Post #3 Form A

Vocab (All definitions are from http://www.dictionary.com/)
toadying (44): an obsequious flatterer; sycophant
askance (71): with suspicion, distrust, or disapproval
Appeals
"The tomb site had been chosen by General Xue himself according to the principles of geomancy. It was in a beautiful, tranquil spot [....] This location expressed the desire to have solid things behind on which to lean-mountains-and the reflection of the glorious sun, symbolizing rising prosperity, in front." (42) I find this to be a logical appeal because it is fairly detached and explains how it was without any sense of connecting to emotionally.
On page 59 Jung uses an emotional appeal. She describes the joy her mother felt in her new life in Manchukuo. She talks about various things that her mother saw that would excite a child such as festivals and holidays.
On page 68 Jung explains how Dr. Xia and Dong saved many innocent lives from being taken in prison. She uses heartstring pulling examples and detailed descriptions to appeal emotionally to the reader.
Quote
"When the Japanese began their attack on Manchuria in September 1931, the Young Marshal, Chang Hsueh-liang, was forced to abandon his capital, Mukden, to the Japanese." (55)
During this time peroid Manchukuo was under Japanese control and this dictated alot of how difficult the people's lives were and what they had to endure.
Theme
The theme so far seems to mostly revolve around the hardships of living in China during the early to mid 1900s. It's kind of a 'struggle and try to overcome the difficulties' theme.

Post #2 Form B

“Her restlessness no had no object on which to focus. It became forced into a straitjacket. When occasionally it stretched its limbs she felt so agitated she did not know what to do with herself. Sometimes, she would fall to the floor unconscious. She was to have blackouts like these for the rest of her life.” (Chang 35)
This quote shows how terrible, lonely, and dull the life of Jung Chang’s grandmother, a warlord’s concubine, was. The grandmother spent six years waiting around a near empty house and was confined both mentally and physically to the point where she would have blackouts which would haunt her for the rest of her life. I all too often hear complaints about how overly busy people are, but personally, I would rather have a hectic life full of too many things to do than live a life so dull that I would randomly fall unconscious. Being busy can sometimes seem like too much but there is always an end in sight. Having nothing to do however, is a long and dull existence to which it is hard to find a finish line. Looking at the grandmother’s life like this I find that I have come to truly respect her strength and am glad for the life I have.

Post #1 Form A

Definitions (all definitions are from dictionary.com)
Capricious (22): subject to, led by, or indicative of a caprice or whim
Kowtowed (28): to kneel and touch the forehead to the ground in expression of deep respect, worship, or submission, as formally done in China.
Appeals
On page 24 Jung Chang describes the process her grandmother went though in having her feet bound. This appeals to the reader emotionally because s/he feels sympathy towards the grandmother after reading about the pain, process, and reason for feet binding.
Side note: Foot binding is a process in which the bones in the foot are repeatedly broken and 'bound' over many years so that the feet never are more than approx. 4 inches long. This causes a lot of pain throughout the rest of a person's life. It also makes balance difficult.
Foot binding came into place because it was believed that small feet were beautiful, and since they were always covered (bound) the idea of only being able to see the feet occasionally was what made it so popular.
On page 34 the author depicts what it was like for the grandmother to live alone in her large house for six years waiting for husband; the boredom, frustration, and hopelessness are all conveyed in an attempt to gain the reader's sympathy. Therefore, this section is an emotional appeal.
On page 39 the reality of the grandmother's situation is made very clear. As a concubine she and her daughter have very few rights and seeing as her 'husband' is dying she fears that the wife of the house will dispose of them. This is a logical appeal because it explains things as they were normally and didn't have as much emotion behind it as some parts of the memoir so far.
Quote
"As I listened to my mother, I was overwhelmed by her longing to be understood by me. It also struck me that she would really love me to write." (Chang 15)
This conversation with her mother is what inspires her to write this memoir. Without this the book would have never been written, the thoughts, opinions, and realities never shared, and the voice never heard.
Themes
A theme I have found emerging from this book from the very beginning is how women in China had very few rights and many constrictions during the twentieth century.

Memoir

I chose my memoir this weekend, it's called Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China by Jung Chang.

Blogging

This is really odd for me considering I told myself I would never do this kind of thing. Ugh, blogging. I understand why we do it but that doesn't mean I like it... Bleh!