Conflicts
Exposition
Characters
Symbols
100
What tragedy struck the St. Clair family?
Ying Ying miscarried her child.
100
Where did Waverly's family live?
They lived in San Francisco's Chinatown, on Waverly Place.
100
What is Waverley's nickname?
Her family calls her 'Meimei'. 


"But my family called me Meimei, 'Little Sister' (Tan 91).

100
What is Jing-mei's 30th birthday present and what does it symbolize?
Jing-mei's 30th birthday present was the old piano and it sybolized her mother's forgiveness
200
What tragedy caused Rose's mom to "lose her faith in God" (Tan 122)?

During a beach day, Bing drowned by the reef. Rose's mom tried to go out and look for him the next morning using her nengken (basically faith). After an attempt to retrieve him in a cave with a lifesaver fails, she loses her faith.

200

How/why does Jing-Mei begin playing the piano?

Jing-Mei and her mother watched a Chinese child prodigy play classical music - including "Anitra's Dance" by Grieg - on The Ed Sullivan Show. Because of Jing-Mei's mother's desire to have a prodigious child in the family, the mother signs her up for piano lessons with Mr. Chong downstairs.

"I could see why my mother was fascinated by the music. It was being pounded out by a little Chinese girl, about nine years old, with a Peter-Pan haircut," (Tan 145). 

200
Who is Old Chong?
Old Chong is the elderly piano teacher whose bad eyesight and loss of hearing allow Jing-mei to play the wrong keys on the piano without him noticing as long as she keeps a good rhythm. 


"He taught me all these things, and that was also how I learned I could be lazy and get away with mistakes, lots of mistakes ... I never corrected myself. I just kept playing in rhythm" (Tan 148).

200

During Waverly's first tournament, what does her mother hold onto for good luck?

She holds onto her chang, a tablet of red jade.

300
What is the main source of trouble in Rose and Ted's marriage?
Ted lost a malpractice suit and with it his confidence, causing him to ask Rose about every detail of their lies. This made him mad at Rose when she didn't answer.
300
How old was Waverly by the time she was a chess national champion?
She was 9 years old.
300
What does Lau Po teach Waverly?
Lau Po taught Waverly chess over the summer in the park.
300
What is the name of the other half of the song Jing-Mei plays at the talent show? Significance?
On the right-hand side of the page in Jing-Mei's sheet music, the song is titled "Perfectly Contented." This title concludes the conflict of the "pleading child" in the first song, ending the child's complaints; the title aludes to the fact that now that Jing-Mei's mother is dead, there is no chance that Jing-Mei's choices will be interfered by her mother's demands.


"And for the first time, or so it seemed, I noticed the piece on the right-hand side. It was called "Perfectly Contented," (Tan 155).

400
What insult does Jing-mei use to end the argument about piano lessons?
She says she wishes she were never born like the children her mother abandoned in China.


"'Then I wish I'd never been born!' I shouted. 'I wish I were dead! Like them!'" (Tan 153)


400

What is the title of the piece Jing-mei plays at the talent show?

Jing-mei plays "Pleading Child" from Schumann's Scenes from Childhood.

400
Explain the incident in which Lena's mother shows her nesting instincts.
Lena's mother had just become pregnant, so hormones and motherly instinct began to prepare her for a new child.


"'See,' said my father as we both looked at the crib. 'Nesting instincts,'... My mother began to bump into things, into table edges as if she forgot her stomach contained a baby," (Tan 113).

400
How does Rose's mother explain Bing's death?
"An ancestor of ours once stole water from a sacred we'll. Now the water is trying to steal back"(Tan 137).
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