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https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/amp/Families-live-jammed-into-Chinatown-rooms-with-6663902.php

This is my 7th secondary post. I picked this article because for one it gives a modern day perspective of a certain idea in my book; since my book was published in the 1970s, having a current day source is helpful. I furthermore picked this because I wanted to research more on the living conditions in Chinatown. In my book, Kingston writes, “Then five or six people would crowd into the bed together. Some slept on the ironing tables, and the small children slept on the shelves.”

<p>[...] they imagined a life in which families of four didn’t have to pad down a hallway to jostle for room in a communal bathroom or kit

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https://www.lcsc.org/cms/lib/MN01001004/Centricity/Domain/81/TAH%202.pdf (pages 94-97 mainly)

https://www.laphamsquarterly.org/roundtable/brokering_servitude

(Secondary Source #5/#6) These two sources give some insight as to why women in China’s husbands ended up traveling to America and ended up starting a family of their own. In Chapter 4 of my book, the narrator’s aunt is discussing with her family about her husband who had left without her to go to the Americas around the 1950s which resulted in him starting a new family there with two new kids.

How the exploitation of Chinese men in nineteenth-century America was naturalized.

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This is my fourth secondary post. While this is clearly not a movie about my book, a lot of the values and themes present in this Disney adaptation of the tale of Fa Mu Lan are discussed in the book. Author Maxine Kingston also references this story several times. One example was in chapter 2 when she was comparing her having the strength to deal with her racist boss to Fa Mu Lan. Also, in Chapter 4, one child receives a doll of Fa Mu Lan. Therefore, I think that this source could provide me with some valuable information.

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kellig22

Secondary Source 6: Valentines Day (movie)

In the 2010 film Valentines Day directed by Garry Marshall includes many household actors such as Bradly Cooper, Jennifer Garner, Julia Roberts, and more go through their day “romantic day.” A part that reminded me of 438 days was when Julia Roberts, A Military Captain named Kate meets Bradly Cooper A.K.A Holden Wilson on the plane coming home. Through the whole scene the talk and get to know each other, Holden keeps asking if Kate is going home to see her boyfriend or husband but she will not budge on telling him. Later in the movie they cut to Kate reuniting with her son and daughter. Everyone is Hugging, crying and saying “I love you.” this particular part in the movie made me think of in 438 days when Alvarengna and Fatima finally reunite after over a year, They hug and say that they love each other. Personally, I think when families reunite after any amount of time, it is the purest love in the world.

avanigswamy

I agree with you that when families are reunited they are usually overwhelmed with joy. However, I think this is also a contrast from Arely and Alvarenga reuniting, as it was not as joyful and almost seemed as if Arely didn’t know how to react to or deal with Alvarenga’s trauma from his days at sea.

I think it is a great idea to compare and contrast this source with your primary source because these are two different experiences where the father figure/boyfriend/husband sets out on some sort of journey and ends up back reunited with their family. I think you could utilize this storyline as evidence to back up the themes that you got from your book, such as the motivation for being able to survive so long from far away is your family.

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kellig22

Primary Source 6:

In this part of my book Alvarenga is finally home and reunited with his former girlfriend, his daughter and her mother. The author really uses emotion to show how sentimental this moment is, “I love you, and I am not going to let you go!” in this moment Alvarenga and his daughter, Fatima, Are hugging for the first time in over a year. I thought that this was the most genuine and cutest part in the book. However, Alvarenga is scared and traumatized. On the first day home he barely spoke a word to her besides the part when they hugged.The author claims that they didn’t speak for weeks after that, But only smiled at each other. When he finally got the courage to talk to his daughter, It didn’t quite play out the way he wanted. Fatima was doubting of her father saying “Why didn’t you come back for me? You forgot me!” In my opinion, their relationship is going to be bumpy. However, Fatima should realize that her father was lost at sea for over a year. I Don’t think he forgot about her.

avanigswamy

I thought that this reaction from Fatima was far better than the one that Alvarenga anticipated earlier in the book. I also thought it was surprising that the reason Alvarenga didn’t adjust well to life at home was because of the traumatizing experiences from out at sea rather than the lack of freedom he had, which was mentioned in your last tumblr post.

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kellig22

Secondary Source 5: Article

https://science.nasa.gov/astrophysics/focus-areas/how-do-stars-form-and-evolve

This article by NASA reminded me of the part when Alvarenga talked about how “even lost at sea, the stars reminded me that everything was okay.” in the article NASA does a really good job explaining exactly what a star is and the different types. In the ocean you can see EVERYTHING at night, this is because there is no light pollution. Light pollution is caused by brightening of the night sky by street lights and other man-made source. Light pollution makes it very hard to observe stars and planets, but not from the ocean.

Above is a picture of the sky at night near the Ocean, notice how you can see the milky way and thousands of stars.

Above is a picture of the sky at night in the city. notice how you can’t see ANY stars. Close to the skyline above the skyscrapers you can see a yellowish color, this would be consider light pollution.

avanigswamy

I really like how you chose two different pictures to show the contrast. Without this article and these pictures, I wouldn’t have picked up on the difference between seeing stars from the mainland versus the middle of the ocean. I think that this post has also created an image for me of what “freedom” looked like for Alvarenga. On the page where the quote you picked above was written, I noticed that Alvarenga found his own home suffocating. Looking at the sky above clearly wouldn’t have helped Alvarenga feel the experience at sea again due to the lack of beauty the city sky holds.

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kellig22

Secondary Source 4: Article

https://www.cnn.com/2018/08/30/health/raw-fish-vibrio-vulnificus-amputation/index.html

This article reminded me of the part in my book where Alvarenga had to go out into open waters to hunt for his food, When I posed about that I just talked about how he was facing his fears of the ocean. However, I touched on how he was eating raw fish, In the book the author says “I would slice pen their intestines and find sea bass cooked in the gastric juices. I used to pretend it was grilled.” This is very unsanitary and unhealthy. This article by CNN news helped me understand the true dangers of eating raw fish.

avanigswamy

I think that this article is a good example of what the people towards the beginning of the book warned Alvarenga of the horrors that the ocean held. I think it’s almost ironic that when there are monstrous waves in the ocean that can easily tip a boat, it is a small fish that could have ended up killing Alvarenga.

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kellig22

Primary Source 5:

This part in my book was interesting to me, as of right now, Alvarenga and Cordoba were found and were located in the far side of the Ebon Lagoon. The name of this chapter is called “Found but Lost” I thought it was interesting Franklin named it this because yes, They were on land but they weren’t home. Alvarenga was feeling stressed and confused, Thoughts were rushing to his mind on if he would ever make it back to his home, If he had to start his life over in a new country. The part that really stuck out to me was when he was describing his first night indoors and said “even lost at sea, The stars reminded me that everything was okay” I thought this was so interesting that something as small as the stars helped him through his journey and gave him hope.

avanigswamy

I also thought the mention of the stars was interesting. I also thought the author writing “the moon his calendar” was an interesting metaphor. This is emphasizing a major contrast between how people told him he would feel about the ocean versus what Alvarenga actually feels. I thought it was an interesting move of the author to write that “he was addicted to freedom.” Normally, I would have thought freedom is a God given right that everyone has and needs. I was surprised to think that any one person could get too much to the point where the author felt the need to write that it had turned to an addiction.

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kellig22

secondary source 3: The Hunchback of Notre Dame (movie)

The Hunchback of Notre Dame reminded me of the part in my book where Alvarenga was struggling mentally and then started to pray to God for help. The movie begins with a church deacon saving Quasimodo from an early death, later on, we see several characters struggle with faith as circumstances turn against them. In the movie, we watch the main characters continue to pray for things to get better and for God to help them though there tough circumstances. Again, this is just like in 438 Days how Alverenga started praying to God for help and strength.

avanigswamy

I thought this was an interesting secondary source due to the fact that the main topic isn’t exactly similar. However, I think it is a great idea to compare the two storylines by using faith as a link. I think that it shows that real life experiences also have been reflected in fiction and movies, and it also emphasizes how the use of faith has been a crucial factor in giving both main characters strength.

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kellig22

Secondary Source 2:

https://www.soundingsonline.com/voices/why-the-coast-guard-stops-looking

This article reminded me of the part in my book on page 63 when the Mexican and US coast guard started to lose hope in finding Alvarenga and Cordoba. The author says “When the Coast Guard suspends a search for a missing boater, hearts that were breaking now fully break, and the news is met with more than tears. There is often also anger and confusion. The anger can’t be helped, but the confusion can be. Most people lost at sea, stay lost. It’s a harsh reality that the Coast Guard deals with every day.” but I remembered that Alverenga and Cordoba were not most people, they did not stay lost at sea, they survived and made it home.

avanigswamy

I think that this article is also important because it presents another perspective. Even though I haven’t read your book, I am assuming that it mostly talks about Alvarenga’s and Cordoba’s experiences versus the Coast Guard’s reasoning behind why they stop looking and lose hope. I think in any future writings we do this can provide good evidence as to other perspectives, otherwise readers just learn Alvarenga’s and Cordoba’s story and might feel really upset with the coast guard and not realize the coast guard’s perspective.

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kellig22

From a big wave to an enormous wave, here are some waves. ►https://www.instagram.com/eskifymedia/ ►https://twitter.com/EskifyMedia ►https://eskify.com ► http...

secondary source 2: Video on YouTube

This video really shows how dangerous the ocean can actually be. THIS is what Jonathan Franklin talks about in 438 days, these are just a few examples of the storms Alvarnga and Cordoba had to go through when they were lost at sea.

avanigswamy

I think this is a good idea to use a visual source; since a picture is worth a 1000 words, a video is worth exponentially more. Also, I think that you could use these waves to add imagery as evidence as well. This can be important in any future writings we do.

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Immigration has always been a story of sacrifice. Whether it occurred a century ago or just this past year, making the journey to a new land means giving up something from one’s first home. At Char…

Here is my third secondary source which are first-hand accounts of Chinese immigrants to the United States throughout the years. I decided to pick this because the narrator’s parents were immigrants to the United States in the 20th century. I thought it might be a good idea to compare these stories to those that her mother has told her in the book.

As I was reading through the accounts, I read about someone’s mom who was a medical school graduate in China but became a factory worker in the United States. I thought it was comparable to the narrator’s mother because chapter three in my book was about her mother’s experience going through medical school in China and the treatment she had gotten in China versus the U.S. for her skill.

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Several times in this section of the book, the narrator’s mother refers to Americans as ghosts. Clearly this term is not one of endearment. Just earlier in the story, the narrator’s mother refers to different people in America as “Newsboy Ghost” or “Garbage Ghost.” The author capitalizes these to give them importance (meaning referring to them as people), but not enough to actually give them the acknowledgement of being a person.

The reason why I find this paragraph incredibly important is that it, once again, compares and contrasts her mother’s life experiences in China versus the U.S. Here, the author uses the ideas that in America, people have less time to lead a life of free-time while in China, people can catch a breath of fresh air. I’m not sure if this was exactly how life went at these times, as the narrator clearly wasn’t either given her disengagement in the second to last paragraph.

I also though the quote “White Ghosts can’t tell Chinese age” was interesting. I’m not sure exactly what it means, but I think that it could mean that her mother felt as if she wasn’t given much attention or importance in the U.S.

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This quote is from my book and said by the narrator’s mother. The context here is her mother, a doctor, was at a market place. There was a slave market there, and her mother decided to buy a slave here. Instead of buying the slave with the purpose of having a slave, her mother wanted to buy a nurse.

Here, her mother is discussing how the nurse she purchased was cheaper than having her own kid during World War II. I think this is important because it demonstrates how the Chinese and the Americans dealt with situations. For one, at this time the U.S. didn’t have actual slave markets where slaves were still being bought and sold. Also, it shows that girls in China during this time were thought to be worth nothing and bought and sold as objects. It also shows that her mother, to some extent, might have some regret with having to pay more money just to birth her daughter.

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In 1976, Maxine Hong Kingston published The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood Among Ghosts. A searing and subtly funny book about who gets to tell our stories, this feminist classic established themes and controversies central to Asian American...

Here is my second secondary source that I found, which could also be viewed as an appropriate link. It is a podcast about the memoir I am reading and I thought that this podcast provided a lot of interesting and thought-provoking commentary about the book. It had Maxine Hong Kingston discussing her book and her experience being an Asian American female author. The book was published in the 70s, which was a time where discrimination and major obstacles were present for women, especially women of color given the previous decade. For example, she is asked about some of the boundaries she had to overcome. Another example discusses the widespread themes and values and cultures that this book has come to support beyond the ones present in the writing, and hence this podcast explores ideas much further than the story. I thought it was really important hearing from the author’s point of view of her writing as well as her personal journey beyond the memoir.

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kellig22

Primary Source 4:

As of right now, They have been lost for 379 days. The part that really stuck out for me is when Franklin said “despite his fears and secret knowledge of the monsters of the deep, Alvarenga assumed that the ocean must be benevolent. how else could he still be alive?” and “He was scared and tired- Relief flooded his body.” This chunk is explaining how Alvarnga and Cordoba were facing their fears of having to “hunt” for their food in OPEN waters. Jonathan Franklin uses imagery to describe what they are going though, making it seem like I’m on the boat with them, lost at sea.

avanigswamy

I agree that this imagery is an important technique that the author uses here. I also found it interesting because the description here (with its discussion of bird blood and fish guts, disgusting stuff that would only be found in the ocean) also works to emphasize Alvarenga’s becoming a part of the waters.

I furthermore thing the line where Alvarenga calls the ocean benevolent is interesting as well. It is an interesting perspective because of what a stark contrast it is to the perspectives of everyone telling Alvarenga not to go on such a treacherous journey, and why he went anyways, disregarding their opinions. It also shows that even in dark times, Alvarenga is optimistic.

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kellig22

Primary source 3:

This part in my book restored my hopefulness in thinking that Alvarenga and Cordoba were going to survive being lost at sea, As of right now, They have been lost for 45 days. In this chunk the author is explaining how they were not doing good mentally, physically or emotionally but then talks about how they began to pray to God and ask him for help. I related to this chunk personally, whenever I’m at a low place in my life, I pray to god that it will get better. my mom always says “whatever it is, it will pass and you will survive.” The author says “prayer itself can work because… it slows down your breathing… it’s also using up residual capacity in the brain, which otherwise might be taken up with anxiety and fear components.” This part in my book really stuck out to me, Alvarenga and Cordoba were praying for hope and survival.

avanigswamy

I can see that you underlined the sentence “Giving up was not his style.” I think this is an important statement that explains Alvarenga’s optimistic mentality. I think the sentence discussing how his daughter would slap him rather than hug him because it is discussing how much he was willing to see his daughter and return home despite the fact that he would probably get hurt, or even die given the previous sentence in the text.

I agree with your underlining of the word reconciliation because I think it has a double purpose. I think the word is used to describe the future relationship he seeks with his daughter or with people who he is in a feud with, because the text says so. I believe that it is also describing how he wants to view his relationship with God.

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