An Interpretation of Mothers' Self-Identity Reconstruction in The Joy Luck Club

Abstract

This paper examines the reconstruction of self-identity among first-generation immigrants in The Joy Luck Club, focusing on the experiences of four mothers who immigrated to the United States after enduring national calamities and familial conflicts. Confronted with a new cultural environment, these women face the complex task of redefining their self-conception while navigating the challenges of assimilation and cultural preservation. In this process, their memories of China, including personal, familial, and cultural experiences, are repeatedly evoked, generating tensions between past and present, tradition and modernity, as well as individual desires and familial expectations. The novel vividly illustrates how these internal contradictions are mediated through mother-daughter relationships, which serve as both a site of cultural negotiation and an avenue for emotional reconciliation. Through the evolving dynamics of these relationships, the mothers gradually integrate aspects of Chinese and Western cultures into their self-perception, transforming their self-images and reconstructing their identities within a bicultural context. This study highlights how the interplay of memory, cultural inheritance, and cross-generational communication shapes the processes of identity reconstruction, emphasizing the nuanced and multifaceted nature of self-identity among immigrant women.