Conclusions CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS
55 important than men with the presence of concubines. Besides, a wife cannot
divorce her husband. Chinese people also highly respect their ancestors. They have a great fear toward ‘angry ancestors’ and ghosts.
Chinese people can as well be considered as very superstitious people. Their daily lives are affected by supernatural things. They have faith in myth, yin-
yang dichotomy, as well as good and bad luck. Fortune telling is very popular
among the Chinese. The celebration of New Year in China is very joyous and done carefully in the expectation of avoiding bad luck. Chinese New Year is also
believed as the perfect time to change someone’s luck in the future. Basically, astrology is the most well known element in Chinese traditional culture. Chinese
culture shows the degree of one’s social class at that time by the existence of servants in the story. Chinese people are also well known for their custom of
politeness. Women are supposed to perform properly, have good manners, and behave politely.
From analyzing Pearl’s characteristics, it can be concluded that American culture views individualism freedom as the core of its culture. America is called
The Land of Dream. American history says that America is a country into which numerous people escape from homeland to seek freedom and to escape from
control of governments, churches, noblemen, and aristocrats. They come to America to establish new colonies with freedom as the basis of their living values.
Freedom allows people to make their own decisions based on their preference regardless of the society’s point of view. The freedom to speak can be seen in this
story. PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
56 The equality between a husband and a wife in a marriage can also be
observed in The Kitchen God’s Wife. In the United States, children speak with confidence in front of adults. They are not inhibited by shyness or fear. The
American families have a special habit when they meet their relatives who have been away for a long time. They usually hug and kiss them as they are very close.
It is the way they show their affection towards their family members. Pearl, as a Chinese-American, shows that most of the first generation Chinese still use
Chinese as their first language. Their descendants, the American-born Chinese people who are considered as the second and third generations, use English as
their first language. They are also not accustomed to Chinese rituals and have modern thoughts. Americans commonly celebrate New Year’s with parades,
firecrackers, and many else. New Year’s means fun for all Americans. They also believe that New Year’s is the perfect time to make resolutions for the following
year. The second conclusion concerns with the second problem formulation
which is the analysis of the mother-daughter relationship. Winnie and Pearl’s relationship can be considered as an unharmonious one. Even though both of them
love each other very much, but they think and view life differently. Their ways of thinking are affected by the culture in which they are brought up. Chinese and
American cultures are very divergent. The contradictions between the two traditions are felt in Winnie and Pearl’s mother-daughter relationship.
In Chinese culture, Winnie’s past life represents the way most Chinese live their lives at that time that continues to the present. Winnie who was raised by her
uncle and aunties does not know the actual form of a parents-children relationship. PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
57 Winnie lost her mother when she was a little child. She lost the figure of a mother
who is essentially important in a child’s character development in a very young age.
Pearl who was raised in the United States and is married to a non-Chinese man lives her life in American way. It influences Pearl’s way of thinking and
behaving. Losing her father in her teenage years makes Pearl more dependent on Winnie. Nevertheless, being raised in American way for some years and currently
living in The Land of Freedom often brings Pearl into some disagreements with her mother. Pearl’s ways of thinking are sometimes in contradiction with Winnie’s
which are basically affected by traditional Chinese customs. The differences between their cultural backgrounds affect their mother-
daughter relationship. The unharmonious relationship can be seen from the early beginning of the story until the end. The avoidance and uncomfortable feelings
one feels toward another make their relationship seems to be very hard for them. The exposure of the secrets they keep from the other makes their relationship
become closer. They begin to feel comfortable in going through their relationship. The misunderstanding and miscommunication they feel all this time finally
become clear. They eventually come to a reconciliation at the end of the story.