Question

literary analysis worksheet
directions: carefully read the text. then follow the prompts below to explore symbols, imagery, figurative language and more. use your best thinking!

1. symbols

look at the title and the text. do you see any people, places, things, or ideas that might represent something else?
symbol what might it represent?

1. imagery

find words or phrases that appeal to the five - senses - touch, taste, smell, hearing, and sight.
imagery (words or phrase) sense (touch, taste, smell, hear, see)

1. figurative language & narrative elements

look for words or phrases that go beyond their literal meaning. think about similes, metaphors, hyperbole, personification, irony, allusion, etc. setting, subject and dialogue.
example from text type of figurative language or narrative element what does it mean or show?

double face (from joy luck club) by amy tan
my daughter wanted to go to china for her second honeymoon, but now she is afraid
“what if i blend in so well they think i’m one of them?” waverly asked me.
“what if they don’t let me come back to the united states?”
“when you go to china,” i told her, “you don’t even need to open your mouth. they already know you are an outsider.”
“what are you talking about?” she asked. my daughter likes to speak back. she likes to question what i say.
“ai - ya,” i said. even if you put on their clothes, even if you take off your makeup and hide your fancy jewelry, they know. they know just watching the way you walk, the way you carry your face. they know you do not belong.”
my daughter did not look pleased when i told her this, that she didn’t look chinese. she had a sour american look on her face. oh, maybe ten years ago, she would have clapped her hands - hurray! - as if this were good news. but now she wants to be chinese. it is so fashionable. and i know it is too late. all those years i tried to teach her! she followed my chinese ways only until she learned how to walk out the door by herself and go to school. so now the only chinese words she can say are sh - sh, houche, chi fan, and gwan deng shweiyuu. how can she talk to people in china with these words? pee - pee, choo - choo train, eat, close light sleep. how can she think she can blend in? only her skin and her hair are chinese.
inside - she is all american - made.
it’s my fault she is this way. i wanted my children to have the best combination: american circumstances and chinese character. how could i know these two things do not mix?
i taught her how american circumstances work. if you are born poor here, it’s no lasting shame. you are first in line for a scholarship. if the roof crashes on

Explanation:

The worksheet focuses on analyzing literary elements such as symbols, imagery, and figurative language in Amy Tan's "Double Face (from Joy Luck Club)". Symbols can represent deeper meanings, imagery appeals to the senses, and figurative language includes devices like similes, metaphors etc. For symbols, one could consider China as a symbol of the mother's cultural - heritage and the daughter's yearning. Imagery could be found in descriptions of appearance like "a sour American look on her face". Figurative language might include the mother's statements about the daughter not looking Chinese as a way of emphasizing cultural differences.

Answer:

1. Symbols:

• Symbol: China; What it might represent: The mother's cultural heritage and the daughter's yearning for her Chinese roots.

1. Imagery:

• Imagery: "a sour American look on her face"; Sense: Sight

1. Figurative Language & Narrative Elements:

• Example from text: "They know just watching the way you walk, the way you carry your face. They know you do not belong."; Type of figurative language or narrative element: Hyperbole (exaggerating to emphasize the cultural divide); What it means or shows: It emphasizes the mother's belief that the daughter cannot pass as Chinese due to her American - influenced demeanor.