The novel, “The Joy Luck Club” by Amy Tan, portrays a complex mother-daughter relationship between Suyuan and Jing-Mei Woo. Despite occasional disagreements and misunderstandings, their bond is rooted in profound affection and dedication. Their disparate upbringings and life encounters generate contrasting thoughts and beliefs. Primarily, the challenges they encounter in their relationship stem from these disparities and a lack of effective communication.
The conflicts between June and her mother are only resolved once June discovers her mother’s past. Through the development of their relationship and the challenges they encounter, Amy Tan explores several themes that highlight the significance of finding our purpose in life, making decisions, and comprehending our identities and family connections.
June and her mother, Suyuan, often face conflicts rooted in their lack of understanding and disregard for each other’s feelings and beliefs. June is unaware of her mother’s tragic past and the lasting pain it brings her. Suyuan’s past includes losing two daughters in China and the death of her entire family during the war. She leaves this behind and places all her hopes in America and her new family. Suyuan wants only the best for her daughter, June, as evident in her name meaning “long-cherished wish.” Suyuan encourages June to pursue any path she desires and believes in her great talent. At first, June is thrilled and fantasizes about achieving perfection: “In my fantasies, I was filled with a sense that I would soon become perfect…never needing to be unhappy about anything.” (p.143) Suyuan motivates June to excel in various areas including dance, academics, trivia, and piano.
June harbors growing resentment towards her mother as she consistently falls short of her mother’s expectations. She perceives her mother’s aspirations for her success as demanding and feels like a failure when she doesn’t measure up. During a talent show, June performs a piano piece filled with mistakes and sees her mother’s disappointed and ashamed expression in the audience. Interpreting it as complete defeat, June remains unaware that her mother is distressed not because of unmet expectations but due to June neglecting her own well-being. Lacking ambition and drive, June doesn’t strive for excellence in anything—a stark contrast to Suyuan’s deep love for her daughter and high hopes for her future. Only after Suyuan passes away much later in life does June truly understand the extent of her mother’s affection and how proud she was of her achievements.
After Suyuan’s death, June gained a deeper understanding of her mother’s past and had a change in perspective. She realized that despite lacking exceptional talents, her mother took pride in her. During dinner, Waverly embarrassed June by expressing dissatisfaction with her work for the firm. In an attempt to show her pride in June, Suyuan gave her a jade pendant she always wore. This pendant symbolized the importance of June’s life and served as a reminder for June to recognize her own worth and utilize her talents to uncover this truth.
Following Suyuan’s passing, June started wearing the necklace daily and reflected on her job. It was then that she realized how skilled she truly was. However, she felt regretful for not appreciating her mother enough while she was alive because these realizations only came after Suyuan passed away.
Now, instead of intensifying grief, she poses unanswerable questions to seek answers and understand the depth of her mother’s aspirations and hopes.
The stories of Suyuan and Jing-Mei Woo in Amy Tan’s novel emphasize key themes, including the need to understand and know our parents to fully understand ourselves. In the first part of her life, June believes she disappoints her mother and lacks success. However, as she learns more about her mother’s past, she realizes that her mother values compassion and kindness towards others. This understanding teaches June that even small accomplishments have value when done to the best of one’s ability. June understands that success is not dependent on fame, intelligence, or wealth. Another theme is the importance of making our own choices in life and finding our unique purpose. During her childhood, June’s mother constantly pushed her into activities she had no interest in. Lacking passion for these pursuits prevented her from achieving greatness. The novel suggests that true significance comes from passionately caring about something we choose and dedicating ourselves fully to its development or achievement.
The relationship between June and her mother, Suyuan, is not perfect, but it is built on a love that cannot be destroyed. There are many misunderstandings between them that remain unresolved until after Suyuan’s death. Amy Tan uses this complex relationship to teach important life lessons to the readers. In the end, the love between mother and daughter triumphs over all conflict, even after Suyuan’s death when her wish of reuniting her daughters is finally fulfilled.
