Friday, August 20, 2010
Lee
Lee is one of the most remarkable characters in American literature, a philosopher trapped by the racial expectations of his time. He is the essence of compassion, erudition, and calm, serving the Trasks while retaining a complex interior and emotional life. Do you understand why he speaks in pidgin, as he explains it to Sam Hamilton? How does his character change-in dress, speech, and action-over the course of the book? And why do you think Lee stays with the Trasks, instead of living on his own in San Francisco and pursuing his dream?
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He speaks Pidgin because people see him as Chinese and that is what they expect. If he talks in english they refuse to hear him and don't understand him but if Pidgin is what they expect, they listen. He changes a lot. Lee stops talking in pidgin and speaks intricate english, he stopped wearing his queue in exchange for regular clothes, and instead of just being the servant of the family, he became part of it and was the glue that made the Trask's still together. I think that when Lee went to San Francisco, they didn't take him seriously and denied, and somewhat excluded, him from opening the bookstore. He realized a Chinese opening a book store was believed to be a crazy idea.
ReplyDeleteLee speaks pigden because that is what is expected of him and to do what is expected is the path of least resistance. Lee does this because if he didn't he wouldn't get a job. However as the book goes on and the view of the Chinese changes he changes to become what is expected of him while becoming more like himself. I think Lee ultimately stays because he is too old to start a new lif and he has come to love the trask's
ReplyDeleteLee speaks pidgen because he feels like it is society's way of excepting him, and what Americans expectations are of him. Overtime Lee changes into being a typical american man. He slowly starts to loose his oriental clothing and his english improves. Lee also starts to become closer with the family, and he sometimes is the only voice of reason within the Trask house. I think Lee stays with the Trask's because he truly does want to help them, and after many years of serving them, I think he really does enjoy them and their company.
ReplyDeleteLee speaks in pigden because he grew up with the expectation that he should speak it instead of normal English. He feels that people will accept him more if he does what they expect him to do. He stops wearing his Chinese clothing and starts wearing the normal clothing of that era. He stops speaking in pigden because he feels more comfortable around the Trask's, and he feels more like part of the family. He starts expressing his opinion as the book goes on also starts giving advice to people such as Cal and Adam. I believe that Lee stays with the Trasks instead of moving to San Francisico because he feels like part of the family with the Trasks and less like a servant. They respect him and he respects them.
ReplyDeleteLee speaks pigdin because people in that time expect it since he is Chinese. He knows people will not accept him if he speaks normal English. I think he stops wearing Chinese clothes and wears regular clothes because he knows the Trask family accepts him. I think he goes back to the Trask home because he is not just the servant anymore, it is because he is part of their family now.
ReplyDeleteIn this era, Lee is only expected to speak in pidgin. He one, feels that he has to if he will ever be understood since speaking English is not socially accepted from him. Two, if he has this shield up then people won't be to know how smart he is which is also unacceptable. But as the book continues and characters grow so does Lee, by shedding his queue and opening himself to the society by speaking in English. Also, Lee changed with the Trasks, he was comfortable with them and when leaving he was vulnerable to the new world, which he was not used too. By coming back he went to people who love and respected him rather than leaving to a world who couldn't begin to understand him.
ReplyDeleteWhen Samuel starts to get to know Lee a little bit better, he asks him why Chinese people keep talking pidgen for all of these years. And like most everybody already said, society expects them to keep talking that way. So to avoid shocking everyone, Lee keeps talking pidgen. Until you get to the second half of the book, when he decides to drop the pidgen and basically change his whole life. That is when Lee moves away from the Trask family to start his own bookstore. He barely got anywhere before he came back and lived with the Trasks again. He also takes off his queue and acts short-tempered as he grows older. He tells the hard truth to Adam when he needs it.
ReplyDeleteUnless you have something new to say, please consider responding to another post. You can click "older posts" at the bottom of the page to see more posts.
ReplyDeleteI think Lee is one of the most interesting characters in the book, because of the knowledge and advice he shared with the characters, as if he stepped back and could see their lives like a reader. He was expected to speak in pigden and knew that him speaking as eloquently as he was capable of would not be accepted. He was not thought of as smart but shows his intelligence by seeing through the american people and knowing that it would make them uncomfotable.
ReplyDeleteI find Lee to be the most unique person because he overlooks everything in s bigger picture compared to Adam or Samuel, he is there to guide them and help with the twins. i think he stayed because he was what kept the family together and in line. He took care of them and made them think and Lee always knew the right thing to say. He speaks pidgin because that is how he was taught to speak when he is in America and he knows better to not speak how Americans do when he is around them.
ReplyDeleteLee is a greatly underestimated man. This is due mainly to his race and his humble nature. People think he is unintelligent because he is Chinese, and even the Trasks who know better, still don't understand his true brilliance. For every thoughtful comment he says out loud, there are maybe a dozen which he keeps to himself. His character is one of great importance, and yet he doesn't receive much aknowledgment for all that he has done. But Lee doesn't need reassurance to be happy, purposely he helps the Trask family without being obvious. He guides them in such a way that they don't ever realize how much they rely on him.
ReplyDeleteOne aspect that Lee changes a lot is his presence in the Trask home as he gains confidence in who he is. He is no longer confined by the stereotypes of being Chinese, especially in their house. This leads Lee to feel a sense of mutual need for the Trasks. The reason Lee decides to come back, after 4 days gone from their home, is because he is most accepted there and he needs them as much as they need him.
ReplyDelete--Hannah Golden
Lee speaks in pidgin because during the time period that is what was expected of Chinese people in America. If he spoke normally at first to people, they would not have listened to him. Lee starts to change his clothing, language, and actions throughout his relationship with the Trasks. He does this because he feels more comfortable with them and he knows that they will listen to him and accept his opinions. He decides to stay with the Trasks because they had become his family and he was lonely without them and he knew he could still help them.
ReplyDeleteLee chooses to speak pidgin because that is all the people around him would hear. That is what they expect so that is all they will listen to. Proper English from a Chinese man is unfamiliar to them to they simply reject it. Lee returns from his dream in San Francisco for the same reason that people would only hear him speak pidgin because that is what is familiar the same is true for Lee. He is comfortable and happy in his life at the Trasks so he returns to his life of constancy.
ReplyDeleteLee decides to stay with the Trasks for a couple of reasons. First of all, he is very lonely without them. The second, more important reason is that Lee knows that as a servant he is guaranteed shelter, food, clothing, and other living accommodations. The reason he is so well taken care of is because of the influence he has over the Trasks. After years of being a servant, Lee has realized that his masters become so dependent of him that they will pamper him and even take his advice. Lee uses his influence over the Trasks for the good of the family, such as informing Adam of "timshel" and forcing Cal to apologize to his father after indirectly killing Aron. This idea of "timshel" is what ultimately allows Cal to redeem himself.
ReplyDeletei wrote abot Lee a lot in my paper that we had to do for East of Eden over the summer. i really admire his sustainability and his strong integrity. i feel like if lee were a living human being right now, i would want to spend good amounts of time with him learning how to be a better person, ecause i feel like he is knowledgable about how to purify ones' life.
ReplyDeleteLee changes over the course of the book because at first he lives up to the expectations of how Americans see him, but then he drops it and speaks how he is meant to speak. Lee also says that he is becoming less and less oriental throughout the book which means he is becoming more American in a way. I think Lee decided to stay with the Trasks because he had already brought Adam and the twins through so much that it wouldn't hurt to stay for the rest of his life. He has come to love them as family.
ReplyDeleteLee stays with the Trask family because he has a special connection with the twins, having raised them from birth, and is too lonely without them.
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