From Janice Sapigao:
This question refers to the following quotation: "As they approached the outskirts of the village, my mother started to worry. She wanted her pack back. What if there were Hmong people inside the camp? What if people started thinking bad things about her character? She was a prisoner but also a married woman. She knew why he was carrying her bag" (24-25).
Why did she know why he was carrying her bag?
From Jenny Kim:
"The young woman slowly unleashed the flood of Hmong into language, seeking refuge not for a name or a gender, but a people" (4).
What does this quotation from the end of the prologue mean?
I just started reading "The Latehomecomer" and I do not have same experience being a refugee in America and not having a country where she can belong to and can talk about the culture of that country. I might have similar experience which is I do not know very well about my grandparents'country that is North Korea. I have never been there and couldn't go. That's why I don't understand the last sentence from the proloque in her book.
ReplyDeleteFor the Prologue quote:
ReplyDeleteI think it means that now, at that moment in time, she started writing her language onto paper so that her Hmong people can remember this unique language that define Hmong. This language was always inside her, but was never allowed to be out, was never allowed to be spoken because of the "war." So now, she has allowed this language to flow out from her body and have a definition for Hmong people. She states that in American history books, Hmong people were not mentioned, so she wanted to use her language as a way for her people to be written down so that her people can be mentioned as a part of history.
It's not so much about her grandmother or being a refugee, it was the fact that there are no references to Hmong or the language becuase the Hmong people were never allowed to exercise their language. But now, she has that opportunity to use write down her story in the form of her language. The flood = the inspiration, the flow, and the excitment to finally be able to write down and use that language. That language is for her people, not only to be recognized, but to allow other people to learn of their heritage and history.
for the prologue quote:
ReplyDeletei think that this quote meant that what she wrote in this novel was not just for her, but for the hmong people as a whole. The events that happened in this book not only affected her life, but the lives of a good percentage of hmong people around the world. With this novel, she enlighted the public about hmong people and the trials they had to go through. She may gave wrote this for herself or for her grandmother in the beginning, but when it was all said and done, this was a story not to be owed by a single individual.
For the prologue quote:
ReplyDeleteEven though Hmong people in Laos contributed Vietnam War / Secret War as a part of American fighters and turned out to be the victims of the war, many people in the world may not know the fact and Hmong people. I think the author, Kao Kalia Yang, wanted to hand down this tragic history and their root of Hmong to the next generations of Hmong people and also people around the world, rather because, sadly they don’t have any homeland.
For the first question:
ReplyDeleteI went back and re read those few pages acouple times and the only thing I really get out of it was that she was afraid of either losing her pack that had the last of her belongings and what meant everything to her. Or she was afraid this soldier was taking a liking to her. She's a married women who loves her husband, what would she do if this soldier wanted something more from her?
For the second question:
I think what she means is that she began writing abou the Hmong people. Sh let the world know that even though there is no Hmong country, the Hmong people exist. She wanted the memories of her family and all Hmong families to be remembered and never forgotten.
1st quotation - My first impression of the quotation was that he sympathized her seeing how she was pregnant and was suffering through the hardships of war. However I recalled that the aunt was pregnant as well, so maybe he was trying to win her heart over as they mentioned that they encouraged the captives to marry communist men.
ReplyDelete2nd quotation - Hmong people lacked definition as a society, and were just people who didn't have a place to call home. They didn't judge anyone because it didn't matter whether you were a man or a woman, or you belonged to this or that family. They all were going through the same situation, and social distinctions didn't change that fact.
To the first question, I believe the soldier was attracted to the mother. Perhaps she was concerned that people may misjudge her because the soldier was carrying her pack. The action of holding the pack may have led people to believe that she had given up hope for her husband and moved on. She also had all her belongings and important items in the pack. She may have known why he took the bag because by taking away the pack, he may have also taken away her identity.
ReplyDeleteFor the second question, I believe she was describing how her people have had significant events changing their lives but unfortunately did not have any written language to record history. Through her own events and stories she had heard, she was unable to record such history until she grew older. Given the opportunity to record history, the events that have occurred transform into something that is able to be passed down. The purpose of such an endeavor is in the name of her people.
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ReplyDeleteFor the first quote, I think that the Vietnamese soldier either wanted something from the mother, or was attached to her. By taking the material possessions from her, he wanted to bring her down.
ReplyDeleteFor the prologue, I think that quotation meant that for the Hmong, they didn't have a land or a country. They were looking for a home. They didn't have anything that belong to them. And they are minority so they are mostly to be overlooked or ignored, and they are not the dominant group. The girl is trying to keep the legacy of the Hmong people.
Yang tells about her family (individual) history, but I think those stories could be represent the Hmong's history.
ReplyDeleteIn regards to the first excerpt, I also thought that the soldier was expressing interest in the mother. By taking her pack, it would perhaps signify that she was weak or even unmarried, both signals that could make her seem
ReplyDeletemore available to harm. I think it was a very tense situation because all of the females in the family were in captivity by the soldiers at that time. Asking for the pack back may have been asking for too much or risking their lives. Taking her pack could also represent the power that the soliets had over the Hmong at that time.
In regards to the second excerpt, I think it's about the importance of writing for a specific audience and people. In the book, Yang mentions that the Hmong were given a written language in the 1950s. By telling a story - and putting it into writing - that could belong to everyone, she is writing for more than for herself.
For the first quote:
ReplyDeleteIn the beginning, I thought that she was afraid the soldier would take her pack which is including her important things, but when they reached at the village, he placed the pack on her back. I guess that she was afraid the soldier was attracted to her and just carried her pack for her.
For the first quote:
ReplyDeleteafter reading part 1, my first impression was that the soldier was attracted to her. He was doing his interpretation of flirting and thought that if he had a something that belonged to her, she would continue to make contact with him. Then i thought that maybe the soldier was just expressing his power over her. Take one of the few things this women had and do it with ease. A sign of dominance.
I think she was scared that he's gonna take her belongings and important items in the pack. And also, he likes her too but in the end, he just give it back just like that. Because maybe he realize that she's a married woman already and pregnant...
ReplyDeleteI think the soldier was showing an interest in her mother by taking her pack. Her mother was afraid of the implications because 1) it could be construed by the other Hmong that she was abandoning her husband and fraternizing with their oppressors, both most likely viewed very negatively in Hmong culture and 2) that his interest in her could mean immense danger for her and her child, in that she had absolutely no power and her life and that of her child lay in the hands of this dominating and frightening stranger.
ReplyDeleteI think the quote from the end of the prologue signifies that, just like the subtitle implies, The Latehomecomer was written as a general history of the experiences of any Hmong family during that time period. It was noted that besides being countryless, the persecuted Hmong were robbed of their written language. By transcribing their oral history into the English language, Yang allowed their stories to finally reach the outside world and accorded her family (and by extension the Hmong nation) the chance to express themselves.
ReplyDeleteI believe that she didn't just speak for one person or for herself. She is speaking for the people of Hmong as a collective whole because all of them could so easily relate to one another. The hardships faced by one person can be easily related to others through the by products of a war-torn life.
ReplyDeleteQuote two:
ReplyDeleteI think the quote from the end of the prologue means the book was not only written for the purpose of Yang's family's journey, but the struggles and the story of her people.
I think it's to show his dominance over her. Since she is a captive she will have to follow his orders. From the looks of it i think he likes her that's why he wanted to hold her bag for her.
ReplyDelete