Summary: Biography and auto-biography of three generations of Chinese women who go through life as concubine of a warlord and then doctor, a loyal Communist when the KMT were first defeated, and a youth growing up in the Communist era and maturing through its evolution and various leaders.
Personal Takeaways:
- Really interesting how the author highlighted Mao’s propensity for deconstruction and chaos as a way to maintain control, harnessing people’s inherent vindictiveness and selfishness for his purposes. This was in contrast to Zhou Enlai and Deng Xiaoping who were more constructive with their leadership. Also really interesting to see the “kill or be killed” type of dilemma amongst the communist officials given mandates or quotas, and how it could lead to so many false or unjust accusations.
- Didn’t realize how lowly concubines were viewed and how remarriage was looked down upon, especially when association meant your own status would be degraded.
- Really interesting to see the initial contrast between the corrupt KMT and the Communists “liberators”. Especially the segment highlighting where either way the peasants were poor, but with the KMT it was in contrast to the extravagance of the officials.
- Communism was meant to achieve an ideal state of socialism where no one would suffer and everyone would be cared for by the state, but it devolved into petty vengeance and chaotic factions due to peoples sinful nature and the desire for power/control above the ideals that it supposedly stood for.
- Makes sense why the “back door” continued to be relevant when achievement-based “front door” means of getting things was discriminated against.
- Didn’t realize how important family background was in determining social class for you and your future descendants both pre- and post-communism.
- This book did a good job of highlighting just how pointless elevating the proletarian/peasant class was and also advocating thought reform through hard labor. Especially how ineffectual it was to try to run a government or administration without intellectuals or at least people who were literate.
- Fascinating to have an insiders view on what would lead someone to pursue communism initially and how someone growing up with a deified Mao would be essentially brainwashed to take his word as it was.
Personal Relevance:
- There were uncanny parallels between the loyalty and subsequent disillusionment that came with being a faithful communist vs. serving under Min in ICA. Especially through the author’s father’s life, you could see the progression of living for his ideals with integrity to being persecuted in spite of it just because he fell out of favor and because the leadership wasn’t actually about those ideals.
- I wish I could go back in time to explain the conditions to my paternal grandfather. My dad told me he could never forgive his siblings for denouncing their parents, but these stories showed how it was either that or you give up the safety and security of your own family and children. And how luxurious it was not to even have to go through that in Taiwan.
- It makes a little more sense how Jack’s dad is really skeptical towards ideologies and brainwashing basically, seeing how people were so blinded and how the philosophies were used as a control mechanism over the people.
- China didn’t become more open til Jacks parents were about 7, when Nixon visited in 1972 and English became acceptable to learn. Around the late 1960s, intellectuals had been sent to the countryside, which is presumably how Jacks dad was able to get a superior education.
- I wish I had more appreciation for Tiananmen Square and the historical significance when I visited. How it was the location of the first protests in 1976 and then 1989.
- It’s actually really sad that so many of China’s ancient architecture, art, and relics were destroyed during the cultural revolution. I should appreciate seeing Chinese stuff in museums more. So much history lost. The book said basically just the nature remains.
Always Learning 