Thursday, February 12, 2009
Whoop d do
Cold Hearted was about a chinese-american child growing up with his traditional chinsese family. He exlaimed that tv dinners were the greatest invention every because all he got to eat at his house was oriental cuisine that was "blackfoot food" the author tells the story of when the boy went with his father to go take an old refridgerator that his father spotted on the side of the road. The experience meant so much to the boy and he thought he was really bonding with his father during their escapades. Then once they got the fridge home his father really only cared about the fridge and the process of retreiving the cooling device was just another task his father had to do. The title of the story is cold hearted because his father loved a fridge instead of his son or so it seemed at the time. The son hoped that one day he could love something as much as his father loved that old frigidaire.
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great analysis!
ReplyDeleteI thought that this story had more to do with the fridge as an expression of the father's love and sense of responsibility to his family. Winning the fridge was a stroke of luck, which I've often seen portrayed as being important in traditional Chinese culture. Another reason his father was so happy about it was that it meant they could keep more food, so he was providing more for his family by enabling them to keep more food, and be frugal. One has to keep in mind that the author has a mostly negative attitude towards the enterprise, because hauling an old piece of junk home because it's free is such a Chinese thing to do. And although it does seem as though his father is treating him in a utilitarian way, I'd point out that the son has a pretty privileged position in the family already. The daughters aren't even considered for the escapade, though the oldest one is the only licensed driver in the family.
ReplyDeleteI thought the most important event in this story was the almost-car accident that left Lawrence feeling like a disappointment to his father. He was under a lot of pressure to be his father's partner in crime and he blew it. I was surprised that you didn't say anything about that.
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