Suggested Reading for Emerging Scholars

I believe that the best book for the Emerging Scholars program would be Fresh Girl. In this story, the protagonist undergoes many struggles. She is forced to move to a new place and culture she is unfamiliar with. She also struggles to meet her parents rigid expectations. Most of all, she suffers from a secret-- something terrible that happened before she left Haiti. I think this would be a great story to read because Mardi is a strong black woman with a unique heritage struggling to overcome her past. It would be inspirational to anyone who read it, especially those who may have come from a rough background themselves.

Mulan

I'm glad our blog topic was on the American adaptation of Mulan. I've thought a lot about it actually.

First, I was upset that Disney altered the original epic. In the traditional version, is not caught masquerading as a man but rather reveals herself as a woman of her own free will. This makes a her a stronger character and more in control of her destiny.
Also, in the movie, Mulan is concerned about social roles. She worries about dishonoring her family by not being feminine enough. At the end of the film, Mulan chooses to go back home and likely wed, allowing her to fulfill the traditional role of a Chinese woman. The role she was so concerned that she did not fit at the beginning of the film.

At first, I was annoyed at the anti-feminist approach to the story. Then, I wondered, would I personally still find Mulan a compelling character if she was firmly and decidedly set against her gender and cultural norms? The truth is I, and many women, can better relate better to a woman struggling against her own desires and those of her family and society. If Mulan was extremely feminist, it would be a cultural misrepresentation of the Chinese during this time period as well as a weak Xena Warrior Princess like character.

I think, overall, Disney worked in many important elements to Chinese culture, such as the importance of honor, ancestry, dragons, traditional dress and social roles, and religion. Also, the fact that China allowed the film to enter as one of only a handful of Western films permitted per year demonstrates that the content must not have been too culturally offensive. Along with incorporating some Chinese culture, Disney also managed to create a compelling character and story line at the same time. Not so bad, Disney.