Switching between different cultures, as depicted in Gish Jen’s novel Mona in the Promised Land, seems to be the most natural thing to do. However, crossing ethnic boundaries often evokes negative reactions: When Jen’s teenage protagonist Mona converts to Judaism, her parents do not exactly approve of this decision. As Chinese immigrants to the United States, Ralph and Helen Chang used to call themselves the ‘Chang-kees’, indicating both their desire to be fully accepted into American (i.e. ‘Yankee’) society and their awareness of being “racially different and, therefore, un-American” (Lee 47). Although in fact it is part of Jen’s first novel Typical American (1991), the ‘Chang-kee’ pun is also interesting with regards to the sequel Mona in the Promised Land: Here, Ralph’s and Helen’s daughter Mona is given the nickname ‘Changowitz’, a blending of Chang and the common Jewish name ending ‘-witz’. Both ‘Chang-kee’ and ‘Changowitz’ indicate an affiliation with different cultures at the same time, which is precisely what Jen’s novel deals with.
While Ralph and Helen Chang had to struggle with racial barriers during the 1950s and early 1960s and wish to be respected as assimilated self-made Americans, their daughter Mona embraces the idea that “American means being whatever you want”, putting individualism first (Jen 49). This self-granted freedom of cultural choice seems to stem from the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, the “dawn of ethnic awareness”, which also happens to be the dawn of Mona’s adolescence (Jen 3). As Sollors recalls, “ethnicity truly was in vogue in the 1970s” (1968, 21). Accordingly, Mona and other characters in the novel engage in discovering numerous aspects of their ethnic identities. Chapter 2 approaches the concepts of ethnicity and Americanness as well as several issues related to these terms. Here, I will refer to scholars such as Werner Sollors and Herbert Gans, who have made significant contributions to the field of ethnic studies. I will argue that Mona in the Promised Land with its recurring theme of cultural cross-dressing fits perfectly into the setting of the late 1960s and 1970s and humorously suggests what many (ethnic) adolescents must have experienced during these times.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Americanness and Ethnicity
2.1 Defining the ‘Self’ and the ‘Other’
2.2 Herbert Gans’s Symbolic Ethnicity
2.3 Symbolic Ethnicity in Mona in the Promised Land
2.4 Werner Sollors’s Consent and Descent
2.5 Consent and Descent in Mona in the Promised Land
3. Cultural Cross - Dressing
3.1 Definition
3.2 ‘Crossers’ in Mona in the Promised Land
3.2.1 Mona
3.2.2 Barbara
3.2.3 Naomi
3.2.4 Rabbi Horowitz
3.3 ‘Non-Crossers’ in Mona in the Promised Land
3.3.1 Eloise and the Ingles
3.3.2 Alfred
4. Conclusion
5. Works Cited
Research Objectives and Themes
This paper examines the theme of cultural cross-dressing in Gish Jen’s novel Mona in the Promised Land, analyzing how characters negotiate their ethnic identities within the sociopolitical context of late 1960s and 1970s America. The core research question addresses whether the act of switching between ethnic boundaries constitutes a profound identity formation or remains a superficial symbolic gesture.
- Concepts of Americanness, ethnicity, and the distinction between the 'Self' and the 'Other'.
- Application of sociological frameworks, specifically Herbert Gans’s "symbolic ethnicity" and Werner Sollors’s "consent and descent" paradigms.
- Analysis of "cultural cross-dressing" as a form of adaptation and identity search in the protagonist, Mona Chang.
- Comparative analysis of "crossers" and "non-crossers" to reveal racial and class-based limitations in American society.
Excerpt from the Book
3.1 Definition
Cultural cross-dressing, a notion coined by Amy Ling in her 2002 essay on Mona in the Promised Land, describes what many of Jen’s characters experience first-hand: In defiance of prevalent ethnic and cultural boundaries, they search their own identity by ‘trying on’ different cultures. Although this might evoke the image of a buoyant ‘ethnic fashion show’, cultural crossings are not entirely unproblematic, and several characters have to struggle with their friends and families in order to finally come to terms with themselves. Despite all fights and conflicts, ethnic switching is depicted as “evidence of adaptation and [an] essential [aspect] of growth” (Ling 227).
Furthermore, Ling proposes a distinction between ‘lateral’ and ‘vertical’ crossings: ‘Lateral’ describes the crossing from one minority to another one, while ‘vertical’ crossings involve climbing up the social ladder by switching from minority to majority (Ling 232). Mona in the Promised Land features both types of crossings, indicating that upward mobility is not what the ‘lateral’ crossers are striving for. Rather, switching from minority to minority results in personal enrichment, as it “[involves] the layering of other cultural traits onto those one already possesses, [and expresses] solidarity with other groups who share a history of persecution” (Ling 232).
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: Presents the central thesis that cultural cross-dressing serves as a crucial mechanism for identity formation in Gish Jen’s novel within the historical context of the 1960s and 70s.
2. Americanness and Ethnicity: Explores theoretical foundations by Herbert Gans and Werner Sollors to define how ethnicity and national identity are constructed in the United States.
3. Cultural Cross - Dressing: Analyzes specific characters in the novel, categorizing them into those who experiment with shifting ethnic boundaries and those who reject such fluidity.
4. Conclusion: Summarizes that while characters use ethnic switching to seek self-identity and solidarity, the novel ultimately questions the myth of a post-racial, classless American society.
5. Works Cited: Lists the academic sources used to support the literary analysis of the novel.
Key Terms
Cultural cross-dressing, Ethnicity, Identity formation, Symbolic ethnicity, Consent, Descent, Americanness, Gish Jen, Mona in the Promised Land, Assimilation, Cultural adaptation, Minority, Social mobility, Multiethnicity, Ethnic revival
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the primary focus of this academic paper?
The paper examines how characters in Gish Jen’s novel Mona in the Promised Land navigate and perform ethnic identities through the process of "cultural cross-dressing."
What are the core thematic fields addressed?
The central themes include the search for personal identity, the sociological construction of ethnicity, the conflict between inherited background and personal choice, and the impact of the 1960s Civil Rights movement on ethnic awareness.
What is the central research question?
The study investigates whether cultural switching functions as a genuine tool for personal enrichment and identity formation or if it is merely a superficial performance of symbols.
Which scientific methods or theories are applied?
The author utilizes literary analysis in conjunction with sociological frameworks, most notably Herbert Gans’s theory of "symbolic ethnicity" and Werner Sollors’s dichotomy of "consent vs. descent" relations.
What does the main body of the text cover?
The main body defines the theoretical concepts, analyzes specific character arcs such as Mona's conversion and Seth's identity searches, and provides a comparative look at characters who resist cultural crossing.
Which keywords best describe the work?
Keywords include cultural cross-dressing, ethnicity, symbolic ethnicity, consent and descent, identity formation, and Gish Jen.
How is the concept of "lateral" versus "vertical" crossing defined in this context?
Lateral crossing involves moving between two different minority groups, whereas vertical crossing refers to attempts at upward social mobility by adopting the markers of the dominant majority culture.
What role does the character of Alfred play in the analysis?
Alfred serves as a "non-crosser" who emphasizes the reality of racial barriers, arguing that his African American identity is tied to his physical reality and cannot be easily shed or ignored, unlike the more fluid experiences of other characters.
- Quote paper
- Anonym (Author), 2008, Cultural cross-dressing and the quest for ethnic identity in Gish Jen's 'Mona in the Promised Land', Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/113381
