on Xixi's a Girl Like Me

RAN WRITES HERE: interestingly it is not difficult to find these reviews for your to read. HOWEVER I do believe you could make a better presentation on this novel than any of the writers here.

More are available at
http://www.wooster.edu/Chinese/Chinese/reviews/Girl_Like_Me.htm

It is Power That Makes One Completely Fearless

[Elizabeth Bowker]In A Girl like Me Written by Xi Xi the narrator felt that she was doomed by her fate. The narrator, who was a make up artist on the deceased claimed that her job leads her to have no romantic relationships or friends. She admits to the reader that she has accepted her fate and has always adjusted her life accordingly. Truth and fear are the major themes in this story. The narrator struggles with both truth and fear while accepting the path that her ancestors have chosen for her.

Struggling with one's fate is the theme of A Girl Like Me. Examples include the story about her brother who committed suicide, and her fate to be without a boyfriend. In terms of the narrator's own faith, she is battling with the importance of love and the importance of her duties and dedication to her job. The narrator's aunt took her under her wings and ensured that the narrator would always be able to support herself instead of holding the title of a man's wife. The skills that the narrator's aunt has taught her and the job that she currently holds of working with dead people create a life outside the cultural norm for women. Although the narrator seems to be content with her lifestyle, the social pressure of finding a handsome man as her mate weighs on her and causes her to question her own worth. Some readers may understand A Girl Like Me as a story about the relationship between the narrator and Xia, but I gather that this story is actually a tale between two women, the narrator and her aunt.

The narrator realizes that Xia will not always be there, while her job always will be. She has a special understanding and relationship with death due to her job. Being surrounded by death constantly is a constant reminder that people do in fact die and that we are not immortal. While Xia will die, as she will some day, her skills and the ability to pass it on to others will never die. The immortality of her job and her blood and her ancestor will live forever. The narrator decides to make love a second priority or not even a priority at all. The blood and strength that has been carried with her mother and her aunt, seems to be her faith.

This dichotomy of the need to love and the desire for independence many women experience in the United States also characterizes the situation of the narrator in this Chinese story. Women are often taught to not strive to be professionals or have a high paying job in order not to scare off or intimidate their male suitors. Many men in our society are scared or turned off by women in powerful positions or those who earn a high salary, just as the narrator feels that Xia will be scared of her occupation. The American society views women as successful and happy if they have a handsome husband and a nice home. It seems as if our society puts not emphasis on the importance on skills, education and employment for women. It puts a woman's relationship with a man as the most important aspect of woman's life, whereas with men it places importance on many other functions such as work, economic position and relationships with other men. Many may understand the story of A Girl Like Me to be a depressing story about a woman who cannot escape her fate and exchanges human relationships for companionship of the dead. However to me it is a story of pride and respect for one's self and one's family members; it is a story about not giving up everything just to fit in social expectations and standards of happiness. The narrator holds a position as a strong hero rather than a pathetic doomed woman running away from love.