The Joy Luck Club: Jing-Mei Woo
Why was Jing-mei taking part in the Joy Luck Club?
Her mother had died and she was asked by her father to be
the "fourth corner" at the game.
What did An-mei's mother do to become a ghost?
By showing disrespect for her family.
How did Lindo Jong become engaged to her future husband, Tyan-yu?
A match was arranged through a matchmaker when Lindo was two and Tyan-yu was only one.
How did Ying-ying wind up in the water?
She fell off the back of the boat.
What are the names of Aunt Paula's sons?
Nelson and Godfrey
Why did "the aunties" give Jing-mei $1200 in an envelope?
They collected the money so that Jing-mei could go to China and meet her half-sisters.
Why did An-mei's grandmother say bad things about her own grandchildren?
She said bad things so that ghosts would think the children were not worth stealing.
What gift did Lindo's mother give Lindo as the family moved away?
She gave Lindo her chang, a necklace made out of a tablet of red jade.
What was the ultimate fate of the Moon Lady?
Her fate was to live on the moon while her husband lives on the sun; to forever seek her own selfish wishes.
Where does Ma find work after arriving in New York?
A garment factory
What did Jing-mei promise her "aunties" at the end of the story?
She promised that she would tell her sisters everything about her mother.
Why was An-mei told never to say her mother's name?
She was told that saying her mother's name was to spit on her father's grave.
What was the red candle's significance and what was supposed to happen to it?
It symbolized Lindo's marriage to Tyan-yu, and it was supposed to be lit at both ends and kept burning all night long.
What did the Moon Lady represent for Ying-ying?
The Moon Lady represented an illusion, a wish granted that could not be trusted.
Why does Kim keep her family's poverty a secret at school?
She fears being bullied and humiliated.
What surprising information did Jing-mei finally learn from her mother's story about leaving Kweilin?
She finally realized that her mother had left her two daughters behind.
What was An-mei's "know-nothing-face"?
It was the face she put on when she didn't want to reveal her true emotions.
What mark on Tyan-yu did Lindo use to "prove" her marriage was rotting?
She used a small black mole on his back
What wish did Ying-ying ask for from the Moon Lady?
She asked to be found.
What role does Matt, another factor worker, play in Kim's life in the first half of the novel?
He becomes a close friend and possible crush
Why did Jing-mei's mother form the Joy Luck Club in Kweilin?
She formed the club in Kweilin to give herself and some friends a diversion from the horrors of war.
After An-mei was burned, what did her grandmother tell her that made her get better fast?
Her grandmother told her that her mother had left and would forget An-mei if An-mei didn't get better fast.
How did Tyan-yu make Lindo cry the first night she lived in his house?
By complaining that the soup was not hot enough, spilling the bowl as if it were an accident, waiting until she sat down before demanding more rice, and asking why she had such an unpleasant face when looking at him.
Why did Amah tell Ying-ying that she must keep her wishes secret?
Amah told her if she told her secret wishes, it would no longer be a wish but would become a selfish desire.
What is one way Kim helps her mother at the factory?
Trimming threads and helping with piecework.