The narrator

Outer characterisation

The narrator’s outer characterisation in “Where the Gods Fly” by Jean Kwok reveals that she is a Chinese woman who immigrated to the US with her family (ll. 13-14). She has a daughter, Pearl, who is her “only girl” (l. 13), but it is unclear whether she has other children (boys) as well.

In the US, the narrator and her husband work at a “factory in Chinatown” (l. 8) which suggests that they are poor, working-class immigrants. This is also supported by the description of their living conditions: “…the floor strewn with the mattresses we slept on, the scraps we’d brought home from the factory to cover the worn table.” (ll. 42-43)

Through a backstory, it is also revealed that the narrator never received a formal education in China: “When I was a girl in China, I was not permitted to go to classes. Much of the learning I possess, I picked up through lingering at the table, pretending to dust or sweep, as my brothers studied.” (ll. 77-78). Additionally, she and her husband have poor English skills (ll. 100-101).

At the time of the narration, the narrator is a widow, as her husband has died of cancer (ll. 150-153).

Inner characterisation

The narrator’s inner characterisation is quite complex as the story presents her thoughts and memories, contributing to her characterisation throughout the story.

She is presented as a dutiful wife and mother, tending to everyone’s needs: “…was this then, what had been happening while I cooked rice, folded the sheets, worked the sewing machine?” (ll. 143-144). This shows her to be hard-working, mostly out of necessity considering her family’s poor economic situation.

Another important aspect in the narrator’s characterisation is that her economic status influences her a...