Chinese Cinderella Themes Essay

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suffers and she constantly looked down on. She questions herself and her own abilities and ends up believing that her mother’s death was her fault.

Education is one of the main themes that helps Adeline get some recognition from her father. ‘The silver medal dangling from the left breast pocket of my uniform…for topping my class this week.’ – pg. 1. This demonstrates that, from a young age, Adeline aspired to excel in her education to receive some attention from her father. In pages 219 to 221, Adeline does capture her father’s attention, by winning an international play-writing competition. By doing so she is granted her wish to go study in a college in London. This indicates how she finally receives attention from her father and it was not short-lived. ‘The girls in my class nicknamed me ‘Genius’ – partly because of my perfect scholastic record, but also because of my compositions and short stories.’ – pg. 60. Not only did Adeline strive to achieve a ‘perfect scholastic record’ she also enjoyed writing compositions. To her, education was an escape from home but also a way to catch her father’s attention.

The main theme in ‘Chinese Cinderella’ is nepotism. Nepotism is favouritism among relatives. ‘The first floor is where your father and I, and your younger and sister, have our room … All of you will on the second floor. – pg. 27. This division between the step-children and the other siblings shows us that Niang favours her natural children over her stepchildren. “A stylish western outfits with a Peter pan collar and a matching tie and belt, while little sister acquired a fashionable pink knitted dress bedecked with ribbons and bows.’ – pg. 49. Niang’s natural children received fashionable western clothes while her step-children receive traditional hand-me-downs. ‘To her, we are not separate people. Over here we have become one single unit known as ‘all of you’. Seems like this is how it’s going to be from now on.’ – pg. 28. The third brother states this after being allocated their floors. He notices Niang’s bias to her natural children and sees that Niang thought of them as one species of animal.

The Chinese Cinderella is an autobiography that explores the dark and painful memories of Adeline Yen Mah. The novel illustrates the themes of perseverance, self-esteem and self-worth, family and relationships, education and nepotism. Together, readers experience the pain of having to be rejected and unwanted child of the family.