Setting

Physical setting

The events described in the short story “Who’s Irish?” by Gish Jen take place somewhere in the US. The reference to the gang members at the beginning of the text (p. 3, l. 6) suggests that the events take place in a large city.

Some of the events take place in Natalie and John’s house, at Thanksgiving (p. 4, l. 30), when the family gathers to celebrate. Here, the story’s focus is not on the place, but on the tense conversations between the narrator and John’s family.

The story’s main focus is on the park where the narrator takes her granddaughter, Sophie. In the park, Sophie has the habit of taking her clothes off, much to her grandmother’s discontent: “She stand up in the stroller. She take off all her clothes and throw them in the fountain” (p. 8, ll. 5-6). After her grandmother spanks her, the girl drops the habit. 

The park is also the place where the story’s conflict escalates. A boy named...