Daughters and Sons

Chapter 9

Term: round character

In this chapter, Le Ly is reunited with her mother after moving to America. She is back at Tinh's house where her mother asks questions about Le Ly's life since she had left Vietnam. Le Ly had also seen Bon Nghe the night before, but they had to pretend they had not seen each other because of Le Ly's strict visiting privileges. As Le Ly looks at her mother she observes this: "Tears glisten in my mother's eyes as they now pour from mine. Still, I do not yet have her permission to hug her and hold her and cry out all the tears I've been saving for all these years." Le Ly is saying how even though her mother is right in front of her, she is still somehow out of reach. Her mother still has not quite come to terms with the fact that her youngest Bay Ly is right in her midst. As Le Ly and her mother continue talking about the family, Le Ly brings up her sister Ba, and suddenly Le Ly's mother seems to shy away from the subject. She had lost contact with Ba and disapproved of her husband Chin. Later on, Tinh tells Le Ly that Mama Du will soon look past Ba's differences. That same night Bon Nghe comes back to Tinh's to visit everyone including Mama Du. He explains how at first, he was unsure of how he felt about Le Ly coming back to visit. He had worried that America had changed her for the worst; however, he never does accept any of Le Ly's gifts that she had brought back from America. This chapter revolves around Mama Du, a round character. At the beginning of the book, she had shown concern for her children, but also knew how to help them develop. Now, the title of the chapter is appropriate because her daughters and sons are ultimately the lights of her life. Le Ly seeing her mother was something Le Ly wanted to happen on her trip back to Vietnam, and even though her mother had a difficult time showing it, Mama Du was happy to see Le Ly. This is part of how Mama Du's round character evolved. Before, she was able to show her emotion quite easily, especially when she was angry, but now, she has become more content with her life.