producesthestructuralandfunctionalsituationofauthorship．Inotherwords，whereadistinctionbetweenthe(implied)authorandapublic，heterodiegetienarratorisnottextuallymarked，readersareinvitedtoequatethenarratorwiththeauthorandthenarrateewiththemselves(ortheirhistoricalequivalents)．T}lisconventionalequationgivesauthorialvoiceaprivilegedstatusamongnarrativeforms．(1bid16、SusanLanserdefinesthetermpersonalvoiceas“narratorswhoareself-consciouslytellingtheirownhistories'’．(Ibid18)Sheusesthistermnottodesignateall"homodiegetic”or“first·person”narrativesbutonlythose‘'antodiegetie’：inwhichthe“I”whotellsthestoryisalsothestory’sprotagonist(orallolderversionoftheprotagonist)．Bycon-h'nunalvoice，Lamerreferstoaspoetrumofpracticesthatarticulateeitheracollectivevoiceoracollectiveofvoicesthatsharenarrativeauthority．(Ibid21)Shealsopointsoutthatfemalevoiceisasiteofideologicaltensionmadevisibleintextualpracticesandthatinlinkingsocialidentityandnarrativeformtheauthorityofagivenvoiceortextisproducedfromaconjunctionsofsocialandrhetoricalproperties．1．3StatusQuoofRelatedResearchesandThesisWithChineseAmeriCalls’rejuvenatingandintegralroleintheUnitedStatesandthegrowthofTan’spopulation,enthusiasmonTan’snovelsfromreadersandcriticsathomeandabroadhasbeencontinuouslyincreasing．SinceTanpublishedTheBonesetteriDaughter,thenovelhasattractedmuchattentionfromAsian-AmericanliteraturecirclesanddominantAmericanculturalcommunities．MaryEllenSnodgrass’sAmyTan：ALiteraryCompanion(2004)offersanintroductionandoverviewwithanalysisofcharacters，plots，allusions，literarymotifs，andclassicthemesfromtheworksofAmyTan．AmyLing’sBetweenWorlds：WomenWritersofChineseAncestry(1990)discussestheperplexitiesandsilencesofChineseAmerican4 ￡!!垡!!!!!型!!!!!!womeninChinese-Americanwriters’works，includingAmyTan’Sworks．TheessaysandarticlesonTan'sworksaretoonulneroustocountandmainlyconcertiabouttheissuessuchasmother-daughterrelationships．theculturalconflictsandself-identification．women’Ssilencesandtalk-stories．TheAmericanresearchachievementshavealsopushedforwardthedomesticresearchonAmyTan’STheBoneseUeriDaughter．Agreatnumberofarticlesandessayshavebeenpublished。Manycriticshavepaidmuchattentiontothemother-daughterrelationshipandthenarrativestrategies．TanAnqing’S‘■NewModeof‘TalkStory’byWometr--OnAmyTan0NarrativeStrategiesinHerFourNovels”hasintroducedAmyTan’Snarrativestrategyof‘'talkstory”．TanAnqingholdsthatthe"communal’’and‘'personal”narrativemodesintheAmyTan’sfournovelshavehelpedtheauthorinstrengtheningthenarrativeauthorityandpresentingthemovingandsubtlemother-daughterrelationshipandthebitterhiddenhistoryofChineseAmericans．Moreover，theyRreeffectivemeal'lStopassonlifeexperienceandthesplendidChineseculture．InTheCulturalSignificanceoftheMotherImageandtheMother-DaughterRelationshipinAmyTan'sNovels．ChangAiminarguesthatTabhassuccessfullycreatedthemotherimageandthatitisduetoTan’sChinacomplexandherChineseculturalconsciousnessthatTartwritestllestoriesofChinesemothers．ChenAiminhasalsomadeadetailexplorationin“OntheThemeofMother—DaughterRelationship．"DecodingAmyTan'sNewNovelTheBonesetter'sDaughter’’Oilthethemeofmother-daughterrelationship．Heconcludesthatthenovelstilldealswitllthecomplicatedmother-daughterrelationship，theissuesoftheculturaldifferences，theidentitiesandthebarrierofemotionaleommunicationbetweenmothersanddaughters,andunderstandingisthekeytotherealcommunication．OtherstudiesOnthenovelTheBonesetter§Daughterexplorethemother-daughterrelationshipfromculturalstudiesorpost-colonistperspectives，concludingthatChineseAmericanwomen(bothmothersanddaughters)aretrappedinthedouble‘'Other'’positions---theethnicandthefemale‘'Other'’．ChenLeilei’s‘'AmyTanandtheAmericanDominantIdeology”makesare-readingofAmyTan’Snovelsfromtheculturalperspectiveonthemother-daughterrelationship，theirmarginalpositionintheAmericansocietyaswellasthere-establishmentoftheircnlruralidentities．Wei 兰!!受!!!!!竺!!!!!!!Yanhui’Sthesis“TheDiscrepancyinAmyTan0CulturalIdentityConstruct以g—StudyofMother／DaughterRelationshipWritinginTheBonesetter0Daughter”examinesthediscrepancy(identifyingwitllandrefusingChineseculture)inAmyTan’Sculturalidentitycreatingbyanalyzingthemother-daughterrelationshipinTheBonesetter知Daughter．Besides，manyfeministcriticshaveexaminedAmyTan’Sworksastherecordofwomen’Sjourneysfromsilencetofullvoice．InInHerMotheriHouse：ThePoliticsofAsianAmericanMother-DaughterWriting,WendyHofindsoutthatTandepictsavarietyofmother-danghterbonds．Astheimmigrantmothersmakeeveryefforttosurvive，theyarealienatedwiththeirdaughters．Inordertorescuetheirdaughtersfromlosingtheirself-identitiesandChineseculturalheritage，themotherstelltheirlifestoriestotheirdaughters．Inthemothers’talk-stories，thewomen觚fintheprocessofspeakingout．TheresearcheshavehelpnsbetterunderstandAmyTan’SlifeandherattemptstobridgethegapbetweenChineseculture，andtheAmericanlife，thepastChineseheritageandmodemcivilization．Basedontheresearchachievementsofmanycriticsandreviewers，thewriterofthisthesisiSdevotedtothestudyofwomen’SsilencesinTheBonesetteriDaughterandtheexplanationofhowthewomenandtheauthorbreaktheirsilencesthroughsilentbutnotinvisibleways，thusachievingtheirself-assertions．TheoreticallythisthesismainlyreliesonthefeministpoeticsofnarrativevoiceadvocatedbySusanSnladerLanser,inhermasterpieceFictionsofAuthority：WomenWritersandNarrativeVoice．AnexplorationofauthorialvoiceandpersonalvoiceinthenovelwillhelpUSgraspnotonlytheoppressivesilencesofwomen，butalsothestrikingsilentwaysthroughwhichwomenempowerthemselvestobreaksilencesandaccomplishself-assertions．6 竺!!垡!!!垦坐!：!墅!!!!!塑!!!!￡垒!苎垡!!!Chapter2Ruth’SSilenceandSelf-AssertionRuthisoneofthesecond-generationChinese-AmericandaughterswhowerebomandbroughtupintheU，S．Shemakesaprofessionofwritingforothers．Beforeshereadshermother’sstory，shehasneverhadareasontowriteforherself．Ashermother'scharacterempowersher，nowshehasthatreason．Shedecitiestowriteherownstories，startingadau曲o∥squesttobreakhersilenceandsearchforself-assertion．AsthenovelisTan’smostpersonalwork，inauthorialvoicetheauthorhasalsoachievedself-assertionandestablishednarrativeauthorityforherself．2．1Ruth’sSilencebeforeAmerieanWhitesRuth’sstorybeginsinthepresent-daySanFrancisco．ShemysteriouslyloseshervoicestartingoilAugusttwelfthforoneweekeachyearsinceshemovesintoherpartnerArt’sflat．Whenshewasthreeyearsold,herAmericanwhitefatherdie嘎,inacafaccident．RuthgrowsupwithherChineseimmigrantmotherinChinatown。AlthoughRuthhasgrown印inthemainstreamAmericaandtakesherselfasanAmericanizedcitizen，sheisinevitablyinfluencedbytheChinesevaluesandcultureinherfamilyandChinatown．Duringherchildhood，shewasoftentoldbyhermotherthatitwasbadlucktoseeshootingstars．What’smore．hermotheroftentalksofghostsandcui'sesbeforeher．AlthoughshegrowsupintheU．S．，speakingperfectAmericanEnglish,shehastoconfrontherChinesemotherLuLingathome．ShegrowsuplisteninginMandarinandreplyinginEnglish．Becausehermotherspe}aksonlyfracturedEnglish，shehasoftentotranslatethemeaningofhermotherandmediatehertransactionswiththeEnglish-speakingpublicworld，feelingarangeofshame,angerandfrustrationforherChinesemotherandChinatowncommunities．Ruthhasalwaysbeenforcedtoseineashermother’Smouthpiece．Bythetimeshewasten,RuthwastheEnglish·speaking‘'Mrs．LuLingYoung'’onthetelephone．Shehastomakeappointmentsforthedoctorandwritelettersforhermothertothebank．2。1．1Ruth’sPassiveRoIebeforeAmericanWhites7 里!!!翌!!垦!尘：!!!!!!!!竺!!!!!：垒!!!坚!!!Asanon—nativeAmerican，Ruthisnotpopularinkindergarten．Tolargeextent，itisduetoherChineseappearanceandherhabitofsilence．TheculturaldifferenceindealingwithsilencecausesthediscriminationagainstChinese-AmericaninAmericankindergartens．Americancultureencouragesvocalbehaviorandself-reliancewhileinChinesetraditionalculturevocalbehaviorisgenerallynotencouragedandgirlsareencouragedtobequietinfamily．BroughtupinChinesefamilyandedifiedundertraditionalChinesecultureandvalues，Ruthgraduallydevelopsthehabitofsilence．Inaddition,theconflictsbeBveenherAmericanidentityandherChineseheritagehavelongperplexedherthatshedoesn’tknowwhichsidetoreconcileto，SOshechoosestobesilent．SilencehasgreatlyinfluencedRuth’Slifesinceshewasalittle西d，especiallytherelationshipbt炯v湖herandhermother,LuLing．Likemostoftherelationshipbetweenmothersanddaughters．conflictsoftenoccurbetweenRuthandhermother．Ontheonehand，theconflictsarecausedbygenerationgapandtheculturalelementsrepresentedrespectivelybythetwogenerations．Ontheotherkmd-theyalecausedbytheirhabitofsilenceandreluctancetocommunicatefacetoface．Atsix·year-oldagewhenRuthbrokeher锄1IIssheWastootiredtomakeasound．SheWasbroughtatrayofsandtowriteonandWasthoughtbyhermothertobeabletotalkwiththeghostofPreciousAuntie，whosedeathLuLinghasalwaysfeltguiltyfor．AsRuthgrowsup，silentcommunicationbetweenRuthandhermotheraggravatestheconflictsbetweenthem．Asagirl，Ruthlikeskeepinghersecretsinherdiary，whichhermotherhasrepeatedlyfoundandread．RuththinkshermotherhasinterferedtoomuchwitllherAmericanwayoflifeandinfringesonherprivacy．Shefeelsfrustratedandonedaysheusesherdiaryasaweapontofightagainsthermother．Graduallythediarytakesplaceoforalcommunicationandestrangesthemother-daughterrelationship．BytormentingLuLingwithcruelwordsinherdiary,Ruthfeelspowerfulandclever．Hermotherretaliatesagainstherbyignoringheroverdinner,asignalofrejection．AlthoughbothRuthandLuLinghavebeenlongingeagerlyformutualunderstandingandreconciliation，theyareheldbackbytheirhabitofsilence．Ruth’Ssilencealsosuggeststhesecrecythathasfracturedherrelationshipwithhermother．AsRuthreachesadifficultpassinherteens，silentsecond-handcommunicationcontinuestoplaguethemother-daughterrelationship．Duetothe8 Chapter2Ruth’sSilenceandSelf-Asseniondifferenceintheirwayofthinking，Ruthdoesn’thavethecouragetotellhermotheraboutherworries，orshewillbeblamedandstoppedtodowhatshethinksistheAmericanwayofliving．1r11cirsilentantagonismreachesitsclimaxwhenRuthwritesdowninherdiary：“Youtalkaboutkillingyourself,SOwhydon'tyoueverdoi口1wishyouwould．Justdoit,doit，doit!Goahead，killyourselflPreciousAuntiewantsyouto，andSOdoI!”(Tan159)．111enextday，LuLingfallsfromawindowtothecementbelowanddamagesskull。shoulder,andrib．EvenatthatmomentRuthwouldratherchoosetoapologizetohermotherinherdiaryinsteadoffacetOface．Strickenwithguilt，Ruthcrossesoutthehatefulwordsandthrowsawaythediaryinakitchencabinetabovehermother’steach．Ruth’ShabitofsilencealsopreventsherfromhealthyandnormalmarriagelifewitlIArtandputherintoapassiverole．RuthmetherpartnerArtKarmen,awhiteAmericathtenyearsagoatoneeveningyogaclassandmovedtoArt’Sflatin§anFranciscoeightyearsagotolivetogetherwithArtandhistwodaughters,SofiaandDory,tombyArt’Sex·wife。Ruth，whogrowsupinaChinesefamilyinChinatown,greatlyinfluencedbytheChineseculture,takesonunconsciouslythedl啦岬dresponsibilityofa硝feandmothertotakecareofArtandhisdaughters．ShehasbeenusedtoaccommodatingherselftothosewhiteAmericans，especiallytoArtevenwhenhedoesn’tneedherto．TheresultisthatArtandhistwoteenageddaughterstakeRuth’Sendlesscare-givingforgranted．AlthoughRuth’SmotherhasremindedherofthefactthatArtdoesnotmarryhermeanshedoesn’tloveherdeeply,RuthhesitatestotalkaboutmarriagewithArt,whichisametaphorthatRuthisinapassiverolebeforeArtandthatsheCannotcommunicatewellwiththoseAmeriCanwhites．Ruth’SpassiverolealsoforcesherintosilencebeforeArt’Sex-wifeandhiswhiteparents．AlthoughsheisnotmarriedtoArt,shetakesArt’Sparents鼬herfamilymembersandcherishestheunionoffamily．AstheFuUMoonFestivaldrawsnear,Ruthisgoingtoholdareuniondinner．InChineseculture，thedinneronthenightoftheFullMoonFestivalisafamilyreunion，allofthefamilymemberssittingaroundthetableenjoyingtheirfavoritefood．Ruthhascarefullyarrangedthereuniondinner．ToRuth，thisparticulargathefingWasnot‘'justadinner．”ItWaS9 ￡!竺堡!!垦坐!：!!!!!!!!塑!!!!!：垒!苎璺i!!mcirChinesethanksgiving．thereunionthatsheWaShostingforthefirsttime．ShehadgivenmuchthoughttOsettingitup,whatitshouldmean，whatfamilymeant，notjustbloodrelativesbutalsothosewhowereunitedbythepastandwonldremaintogetherovertheyears，peopleshewasgraveltohaveinherlife．Shewantedtothankallthecelebrantsfortheircontributiontoherfeelingoffamily．(Tan93)RuthhasinvitedArt’Sparentsanddaughtersbutshedoesn’twanttoSeeArt’Sex-wifeMiriam．ToRuth，MiriamwillbeareminderthatthepastisnotalwaysgoodandthefutureiSuncertain．MiriamlatercallsArtandaSkstocA)metothedinner．ToArtthefamilyunionisjustadinner．DuringthedinnerArtsitstogether研tllhisex-wifeMiriamattheothertable．WithMiriam’SexistencebetweenRuthandArt,RuthiSnotsurehowfarherrelationshipwithArtwillfurther．EvenArt’SparentshopeRuthisonlyabriefinterludeinArt’Slife．RuthfeelsArt’Sparentshaveneverbeenwarmtoher．AlthoughtheyhavegivenRuthlovelybirthdaypresents，theyhavenevergiveRuthanythingshemightsharewithArtorpassontohisgirlsoranyfuturechildren．Intheireyes，Miriamisforeverthemotheroftheirgranddaughters，thekeeperofheirloomsfortheirgranddaughters，despiteofthefactthatMiriamhasmarriedtoanotherman．IntheeyesofArt’Sparents，Ruthwillneverbetheirdaughter-in·law．DuringthepaSteightyears,Ruthhasbeenusedtoac舫mmodatingherselftothoseAmericans．Influencedbyhermother’SChineseculture，Ruthisusedtokeepingsilentbeforeothers．ShebecomessilentandsubordinatebeforethoseAmericanwhites．2．1．2Ruth’SSilenceImposedbyRacismRuthisafreelancewriter,aprofessionofwritingforothersaccordingtotheirdictations．Sheiscalledbymanypeopleaghostwriter．InChinese，thetransliterationofghostis⋯gui．InEnglish,“ghost'’meansallapparitionofadeadpersonwhichisbelievedtoappearorbecomemanifesttotheliving,typicallyasanebulousimage．Ithasmultiplemeanings．Atonelevel，itisthesameas‘‘ghost’’intheEnglishsemanticfield．Atanotherlevel，Chinesepeoplecallachild“littleghost，’’whichisanJ0 ￡!型!!!墨唑：!!!!!!堕塑!!!!堡垒!!坚塑!expressionofaffectionandaslightrebuke．Atthet11irdlevel．foreignersarecalled‘'ghosts，”implyingthattheyarcnotrealhumanbeings．Thethirdusageisaderogatorytermo．AlthoughRuthwasbomandbroughtupinthemainstreamU．S．，herfacestillshowsthatsheisaChinese-AmericanandisexpelledoutofthedominantAmericansociety．AccordingtoAdamJaworski，thesilenceofRutharticulatedinTheBonesetteriDaughtercanbeaddressedasoppressivesilence．InThePowerofSilence(1993)，AdamJaworsldobservesthatoppressivesilenceisaresultofsilencingmeasures，whichhavebeenwidelyusedbypowergroupstoexertcontrolOVerthedominatedones．JaworskimaintainsthatitistakenalmostforgrantedinculturalanthropologythathumanthoughtsandsocialStroctoresaleorganizedalongthelinesofsimple，binaryoppositions，forexample：I／other,man／woman,majority／minority,mainstream／margin,West／East．AccordingtoJaworski，intheprocessof’theinteractionbct'wccnabinaryopposition,themoreaggressiveonemayregardtheothernotasgood,normal，moral，etc．asoneself．Thisbeliefusuallygrowsoutoffearandignorance．Betweennlanandwoman,theremayspringsexism．Betweenmaj6ntyandminority,theremayspringracism．Basedoneitherofthem，theremayOccursilencingmeasures；andthemanandthemajoritymaybecomeoppressorstothewomenandtheminority．Silencetowardoppressionisadesirablestateforall'theoppressors，forthustheyCandoeverythingtheyprefertotheoppressed．Jaworskibelievesthattoobtainthisaim．theoppressorsmayusesubtlebutequallyeffectiveformsofsilencingsuchasbrainwashing，indoctrination,andnegativestereotypingofthedominatedgroup．Theseformsareusuallybestexpressedbythemediaintheircontrol，whichonlyallowwhatisbefitfortheirbenefitstobevoicedandpublicizedandtheinformationaboutthedominatedgroupisoftendesiredtocreatethemasapowerless,submissive，inferiorbody．Heconcludesthatwhenthesesilencingmeasuressucceedinmakingthefeelingofone’Sambivalenceinrelationtotheacceptednormsorvaluesoftheoutsideworldprevail，theresultingstateissilence．Fromoneaspect，itisasignofsubmission；fromanotheraspect，itisareactionto‰Ken-fang．CulturalTranslationandtheExorcist：aReadingofKingston’sandTen'sGhostStories．Melus,2004,(2)：105-127'112．11 竺!!￡坚!垦墨!：!!!!!!堕塑!!!!!：垒!竺垒!竺one’sambiguousdominatedstatasthuscreated．Whenthesubmissivegroupisnotallowedtobreakitssilence，thissilencebecomesoppressive．(Jaworski130)Inthissense，Ruth’sbeingafemaleandherChineseappearancetogetherbringherintotheoppressedinferiorityandthesilencedgroup．HerlostofvoiceonAugusttwelftheachyearisametaphorforherpassiveroleshehastoassumeinherrelationshipwithherpartnerArt，hisdaughters，wifeandparentsaswellasotherwhites．AlthoughshehasbeenlivingtogetherwithArtfortenyears，sheisstillnothiswifelegallyandgetsnothingmeaningfulfromhisparents．Althoughshehasmadeaprofessionofspeakingforothers，sheisreluctanttoarticulateforherself．SheisnotSUrehowfarherrelationshipwithArtwillgo．Sheisaghostwriter,andshehatespeoplecallingheraghostwriter．AccordingtoChinesesuperstition,ghostsappearonlyinnights．ItimpliesthattherearesomeshadowsinRuth’slife．Ghostsalsosymbolizetheun-translatabilitywithinandbetweencultures．IntheeyesofAmericanwhites，ghostsrepresentthehorrible，superstitiousandmythicalChineseculture．1110ughshehasmadeaprofessionofspeakingforothers．sheisunabletoaskforherownneedsorevenarticulatethem．OnceArtcalledRuthab00kdoctor,butshehasneverthoughtofcallingherselfabookdoctor．Shehasdreamedofwritingherownbookbutflevertakeaction．Sosheisinapassivestatusandwillnotchangeit．“⋯theideaofrevisingherlife⋯frightenedher,asifbyimaginationaloneshewerecondemningwhatshedidnotlikeaboutherselforothers．Writingwhat【she]wishedWasthemostdangerousformofwishfulthinking．’’(Tan31)ItisalsothereasonwhyRuthisalwaysunhappyandshedoesn’tknowthereason．Sheremainswoefullyunawareofherowninnerlife．Thoughshehasnothingtohide．Ruthhasunknowinglyadoptedthesilentattitudeandthusremainsdistantfromthosesheloves．OnceArttellsher,“Inalltheseyearswe'vebeentogether⋯Idon'tthinkIknowallimportantpartofyou．Youkeepsecretsinsideyou．Youhide．It’SasthoughI'veneverseenyounaked．"(Tan388】BeforethedominantAmerican,Ruth’sfaceandChinesefamilyeducationforcehertotllinkherselfasanoutsiderand“Other'’．12 兰!翌塑!!垦螋：!!!!!竺!竺!!!!生垒塑型竺2．2BreakingSilenceandSearchingforSelf-AssertionthroughWritingforHerselfAlthoughsilencehasdeprivedthemofthesuccessfulcommunicationbetweenRuthandhermother，andbetweenherandArt，writingonsandhasbroughtherunexpectedsurpnseandcarefromherrelativesandclassmatesaftershebrokeherarms．Atsix，RuthlosthervoiceaftershethrewherselfdowntheslideandbrokeherRims．Sheremainedsilentwhilerecoveringathome．Hermotherbroughtheratrayofsandandtoldhertowriteonthesand．Whenshereturnedtosch001．shewasapplaudedforherbravery．11地uniquesilentcommunicationwonherpopularityamongtheCaucasianschoolfriends，whohadpreviouslyignoredher。Duringlunch，sheWasinvitedtostepintothe“secretcastle．”arock-borderedareanearatreeatthecdgeofthesandbox．Ruth’Spowergrowsafterhermotherbelievesthatshecallwritetoghom，especiallythatofPreciousAuntie．2．2．1RuthBreaksHerSilenceandAccomplishesHerSelf-Assert胁nthroughWritingforHerselfh1TheBonesetterIDaughterthestoryofRuthisnarratedinauthorialvoice．AsSusanS．Lanserobserves，authorialvoiceisoftengivenaprivilegedstatusambngnarrativeformssincereadersareinvitedtoequatethenarrator、析tlltheauthor．Authorialnarrationcanachieveomniscientprivilege．Althoughitisusuallyunderstoodtobefictional，itsvoiceisaccordedasuperiorreliability．(Lanser19．20)InRuth’Santhorialvoice，AmyTancouldgofreelyintoRuth’spsychology，demonstratingherperplexitiesandhelplessnessincopingwithhermotherandherpartner．ReaderscanalsocometoknowRuthbenersinceauthorialvoiceCanhelptheauthornarratetheinnermentalitiesofRuth．Forinstance．“Hermothercouldn'tevenpronounceRuth’Snameright．ItusedtomortifyRuthwhensheshoutedforherupanddowntheblock．‘Lootie!Lootie!’WhyhadhermotherchosenaIlame、vitllsoundssheeouldn’tpronounceT’(Tan49·50)Moreover,Lansersaysthatsinceauthorialnarratorsexistoutsidenarrativetimeandarenot‘'humanized'’byevents，theyconventionallycarry锄authoritysuperiortothatconferredoncharacters．even13 曼!呈璺!!!垦竺!!：!墅!!旦!!璺旦!兰!!!：垒!塑坚!!里onnarratingcharacters．(Lanser16)BychoosingtotellRuth’Sstoryinauthodalvoice，theauthornotonlysuccessfullybringsRuth’Sself-assertionintofulldisplaybutalsointendstoestablishherownauthorialauthority．AsportrayedinTan’Snovels，thedaughteroftenbreakshersilenceandrealizesherself-assertionafterknowinghermother’Smiserablepast．WhenRuthcomeso．crossamanuscriptwrittenbyhermother，shefeelspangsofguiltfornotmakingtheefforttoreadit．ThemanuscrjptbecomessecretjustlikeLuLing,whoremainsunknowllandmisunderstoodbyherdaughter．Ruthregardshermolherasawomanwhodingstounhappiness，recallingherbiRerpastandrepeatingthreatsofsuicide．Whendiscussingthedilemmasandobstaclesthatadaughterconfrontsinlearningtoloveandidentifywithhermother,MariaLugonesholdsthatthefailureofloveliesinpartinthefailuretoidentifywithmother．Lovinghermotheroftenrequiresthedaughtergoingintohermother’Sworld．Onlythroughthistravelingtohermother's“world’’couldthedaughteridentifywithherbecauseonlythencouldthedaughterceasetoignoreherandtobeexcludedandseparatefromher．Onlythencouldthedaughterseehermotherasasubjectevenifonesubjectedandonlythencouldthedaughterseehowmeaningcouldarisefullybel：w鲫them．Lugonesmaintainsthatthedaughterandmotherarcfullydependentoneachotherforthepossibilityofbeingunderstoodwithoutwhichtheyarenotintelligible，theydonotmakesense，theyarenotsolid，visible，integrated；theyarelacking．Travelingtoeachother’S"world’’enablesthemtobethroughlovingeachother．(Lugones394)”However，itisnoteasyforaChineseAmericandaughtertodecipherherimmigrantmother’sstories，whichareprofoundlysituatedinanddismptedbysocial，economic，cultural，andhistoricalcircumstances．nleirhabitofsilenceandsecrecyhasdeprivedthemofthesharedheritageandemotionalcontextnecessaryforunderstanding．WhenLuLingshowssignsofAlzheimer's，Ruthsuddenlybecomesawareofwhathermother'smemorylossmeans：thedisappearanceofstoriesthatwillhelpRuthunderstandherfamily,herChineseheritageandherChineseroot．111eawarenessgivesherthesensethatLuLingispartofastorylargerthanherown．。Ho,Wendy．／nHerMother'jHouse：t}tePoliticsofAsianAmericanMother-daughterWriting．California：AltaMiraPress,1999．188．14 曼!!盥!!垦坐!：!墅!竺!!竺!!!!堡垒!竺生竺Therefore，atthiscriticalmomem，Ruthfindsatranslatortotranslatehermothersmanuscript．Onlyafterlearningthehistoryofhermotherandgrandmother，avictimwhobecamemuteafterswallowingboilingresin，canRuthcomprehendthemysteriousLaryngitis．Bypicturingthemute黟andmotherasawomanforcedtoswallowhersonDwsandbyfreeinghermotherfromdepressionbyplacingherinanurturingretirementcommunityofelderlypeople，Ruthfreesherselffroma11inabilitytorelatehonestlyandfullywitllArtKamen．herlong-termlover．AttheendofTheBonesetteriDaughter，Ruthcomestoconnectherselfwithhermother'slOVOandherChineseheritageandtoregardherculturalidemityinanewway．Inamovetowardselffulfillment，shemigratesfromacareerofreshapingotherpeople’Swordstowritingherownstories．ItisthetwelfthofAugustandRuthisintheCubbyhole，silent．．．Ruthstillhashervoice．Herabilitytospeakisnotgovemedbycursesorshootingstarsorillness．．．．Butshedoesnotneedtotalk．SheCanwrite．Before,sheneverhadareasontowriteforherselKonlyforothers．Nowshehasthatreason．(Tan401)Ruthfinallyfindsoutthereasonforhersilenceandaspecialwaytobreakherlongsilence，writing．AlthoughRuthhaslongedforunderstandingandreconciliation,tolargeextent,sheisheldbackbyherhabitofsilence．Onlyinherwritingdoessheachievethegoal．11liskindofnarrativestrategymakesthenoveldifferentfromAmyTan’Sformerthreeworks．ThoseAmericandaughters，Jing-mei，Rose，WaverlyandLenain舭JoyLuckc『ubandPearlin舭KitchenGod'sWife,sharesimilarbitterbutsweetprocessofcommunicatingwiththeirmothers．In砀PBonesetter§DaughfPrRuthdoesn’ttellher协)ublestohermother．ButintheomniscientauthorialvoicethereadersCanknowthatRuthhasrecoveredfromtheshadowsandthefearofghoststhathashungoverherlife．2．2．2AmyTan’SSelf-AssertionandQuestforDiscursiveAuthority 曼!121111垦坐!!!!!!!!!竺!!!!￡垒!苎璺!!!ManycriticsbelievethatTheBonesetter"sDaughterisAmyTan’smostautobiographicalwork．AfterthedebutofTheBonesetteriDaugh耙r,AmyTanannouncedonanappearanceon“GoodMorning．America'’thatthenovelwashermostpersonalpublication．(Snodgrass25)LiketheprotagonistRuthLuyiYoung，theghostwriterwhosufferspsyehosommiclaryngitisstartingonAugusttwelftheachyearinTheBonesetter'sDaughter,AmyTanhassufferedfromtenannualboutsofpsychosomaticlaryngitis，aself-silencingatthethoughtofanunspeakablecrimeduetothelossofafriendonFebruary19，1976．(Ibid13)In2001，AmyTanreprisedtheself-limitingsilenceintheprotagonistRuthLuyiYounginherfourthnovel．AsanAmerica-bornteenager,TanhatedofbeinglookedasaChinesethatsheWas80anxioustoconsiderherselfAmerican．AsexperiencedbytheprotagonistRuthwhodislikestheChinesestuffinheridentity，theauthorAmyTanWasalsotroubledwithherChineseappearance．SheslimmedherbroadAsiannosebyclippingitwithaclothespinatnight．AlthoughshedeniedthatsheWasChinesebelowtheskin,herfaceclearlygaveheraway鹊“Other'’．WhilelivingthestandardAmericanchildhood，TanmaintainedadoublelifebyfollowingChinesecustomsathomewhereshegrewuplisteninginMandarinandreplyinginEnglish．LikemostoftheChinese-Americandaughters．TanmaintainedabadrelationshipwitllhermotherDaisy．WhatcausedTan’SmostunhappinessisthatShehadtoactasDaisy’Stranslatorandscribeforpersonallettersandthank-younotestofriendsandwell-wishers．In1983，Tanbeganherfreelanceworkintechnicalspeech-writingforexecutivesfromsomeprestigiouscompanies．In1987，TanobtainedtheimpetusfromLouiseErdrich'sLoveMedicinetobeginherCareerinfamily-orientedfictionandinwritingherownstories．In砌PBonesetteriDaughter,Tanhascarefullydevelopsherfeministnarrativeauthority．Firstofa11．thepublicationofthenovelcontributessignificantlytotheestablishmentoftheauthor’Sauthority．Lanserbelievesthattheactofwritinganovelandseekingtopublishitisimplicitlyaquestfordiscursiveauthority：aquesttobeheard，respected，andbelieved,ahopeofinfluence．(Lanser7)111esecondandthemostimportantisthatTanhaschosentotellRuth’Sstoryinauthorialvoice．AsLamerputsitthatthetermauthorialvoiceiSusedtoidentifynarrativesituationthatareheterodiegetic，publicandpotentiallyself-referential．Shehaschosentheterm16 兰!!￡堡!!垦坐!．!墅!!!望竺!!!!坠!塑生竺"authorial’’tosuggestthatsuchavoice(re)producesthestructuralandfunctionalsituationofauthorship，whichmeansthatreadersareinvitedtoequatethenarratorwiththeauthor．(Ibid16)WitllsomanysimilaritiesbetweenRuthandTan,readersareeasilytoequatethenarratorRuthwitIlAmyTan．AsS0011asthenarratorRuthbreaksherlongsilence。readersfireinclinedtotllinkthattheauthorherselfalsoaclfievesherself-assertionandestablishesherauthority．17 Chapter3LuLing’sSilenceandSelf-Assertion“LuLingYoung，thecentralcharacterinAmyTan’Snewnovel，isSOfullofenergythatshejustaboutjumpsoffthepages．”⋯一TheOregoniano。LuLing，animmigrantChinesewoman，hasexperiencedalifefilledwithmisfortunesandhardships．Accordingtohercosmology，theworldisagainstherandnooneCanchangethis，becausethisiSacurse．LossofhernationalidentityandinabilitytobeassimilatedintothemainstreamAmerica,sheiSignoredandsilenced．Whensherealizesthatshemightlosehermemory，shewritesdownherlifestoryinordertopassdowntheChineseculturalheritagetoherdaughter．3．1LuLing’sSilencebeforeAmericanDominantCultureThesecondpartofthenoveliscomposedlargelyofLuLing’Smanuscript，dividedintoeightparts，includingTruth,Heart，Change，Ghost，Destiny，Effortless，CharacterandFragrance．Itisacompellingjoumeyintopre·communistChina．LuLinggrowsupinfeudalChinaandimmigratestotheU．S．afterherfirsthusbanddied．Asanimmigrant,LuLingisforcedtoforgetherChinesenameandbirthdate，whichmeanssheisforcedtolosehernationalidentityaftershelandsontheU．S．InfrontofherAmericanbomdaughterRuthwhorepresentsthestrongAmericanmainstreamculture，LuLing，aChineseimmigrantmothercallnotexpressherself,thatiStosay,LuLingiSforeedintoastateofsilence．3．1．1LuLing’sSilencebeforeHerAmerican-BornDaughterLuLing’SstoryissetinfeudalChina．Thenovelopens埘tllthepartcalledTruth,aportionofthemanuscriptwritteninChinesebytheimmigrantmother,LuLing，recallingwithclaritythedetailsofonelong-agowintermorningwhenhernursemaidPreciousAuntierevealsherfamilynameandtellsLuLingtorememberit．PreciousAuntie，whohasbecomedisfiguredandmuteafteratragicsuicideattempt，couldmCitedfromthecommentsbyTheOregoniancothefrontcoverofTheBonesetter'sDaughter18 ￡塑唑!!!!兰!堡!墅!!望竺!型!垒!!型竺onlyspeakingesturesandgroans，Orwritewhatshewantstosayonachalkboard,SOLuLinggrowsupwiththosehand-tallface·tallandchalk-talk，‘'thelanguages[she】grewupwith,soundlessandstrong．”(Tan2)Althoughtheycommunicateinthissilentway,LuLingunderstandsPreciousAuntie’Severyunspokenword．LuLinggrowsupwiththeLiuclanintherockyWesternHillssouthofPeking．Shehasbeenbroughtupunderthecal'eofPreciousAuntie,theBaomuandalsoLuLing’sbiologicalmother．Sinceshewasstillalittlegirl，PreciousAuntiebeganteachingherwritingChinesewordsonachalkboardandlaterChinesecalligraphy．ThemotheranddaughtermaintainthiskindofsilentcommunicationuntilPreciousAuntiekiUshersel￡Oneday,seekingfavorfromtherichandfamousChang，LuLingboaststohimaboutPreciousAuntie'ssecretcave．SoonaftercomesaproposedmatchforLuLingwithoneofChang’sSOILS．RebellingagainstPreciousAuntie,whomLuLingstillbelievestohehernursemaid，sheignoresPreciousAuntie’sobjectionstoIthematchandrefusestotranslateherwarningstoothers．PreciousAuntieremainssilentfordaysandthenpresentsLuUngwithamanuscriptshehaswritten,sayingthatshewouldliketoshowLuLingthetruth．ButLuLingrejeetsthesepagesand(ellsPreciousAuntiethatevenifthewholeChangfamilyaremurderersandthieves,shewillalsojointhemjusttogetawayfromher．Atthatmomentsilentcommunicationlosesitsroleandbringsaboutagreatdisaster．ThenextmorningPreciousAunffeisfoundhavingkilledherselfandtwoweekslaterLuLingissenttoanorphanagerunbyAmericanmissionaries．ButsilentcommunicationthroughChinesecalligraphycontinuestoinfluenceLuLing’Slife．Whenshearrivesattheorphanage，sheistoldthatnoarrangementshavebeenmadeandsheistoooldtohetakeninaSanorphan．Butsheislefttostaytherebecauseofherabilitytowrite。askillshelearnedfromPreciousAuntie．Asthebestcalligraphystudent,LuLingfindspowerinthewrittenword．Theactofwritingalsoplaysanimportantroleintheromanticlovebetw∞nLuLingandKaiJing，ageologistandsontooneoftheteachersattheorphanage，whentheyfallinlove．Theyfirstrealizetheirlovewhiletheyaredoingcalligraphysidebyside，‘'thesamecugve，thesamedot，thesameliftingofthebrush船onrbreathfilledasone．”(Ibid276)KaiJingdeclareshisloveindirectlytoLuLingbydescribingthequalitiesofsublimecalligraphycalled“Effortless'’．WhenKaiJingexplainsthe ￡!!￡堡!!!!兰!!g：!墅!!!望竺!!!!生垒!!!垡!!!fourthlevelofabilityinenjoyingbeauty，LuLin昏ofcourse，understandshistruemeaning：KaiJingisexpressinghisloveforher．However,LuLing’ShappinesswithKaiJingisshortlived．AftertheJapaneseinvasion，heisseizedbythecommunisttroops，whoforcehimtOfightagainsttheJapanese．KaiJingbrieflyescapeswhentheJapanesescattertheirtroops．LuLingandhesharetheirfinalhourstogetherbeforeheiScapturedandexecuted．LostofbothherrealmotherandherhusbandhassheddeepshadowsandexeaedgreatinfluenceonLuLing’Sfuturelife．AftersufferingfromallthosetragediesinChina,LuLingsailsforAmerica,alandshethinkswithoutcursesorghosts．Butaftershelandsonthedreamedland，everythingturnsoutnotsoideal，especiallywhensheiSwidowedbyhersecondhusband．Languagebarriercausesthebiggestcommunicativeproblembetweenherandherdaughtel-．AlthoughLuLinghasbeenstayingintheU．S．forSOmanyyears，shecanonlyspeakfacturedEnglish，whichpreventsthesuccessfulcommunicationbetweenherandotherAmedcanpeople，evenwithherowndaughterRuth。InRuth’Seyes，LuLingoftengetsintofightsmainlybecauseofherpoorEnglish．Shecallnotunderstandother，orthoseAmericansCannotunderstandhermeaning．“ToLuLing’clothWasclassifiedas‘COSttOOmuch,’‘tooslippery,’‘scratchyskin,’and‘lastlongtime’．Andtherewereonlytwokindsoftrees：‘shady’and‘dropleafallthetime’．’’(Ibid49)ThemosthumiliatingthingforRuthiswhensheshoutsforherupanddowntheblock,“Lootie!Lootiet”Hermotherc姐’tevenpronounceRuth'sname啦灿．LackofcommandofEn幽shputLuLingintoasubordinatepositionnexttoherEnglish-speakingdaughter．AlthoughLuLinghasescapedfromChina,thosetragediesinChinaleavesLuLingpermanentlyscarred，believingthatafamilycnrseplaguesher．YearslaterintheU⋯SthelOSSofhersecondhusbandtoahit—and-lUllaccidentsolidifieshersenseofdoom，thoseshepassesontoRuthintheformoffeat,caution,andinabilitytoacceptlove．LuLingalwaysgetssomuchadviceandhintsgreattragedies．"AccordingtoLuLing'scosmology,theworldwasagainstherandnoonecouldchangethis，becausethisWasaCBl'Se．”(Ibid49)EverydayImjngthinksofthect璐efromhermotherPreciousAuntie．WhenLuLingfindsthatRuthcantalktoghostsshebelievesthattheghostofhermotherhascomeafterhertotheU．S．Toher,anythingis 曼!!坐!!生!生!竖!墅!!!!竺!!!坚垫!苎垒!竺goingtobcasignofghosts．However,totheAmerica-borndaughterRuth．LuLing’Sbellel,whichrepresentsChinesetraditionalbeliefs,issuperstitious．WhenLuLingasksRuthtowritetotheghostofPreciousAuntie，theimaginedghostoftendrivesRuthtorestlessthatshehasbeenbattlingwitllthemuptohermiddleage．AsanAmerican-borndaughterinfluencedbytheAmericanmainstreamculture，Ruthdespisesanddoesn’twanttobeconnectedtotheChinesestuff．SheisSOeagertobeAmericanizedandmeltedintothemainstreamAmericanculture，despisingtheChineseculturalheritageinhermother．ToLuLing，Chinesewordspossessmoremeaningsthanotherlanguages．ThosemagicalChinesewordsandcalligraphyCanhelpherexpresswhatshethinksandeverythingshewants．Chinesewordshavehelpedhercommunicatewithhernursemaidand晰ngherfirstlovewithherfirsthusband．SoLuLingbeginsteachingRuthChineseasPreciousAuntiehasdonetoher．ButtoRuth，Chinesewordsarei占odifficulttolearnanduselessintheAmerican．society．Beingignoredandrefusedinthefamily,LuLingisforcedintosilencebeforeRuthwhorepresentsthedominantAmericanculture．3。1．2LuLing’SSilenceImposedbyRacismandSexismGenerationalgapbetweenRuthandLuLingaswellasLuLing’SincompetencetospeakfluentEnglishexplains．someofthesilenceofLuLing．ButthereasonisnotSOsimple．LackofcommunicationbetweenmotheranddaughteraggravatesLuLing’slonelinessandsilence．Theinabilitytofullycomprehendeachotheralsokeepsthedaughterandmotherdivided．Ruthisalways．SObusywimherworkthatshehasnochancetotalk埘thRuth．OncewhenRuthteUshermothershehasnotimetoseehermother,LuLingcomplains：“80busy,SOsuccess,．．，NotFree,becauseeveryminutemustchargemoney．WhatIshouldpayyou,fivedollar，tendollar，thenyoucomeseeme?”Obid44)OnceGaolingtellsRuth：‘'Everybodygetsold，everybodyforgets．Whenyou’reold，there’Stoomuchtoremember⋯．．Theproblemis，todaykidshavenotimeanymoretoseeparents．Yourmommy’slonely．that’Sa11．Shehasnoouetotalkt0inChinese．”(Ibid120)LackofcommunicationwithherdaughterandotherpeoplecaUSeSLuLing’sabnormalbehavior．Besides，thereare．someotherreasonsfor21 曼!塑堡!!兰!垡竖!墅!!!塑塑!!!堡垒!竺生!!!thesilenceofLuLing．Inhumanhistory,womenhavebeentypicalofsuehgroupbytheirlongsilencedhistory．AsAdamJaworskiputsit．womenhavebeenkeptinadoublebind．Ontheonehand，theyhavebeenexpectedtotalktofulfillapartinsociallife．Ontheotherhand，womenhavebeenexpectedtoremainsilenttoconformtotheirstatusasmen'sinferior．Womenhavelosttheirlanguageandhavebecomeinarticulate；theyhavebeenforcedtoadoptthemale(thedominantgroup)perceptionofrealitytogetherwiththemasculinelanguagethatdescribesandrepresentsthisreality．(Jaworski11铆msilencingofwomenis50successfulthatwhenChinesewomerl．cametotheU⋯Stheyarebothsexuallyandraciallysilenced．WhenLuLingcomestotheU，S．，herbirthyearischangedfromtheyear1916to1921．SheisforcedtoforgeteverythinginChinaandgetsusedtothelifeintheU．S．ItimpliesthatsheisforcedtogiveupherChinesenationalidentity．Inasense，lostoforiginalstatusmearlsthelostofone’Sauthority，andbringsherintobeingtheinferiority．As锄immigrantfromChinatotheU⋯SLuLinglosesheroriginalidentityassoonasshelandsontheAmericancontinentandbecomesoneofthesubordinateinthecommunity．AlthoughshehasalreadyobtainedtheAmericanaffiliation,sheiSstillaChineseintheeyesofherdaughterandotherAmericans．InthecontextofastrongmainstreamAmericanculture，sheissilenced．AsKing-KokCheungtellsus,“silencec锄beadirectconsequenceofprohibition．”(Cheung3、TheChineseExclusionActof1882whichprohibitedtheimmigrationofChineselaborstOtheUnitedStatesandbannedChinesefrombecomingnaturalizedcitizensextremelyexplainsthesilenceofChinesewomen．Intotheearlytwentiethcentury,whenChinesewomenimmigratedtotheU．v．，StheircitizenshipandnaturalizationrightswerespecificallyrestrictedbylawsofimmigrationintheUnitedStates．ThosediscriminatorypoliciesmadethelivesofChinesewomenintheUnitedStatesextremelydifficult．IntheUnitedStates，Chinesewomenwereoftenstereotypedasheartlessmothers，prostitutes，victims，andslavesinChinesepatriarchalsocietyduetotheperceptionsthatfilteredintotheU．S．throughmissionaries，diplomats，andtravelers．ThereweremanysensationalizedaecoantsaboutChinesemotherskillingtheirbabies,especiallygirlchildren。Theserepresentationsattemptedtodescribe 兰!!唑!!生!兰塑!!!塑!!!型!!!坠!塑垡!!!ChinesewomeIl，families，andcultureasperverselyimmoral．TheperceptionsofChirmtownsintheUnitedStatesassitesofinferofity,difference，dirt,disease，anddepravitywereaggravatedbysomereportsofthefilthanddirtyofChinesewomenandtheirfamilies．AnotherdamagingperceptionWasthatallChinesewomenwhoenteredtheUnitedStatesfromthelatenineteenthintothetwentiethcenturywereprostitutes．TheseoppressiverepresentationsofChinesewomenarealsocarriedOVerintoliterarycreationsandthepopularAmericanimagination．Inmainstreamdiscoursesandimages,thosequietChinesewomenarefrequentlyportrayedeitherasdocile，obedient,andsubmissive，orasdevious，timid，sllrewd，mysteriousandunknowable．。AsAmyLingobservesthatasaresultofthesestereotypesAsianwomen，whenpowerful，areseenasdangerousandtreacherous；andwhenpowerless，assexualobjectsandsubmissiveservantsnottobetakenseriously．ThestereotypescontinuetoserveasblindersfurdominantAmericansandtostandasbarriersto抽efullestacceptanceanddevelopmentofAsianAmericanwomen．(Ling12)Withthesestereotypesbeingdisseminatedandperpetuatedthroughthepopularmedia,howcouldthoseinnocentChinesewomenhavetheirvoiceheard?ThustheexperiencesandhistoriesofChineseAmericanwomenareoftenmadeinvisiblebythosepervasivepertrayals．IfChineseAmericanwomendoappearinliterature，theyareironicallyoftendepictedasthesilenced‘‘Other'’．ThoughsomeChinesewomenmaymarryandhavechildrenbywhitemen,thosenewlyimmigratedbridesmaynotbeabletocommandthelanguageoftheirnewcountry．Theymaybeisolated，especiallyiftheylackextendedkinorsocialnetworkstosupportthetransitionfi'omtheirhomecounllT．neymaynotfullyunderstandoracceptthesocialandculturalvaluesintheUnitedStatesandcouldnotfindgoodjobs，SOtheyoftenhadtodependontheirAmeri啪hnsbandsandatthesametimeforcedtolOsetheiridentitiesandvoiceandbecamepowerlessinfamilylife．TracingbacktofeudalChinaandtheUnitedStatesinthe1ate-nineteenthcentury,theChinesewomenhavesufferedalot．Theylivedagenerallyrestrictedlifefulfillingtheirprescribedrolesofwife，mother,daughter-in-law,andmother-in-law．Their。HO,Wendy．TheTrafficinWomen：MigrationendRepresentation．In／nHerMotherHouse：theeogacsofAsianAmericanMother-daughterWriting．Califomia：AltaMiraPress,1999。lap．63-84．23 ￡!!坐!!i!!!!竖：!!!!!!堡竺!!!坚!垒!!!竖!!!primarytasksweretoperformtheirdomesticduties。takecareoftheirhusb锄ds，children，andeldersandensurethefutureoftheirhusbands’lineagebygivingbirthtomalechildren．TheyweretaughttoobeytheThreeObediencesandFourVirtues．acodeofconductthatgovernedChinesewomen’Sfivesandrequiredthatwomenshouldbesilent,reticent，retiringandsubmissivebeforethemenintheirlives．WhenLuLingstepsonthenewland，asawonlanofcolor,sheCallnotfindagoodhigh-payingjob．Shehastodosomesidebusinesstosupplementherincome．Afraidoflivingthe裁lnlebitterlifeashermother’S，andembarrassedbyhermother’Simproperbehavior,RuthnaturallystandsonthemainstreamAmericanside，forgettingandneglectingthe‘'traditional”and‘‘backward”Chinesecultureandlanguage．3．2BreakingSilenceandSearchingforSelf-AssertionthroughChineseCulturalHeritageThenovelopenswittI锄intriguingdedication：“Onthelastdaythatmymotherspentonearth，Ilearnedherrealname，aswellasthatofmygrandmother．Thisbookisdedicatedtothem．”(Tan)AmyTanhasexplainedthebiographicalelementsofthenoveliIlwhichthecharacterofhermotherDaisyTaniscalledLuLingLiu．ThenoveliSbasedonthedifficultlivesofChineseimmigrantmothers’copingwitlltheirfirstgenerationAmericandaughters．ThestoryofLiuLuLing，Ruth’Smother,istoldinthepersonalvoice．Beingtheinvolvedwitness，LuLingvoicesasbothnarratorandcharacterinthetext．AccordingtoLanser,‘'personalvoicedoesnotcarrythesuperhumanprivilegesthatattachtoauthofialvoice'’；“apersonalnarratorclaimsonlythevalidityofoneperson’Srighttointerpretherexperience．”(Lanser19)Thatistosay,astorytoldiIlthepersonalvoicewillberegarded够one’Sautobiographyaboutpersonalexperience．Lanserholdsthatpemonalnarrativecarriesdifferentformofrhetoricalauthorityfromthatofauthoriainarrative，whilepersonalnarrativemaypaSsfurautobiographybuttheauthorityofitsvoiceisalwaysqualified．(Ibid20)Therefore，inchoosingtOtellLuLing’Sstoryinpersonalvoice，AmyTanhasmade缸efforttobuildupthenarrativeauthorityforLuLing． ￡!12芝!!生!生!竖!型!!望!鲤!!!!垒!!!璺!!13．2．1BreakingSilencewithChineseWords“ByusingChinesewords，LuLingcouldputallkindsofwisdominRuth’SInind．Shecouldwarnherawayfromdanger’disease,anddeath．”(Tan76)ActuallyitistheChinesecalligraphythatchangedLuLing’Sentirelife．WhenLuLingisalittlegirl，PreciousAuntieteachesherhowtowritethecharacterfor‘‘heart”onherchalkboard．‘'Seethiscurvingstroke?7孺谢lthebouomoftheheart,wherebloodgathersandflows．Andthedots,thosearethetwoveinsandthearterythatcarrythebloodinandout．”(Ibid1731Inthisway,PreciousAuntieteachesherhowtowriteandre甜．AfterthesuicideofPreciousAuntie,LuLingissenttotheorphanagenearDragonBoneHillandleftasateacherbecauseshecanreadandwriteChinesecharacters．AttheorphanageshegetstoknowSisterYuandherfuturehusbandKaiJing．Thereshebeginsanewlife．Shefeelsthatherlifeforceisgrowingsn-ongeLSheistaughtbysomeAmericanmissionariesthere，whoinfluencedherwiththeirdemocraticthinking．SisterYu,oneofherteachers，enlightenedLuLingtobreakawayfromtheoppressionChinesewomenhadbeensuffering，‘‘Whymustthosewhosufferalsobequiet?Whyacceptfate?⋯WehavetostruggletOclaimourworth．WeCan’tstaymiredin‰past,worshippingthedead．”(Ibid289)Undertheinstructionandedificationofcommunistideology,LuLingisenlightenedtorealizethesilenceandtragediesofwomen．Gradually,LuLingfindsherstrength,understandsmoredeeplyPreciousAuntie‘SpastsufferingsandlaterfindsherwayoutbygoingtotheUnitedStatesforanewlife．AfterKaiJingdiesintheanti—Japanesewar,LuLinggoestoHongKongtowaltforthevisatoimmigratetotheU．S．LuLingobtainsthevisatotheU．S．asafamousvisitingartist．IntheU⋯Scalligraphyhasearnedherareliablereputation．SheproducespricesignsforsupermarketsandjewelryStores，good-luckcoupletsforrestaurantopenings,bannersforfuneralwreaths，andartnouncemerllsforbirthsandweddingstosupplementherincome．AsWendyHopointsout，ChineseAmericanwomenweresocialandemotionalanchorsandstruggledactivelytomaintaintheirfamiliesandcommunitiesunderverydifficultcircumstances．(Ho74)WhenLuLingstrugglestostarthernewlifeintheU．Sasanaccomplishedcalligrapher,shedoesnotforgettopassdowntoRuthwhatherOWnmotherhastaughther．SheteachesRuthhowtowriteChinese 篁!翌堡!!!!!!!g：!墅!!!望竺!塑坠垒!!塑!塑words，forLuLingitisauniquewaytopreserveherownculture．ShewantsRuthtOinheritherculture．硒shehasdonefromPreciousAuntie．Whcnsherealizesthathermemorybeginstofade,sheiseagertotellthestoryaboutherself,hermotherandherfamilytoRuth，hopingRuthwillreadit．ShewritesdownherstoryinmanuscriptinChineselanguagewhichRuthlaterfinallyhiresatranslatortotranslateit．Inthisspecialway，hervoiceisheardbyRuthandshebreaksherlongsilence．InhermaSterpieceBetweenWorlds--WomenWritersofChineseAncestr2z,AmyLingnotes，“ForwomenofChineseancestry(intheU．S．)，⋯writingisnotonlyanactofself-assertionbutanactofdefianceagainsttheweightofhistoricalandsocietalinjunctions．”(LingnAlthoughLuLinghasbeendeniedexcellenteducation,shehasbeentaughthowt0writeChinesewordsbyhermotherandshefindsitanoutletforhertOpassontheChineseculturalheritage，Chineseintegrityinbonesandherhopestoherdaughter．AlthoughsheCall’ttellherlifestorytoRuthinfluentEnglish．sheisabletorevealherselfinChinesewords．ThiscontrastswithTan’Sfirstthreenovels，inwhichthemotherstelltheirstoriesandhistoriestOtheirdaughtersthroughtalkstories．Inthisnovel，AmyTangivesuphertraditionaltalk-storynarrativeformandthewrittenmanuscriptimmediatelybPA?一omcsasafemean8forLuLingtoshowherselfandinternalizehersecrets．LuLingwritesherstoryinChineselanguage．OnlyinChinesewords，LuLing’Snativelanguage，CanLuLingexpressherselffreelyandeasily．WhenRuthcan’treadthoseChinesewordssheasksaChineseimmigrantMr．Tangtohelphertranslatethemanusc邱t．ThetranslationofLuLing’Smanuscripthasdoublemeanings，FirstlythemanuscriptofLuLingisindirectlypublicized,notonlytoherAmericandaughterRuth,butalsotoaChineseman,Mr．Tang．Secondly，duringtheprocessoftranslatingthemanuscript，LuLing’SvoiceisheardbyMr．Tang．AndwhilethetranslatedmanuscriptisreadbyRuth,LuLing’SvoiceisalsoheardbyherAmerica-borndaughter．Thus，wecansayLuLing’Svoiceisheardbythepublic．AmyTan'smovingLuLing。Sprivatevoiceintoaquasi-publicmodebyrevealinghervoiceinthememoirfoundbyherdaughtercouldheviewedas眦innovativenarrativestrategy：toemphaSizethegrowingimportanceofChineseAmericanwomen'sbreakingfemalenamelessness，soundlessnessandpowerlessnessnotonlyinspoken 里!!￡堡!!生!生!!g：!墅!!竖!竺!!!!!!垒!苎壁!!!formsbutinwrittenforms，mother'snarrativesdirectingnotonlytowardanarrateewhoisafictionalcharacter,buttowardnarratees‘‘outside”thefictionwhoareanalogoustothehistoricalreader．Inthenovel．AmyTanoncemoleshowsUSherskillinfictionalexpression．InTan’Spreviousnovels，shehasbroughtthemleoftalk-storyintosuccessfuldisplay．InTheJoyLuckClub，themotherstelltheirstorestotheirdaughtersincommunalvoiceinasequentialforminwhicheachmemberofthegroupnarratesinturn．InTheKitchenGod'sWifeWinnierevealsherlifestoriestoPearlinthekitchenandinTheHundredSecretSensesKwanweavesherghoststoriesintoOlivia'slifeeachnight．Differently,inTheBonesetter'sDaughter，LuLingtellsherstorytoherdaughterRuthinChinese‘'words”．Thatistosay，LuLingbreakshersilenceinwords，inasilentway．TheactofwritingbringsLuLingandherdaughterintoreconciliation,andnolongerleavesregretsforher．3．2．2BreakingSilencewithChineseFoodLuLing’SexperiencesinthehovelaresignificantlyembeddedinChinesetraditionsandwaysofbeingandthinking，whichhavebeenfurtherdislocated。andrelocatedintheU．S．AlthoughshehasbeenstayingintheU．S．fordecades，LuLingstillelljoysChinesefood．InTheBonesetterDaughter,foodhasservedasonenarrativestrategy．DifferentdiethabitsCanrepresentdifferentcultureinclination，ofeonrse．IntheeyesofthoseAmericans．Chinesefoodandthewayofcookingarestrange．Forinstance．attheFullMoonFestivaldinner,whenthewaiterssetdownthedishesRuthhasordered,LuLing’sfavoriteChinesefood。theforeignersfindthefoodstrangeanddisgusting．“Moredishesarrived,eachonestrangerthanthelast,tojridgebytheexpressionsonthenon-Chinesefaces．TofIlwithpickledgreens．Seacucnmbers,AuntieGai’Sfavorite．Andglutinousricecakes．’’(Tan99)UndertheAmericandominantdietculture。ChinesewomenwhosticktoChinesefoodarediscriminatedasthe“other'’．FoodCallbe80culturallyspecific也atitfnnctiORStoemphasizedifferencesbetweengenerations，betweencultures．(Huntley60)DifferentdiethabitsfromthatofthemainstreamU．S．deepenstheconflictsbetweenRuthandhermother,butthefmalidentificationwitheachotheralleviatestheconflicts．WhenRuthbreaksheralms．LuLingbelievesthatduringRuth’SrecoveryChinesefoodis ￡!!坐!!!生!兰!竖：!!!!!!堡竺!!!!!：垒!兰坚!!!betterforherhealththanwesternfoodsosheprovidesRuthwithabowlsteamingriceporridgeinsteadofhamburger．BystickingtotraditionalChinesefoodculture，LuLingcherishesherpastmemoryandprotectsherChineseheritage．ItisalsoawayforLuLingtosearchforherself-assertion．AsonepartoftheChineseheritage．foodcultureishi曲lycherishedbyLuLingandRuthcomestoidenti分、】IritIIhermotherandhermother’SfavorinChinesefoodaftershehasreadhermother’Sstory．AfterLuLingisdiagnosedwithAlzheimer’Sdisease，RuthandArtfindforheranursinghousenearby,whereChinesefoodisprovided．TheChinesefoodcultureisfinallyacceptedandrecognizedbyRuthandArt，whoateexposedtothedominantAmericancultureandgrowupeatinghamburgeranddrinkingCoeaCola．ThusLuLingachievesherself-assertioninthespecialsilentway．BothChinesewordsandtraditionalChinesefoodhaveaddedcontributionstoLuLing’Sself-assertionandthebreakingofhersilence．ThestoryofLiuLuLing,Ruth’Smother,istoldinpersonalvoice．TheauthorhasskillfullyarrangedtheplottopublicizeLuLing’Smanuscript，LuLing’SvoiceagainsttheAmericandominantcultureandtheU．S．racialdiscrimination．AttheendofthestoryLuLingandRuthcometoidenti匆晰tIleachother．LuLingrecallsthenanleofhermother,ametaphoroffindingherownrootandhernationalidentity．SucceedingthesuccessofpersonalvoicenarrativeinAmyTan’SsecondnovelTheKitchenGod'sWife，inwhichWinnievoicesasbothnarratorandcharacterinthetext,thepersonalvoiceinTheBonesetter'sDaughterhasalsoauthorizedLuLingthefighttoimerpretherexperience，够SusanS．Lanserputsit，“apersonalnarratorclaimsonlythevalidityofoneperson’Sfighttointerpretherexperience．”(Lamer19)AlthoughLuLing’Spersonalnarrativemaybelookedasherautobiography，theauthorityofitsvoicehassuccessfullyhelpedLuLingbreakherlongsilenceandfulfillherlong-cherishedwish,thatis．tobeunderstoodandtopassdowntheChineseheritagetoherdaughterRuth．ThoughconstantlyhauntedbyPreciousAuntie。sghost,LuLingrelievesherselfbytellingRuthhersecretfamilyhistoryintheexpectationofcondemningthepatriarchyandwomen。stragiclifeinfeudalChinaandderivingsomelessonsforherselfandRuth．InTheBonesetteriDaughtegghostrepresentsthehauntingpast 竺!型!!：生些!!睦!!堕坚!型!!!生垒竖垒塑andtheculturalmemoryoftheimmigrantmother,waitingtoberememberedandthenexorcised．Theghostseemsharmlessandeagertoeorrmaunicate．LuLingfmailyrecallsPreciousAuntie’sfamilyname：Gu．meaning“gorge'’and‘'bone’’or“character．”Heridentityisunearthedfromthegorgeofmemory，whichmeansthatshefinallyfindshergenealogicalrootandnationalidentity．AsLuLing’smemoryfades，SOdoesherfear．Fadingmemorypermitshappinessandalsoforgiveness．Finally，LuLingutterswordsofapologytoRuthforthepast，althoughapastshecarlnolongerremember．“IjustwantedtosaythatIhopeyoucanforgetjust嬲I'veforgotten．1hopeyoucanforgjveme，becauseifIhurtyou,I'msorry．"(Tan402)Atthesametime．LuLing’ssilenceandtheChineseculturalheritagearealsofullycomprehendedbyRuth，illuminatingherfuturelife． Chapter4PreciousAuntie’sSilenceandSelf-AssertionPreciousAuntie，thenursemaidandnaturalmotherofLuLing,comesfromafamilyoffamousbonesetter．Widowedonherweddingday，sheattemptssuicide．Theaccidentdestroysherfaceandhertongue．Shebecomesmute．UndertheChinesepatriarchy,sheisashamedtotellLuLingthetruth．WhenamarriageproposalfromPreciousAuntie’SfoeisarrangedforLuLing,PreciousAuntietriestopreventthemarriage．ButLuLing，whodoesn’tknowthetruth,refusestotranslatehersignlanguageand蛹ectshermanuscript．PreciousAuntiecommitssuicide,theonlysolutionforhertobreaksilenceandprotectherdaughterfrombeingvictimizedbythefeudalmarriage．4．1PreciousAuntie’SSilencebeforeChinesePatriarchyOnthecoverofTheBonesetter'sDaughterisalloldsepiaphotographofastrikingyoungwomanfrompre—revolutionaryChina,wearingabeadedheaddressandgazingsternlyatthecamera．ThisisthepictureofAmyTan'sowngrandmother．It’Salsoallimageofthenovel’SmysteriouscharacterPreciousAuntie，whosetragiclifereverberatesdownthroughgenerationsofwomenasTail'sownfamily‘Spastresonatesthroughherandintoherwork。Tan’SfirstthreenovelsTheJoyLuckClub,TheKitchenGod'sWifeandTheHundredSecretSensesfll'etitledaftertheimmigrantChinesemothersorthesisterwhoplaystheroleofthemotherwhilethetitleofTheBonesetter§DaughterisgivenafrerthegrandmotherPreciousAuntie．PreciousAuntie’StragicstoryistoldandembeddedinLuLing’Smanuscript．Itformstheheartofthenovel．4．1．1MuteandSilencedbyHerDaughterInTheBonesetteriDaughter，PreciousAuntieorBaoBomu,afterwhomthenovelistitled，isamutenursemaidintheLiufamily．SheisthenaturalmotherofLuLingbutunabletodeclarehermotherhood．Sofar,manycriticsareconcerned ￡!!坐!!坠!!竖垒!坐堡!!!!竺坚!塑!!!!：垒!塑垒!!!aboutthemother-daughterrelationshipbetweenLuLingandRuth,fewpayattentiontotherelationshipbeTweenLuLingandPreciousAuntie．ThestoryofPreciousAuntieistoldbyLuLinginthethirdpersonnarrative，astory-within—astoryonthethemeofghostandredemption．PreciousAuntiegomesfromafamilyoffamousbonesetterwhoexcavated‘‘dragonbones'’fromanearbymountainandgroundthemforhealing．PreciousAuntie’SmotherdiedwhensheWaSstillfouryearsold，herfather,afamouslocalbonesetter,bringsherupasason．PreciousAuntielearnstoreadandwriteandisallowedtodowhatasonmightdo．Shealsolearnstohealbrokenbones．Tllisapprenticeshipbringsherlaterthedisastersthatdes订oyherhappinessforever．Whenherfathertellsherthatthecoffin·makerChanghasmadeagenerousoffertoproposeamarriage，PreciousAuntiehuffsbysayingthatChangisabruteandshewouldrathereatworlnsthanbehiswifc．Afewdayslater,PreciousAuntierefusesthecoffin-maker’Smarriageproposal．AmonthbeforetheweddingofPreciousAuntiewithLiuHuSen,ayoungmanfromallink-stickmakerfamily，HuSengoestoPreciousAuntie’Sroom，andtheyeagerlytryforbiddenjoy．Ontheirweddingday，bandits，Changbeingoneofthem，invadetheweddingprocession,killingPreciCx塔Aunitie’Sfatherandtakingawaythedowry．Herfianceisalsokickedtodeathbythestartledhorse．Franticwith鲥el,PreciousAuntieattemptssuicidebyswallowingapotofblackresinfromtheink-makingstudio．n地accidentbumshertongue．6nesideofherfaceand．＆omeofherteeth．Sheloseshervoiceandbecomesmute．WhensheisfoundtohavebeenpregnantsheisaskedbyGreat—Grannytostayinthehouseholdtobethenursemaidtothebabyshewillgivebirthto．ItistheonlyreasonPreciousAuntiestays，heronlyreasontolive．SincesheCannotspeakPreciousAuntiekeepscommunicationwithLuLingthroughgrimaces，groans，face-talk,hand-talkorwordswrittenonthechalkboard．SincenooneelseunderstandsPreciousAuntie’Skindoftalk，LuLinghasto仃anslatehersignlanguageforher．Inthenovel，AmyTanhasarrangedspeciallyPreciousAuntie’Skindoftalktoshowherphysicalsilence．11坞wordsofPreciousAuntie’Stalk,face-talk,hand-talkorwordswrittenonthechalkboardareprinteddifferentlyinitalicstomarkwhatPreciousAuntiesaid．Forinstance：3l 曼!型竺!竺!!!坚垒!鲤!：型堡坚型!!!丝塑坐!．PreciousAuntietaughtmehowtowritethisdownonmychalkboard．Watchnow,Doggie，sheordered，anddrewthecharacterfor‘'heart'’：Seethiscurvingsmoke?That0thebottomofthehearf’wherebloodgathersandflows．AndthedDts．thosearethetwoveinsandthearterythatcarrytheblood加andout．．．．AndPreciousAuntieflappedherhandsfast：Apersonshouldconsiderhowthingsbegin．Aparticularbeginningresultsinaparticularend．(Tan173)ThebodylanguageofPreciousAuntieiswritteninfreedirectspeech．Infreedirectspeech,quotationmarksarcneglectedtorecapturethespecialsilentconversationbetweenthemotherandthedaughter．ReaderswillwitnessthevividsceneandfeelthesilenceandhelplessofPreciousAuntiebythemselves．What’Sworse，PreciousAuntie’SsilenceisaggravatedbecauseofLuLing’Srefusaltotranslatehermeaningtoothers．WhenLuLingrefusestoconveythemeaningofPreciousAuntietoothers，PreciousAuntieiSleftinasituationofdeepsilenceandhelpless．“Since【PreciousAuntie】couldnotspeak⋯，when【LuLing]refusedtotalkforher’shewasleftwordless，powerless．”(Ibid216)PreciousAuntie’slostofherrealmotherhoodexertsgreatinfluenceontherelationshipbetweenherandherdaughterLuLing．FromthebirthdateofLuLing,PreciousAuntieisputatawrongposition．SheislefttobeLuLing’Snursemaid,losingtherightstoclaimhertruemotherhood．LuLingisclaimedtobetheeldestdaughterofFirstSisterandsheneverdoubtsituntilshereadsthroughPreciousAuntie’Smanuscript．DuringLuLing'sgrowingup，LuL堍hastoactaSPreciousAuntie’stranslator,sinceintheLiufamilyonlyLuLingCanunderstandPreciousAuntie’shandlanguage．Astimegoesby，thedaughtergrowsupandthemothergrowsold·HoweverPreciousAuntiebeginslosingcontroloverhernowfullygrowndaughter．OnceLuLingbelievesthatshehasgrownuptoneglecttheconsiderationandhelpofPreciousAuntie，sherefusestotranslatehermeaningtoothersandPreciousAuntieisundoubtedlysilenced．OnedayLuLingboaststoChangaboutPreciousAuntie'ssecretcave．SoonaftercomesaproposedmatchforLuLingWitIloneofChang'sSOILS． 里!!巴!塑竺!!坚垒!生!：!!!!!!!!竺!!!!坠!!型竺ButtheproposalisrejectedfiercelybyPreciousAuntie，sinceChangisthemurdererofherfather．RebellingagainstPreciousAuntie，whomLuLingstillbelievestobehernursemaid，sheignoresPreciousAuntie'sobjectionstothematchandrefusestotranslateherwarningstoothers．PreciousAuntieremainssilentfordaysandthenpresentsLuLingwithamanuscriptshehaswritten,sayingthatshewouldshowLuLingthetruth．ButLuLingrejectsthesepagesanddoesnotreadPreciousAuntie’SfinalstatementdeclaringthatsheisLuLing’Smother．WhenPreciousAuntieasksLuLinghowshefeelstowardher,LuLingrepliesthatevenifthewholeChangfamilyaremurderersandthieves，shewouldjointhemjusttogetawayfromPreciousAuntie．ThesecreelwordsdrivePreciousAuntietodespairandtheonlywayoutforherissuicide．4．1．2PreciousAuntie’SSilenceImposedbyChinesePatriarchyPreciousAuntieisLuLing’Snaturalmotherbutstaystobehernursemaid．Byswallowingahotblackinkresinshedestroysonesideofherface，hertongue，andsomeofherteeth．Itkeepsherphysicallysilenced．Shemaintainssilentcommunicationthroughwheezes，sniffs，snortsandfacialcontortions．What’Smole，LuLing’Srefusalt0translatehermeaningtoothersaggravateshersilence．Silenceisoftenunderstoodastheabsenceofanysoundornoise．IntraditionalChineseculture，silenceoftenequalstogentlenessandquietness．InChinathereisasayinggoes：silenceisthebestornamentofawoman,SOinfeudalChinagirlswgreencouragedtobequietinfamily；vocalbehaviorisgenerallynotencouraged．Inthefieldofliterarycriticism,silenceisoldenlookedastheabsenceofvoice．Becauseonetsvoiceprovestheexistenceofoneself,theabsenceofvoicewillmakeoneunnoticedorunseentoothers．Inthissense．onelosinghisorherdiscourseisofteninvisibleintheworldashisorherself-identitydisappears．Somefeministcriticshavepointedoutthatsilenceistheabsenceofvoice，ofwordsorphrases，oreventopicsthatoneisforbiddentomentionorisforcedtoavoid．Silencecallresultfromfeelingsofshame，inadequacyorunworthiness；fromSOcialorculturalconditioning；fromtheinabilitytospeakalanguage．(Huntley105)InChina,traditionalpatriarchalcultureencourageswomentobesilentanddiscouragesthemfromvoicingtheirownopinions． 曼!望塑!!堕!!!竺垒!坐堡：!!!!!!!!竺型!!!堡垒!竺坚!!!AquietgirlwillbethoughttObegentleandgood-temperedSOsilenceinwomenisconsideredavirtuereflectingshynessandinnerbeauty,qualitiesofembodimentsoffemininity．Therefore，inordertObehavewellbeforemen,Chinesewomengraduallydevelopthehabitofsilence．PreciousAuntierepresentsoneoftheNo·namewomeninChinesepatriarchyhistory．InTheBonesetter0Daughterwedon’tknowtheexactnanleofPreciousAuntieuntilwehavereadtheendofthenovelwhenLuLingremembersthatthefamilynanleofhermotherisG-n,andherfirstnameisLiuXin．Toagreatextent,PreciousAuntierepresentsoneofthoseNo-namewomen．Insemi-enlonialandsemi-feudaloldChina,womenwereforalongtimekeptatthebottomofsociety．n呛situationwasnotchangeduntilthefirsthalfof也e20mcenturywhentheChineseCommunistpartyledtheChinesepeopletowageagreatandprofonndnationaldemocraticrevolutiononthisancientland．TheimpactoftheseveralmillenniaofoppressionanddevastationimposedbythefeudalpatriarchalsyStemonChinesewomenwasexceptionallygrave．Womenwereconsideredinferiortomeninpolitical，economic，cultural，socialandfamilylife．ItWasprofoundlymanifestedinthefollowingways：Womenwerecompletelyexcludedfromsocialandpoliticallifesincetheypossessednopoliticalrights．Theywererobbedofpropertyandinheritancerightsandpossessedn0independentsourceofincomethattheyhadtobedependenteconomicallyonmen．Theywereforcedtoobeytheirfathersbeforemarriage，theirhusbandsaftermarriageandtheirseasiftheybecamewidowedsincetheypossessedn0socialstatus．Theyhadnopersonaldignityorindependentstatus，andweredeprivedoftherighttoreceiveaneducationandtakepartinsocialactivities．Theirsurnamesweregivenaftertheirfathersbeforemarriageandgivenaftertheirhnsbandsaftermarriage．Duringtheirmarriagelife，theywereoftencalledsomebody’SwifeaccordingtothesurnRmesoftheirhusbands．TheirindividualitiesWereoftenneglectedanddenied．TheyenjoyednofreedominmarriagebuthadtOobeythedictatesoftheirparentsandheedthewordsofmatchmakers，andwerenotallowedtoremarryiftheirspousedied．Theyweresubjectedtoph3，sicalandmentaltOrture，beingharassedbysystemsofpolygamyandprostitution,theoverwhelmingmajority 曼!翌堡!!璺!!!!竺垒!!!!!：!!!!!!!!竺!!!!￡垒塑!竖!!!ofthemforcedtobindtheirfeetfromchildhood．Forcenturies，"womenwithboundfeet'’wasasynonymfortllefemalegenderinChinao．Underthepatriarchy,womenhadnosayataIlinfamilyorsociallife．Womenwereconsideredvalueless，evenwhattheysawandfoundwerealsothoughttobeworthless．Forexample，"IntheMouthoftheMountain，everypOOrmancollecteddragonboneswhenhehadachance．Sodidthewomen，butiftheyfoundone，theyhadtosayamanfounditinstead，becauseotherwisethebonewasnotworthasmuch"．(Tant83)PreciousAuntie’Smuteimageservesasametaphoricsilencetoo．Feministcriticshavenotedthatsilencecanbebothself-imposedandexternallysanctioned；sUencecanresultfromfeelingsofshame，inadequacy，orunworthiness．Silencealsocanresultfromtheexistenceof∞manyvariationsofastorythatthetruthisobscuredorremainsunsaid．Formanywomensilenceisnstrategyforcoping-ordealingwiththeunpleasant，atechniquefornegotiminggrief,anger，orshame．(Huntleyt05)IntraditionalChineseculturewhichgovernedChinesewomen’slivesevenintothetwentiethcentury，loveaffairsbeforemarriageWerecousiddreddisgracefulandshameful．AsinTheBonesetter'sDaughter，althoughPreciousAuntieisthenaturalmotherofLuLing,sheisdeprivedoftherighttoclaimmotherhood．SheisalsoashamedtotellLuLingherdisgracefulpast．Althoughshehasbeenbroughfupinarelativelyrelaxingfamilyenvironmentandindulgedtodowhatshelikes，sheisstiUgreatlyinfluencedbyhersurroundingfeudalistsexismthusherthoughtsarcstillconfinedtothepatriarchalsystem．Althoughshehasthebraverytochoosehusbandforhersel￡shehastosubmittothedestinywhensheiswidowedonherweddingday．Shemustsacrificehermotherhood,orelsetheprestigeoftheLiufamilyandherownfamilywillbedestroyed．n地truemotherhoodbecomestheforeversecrecyinsidePreciousAuntieandservesasabarriertotheunderstandingbetweenherandLuLing．n峙onlythingleftforheristokeepsilent．4．2BreakingSilenceandSearchingforSelf-Assertionthrough。TheSituationofChineseWomen．InformmionOfficeoftkState-CouncilofthePRC．June,199427-5．2007
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