Reading Response 4 – Ching Chong Chinaman

The unconventionally comedic play, Ching Chong Chinaman by Lauren Yee, exemplifies the loss of cultural identity through the account of a very Americanized or “whitewashed” Chinese American family. The most notable example is their normalization of referring to Jinqiang as the “Chinaman” or mostly “Ching Chong,” regardless that this would be offensive to themselves as well. Additionally, each family member–Ed, Grace, and their children Desdemona and Upton–embodies certain characteristics that stand out as nonstereotypical. Honing in on the daughter Desdemona, her yearning to get into Princeton isn’t atypical, but unlike the stereotype, she is bad at math. 

Through Desdemona’s Princeton application process, we are able to analyze her character, or lack of character. When her brother, Upton, tells her that he uses Jinqiang to do his math homework, Desdemona initially disapproves. However, when she realizes she can take advantage of this to fix her poor Calculus grade, she disregards this violation and proves to be just as self-serving as Upton. Similarly, when answering the essay prompt “Tell us about a person who has influenced you in a significant way” (21), she writes about Kim Lee Park, her Korean “independently sponsored child” (17). Kim appears in the scene to tell her story as an abandoned girl “headed for a life of emptiness and sadness” (21), narrating it as horribly tragic only so Desdemona can present herself as a savior, and segue into egotistical topics like her “near-perfect SAT score” (22). She even slaps Kim when her sob story isn’t long enough to meet her word count, when in reality she’s just exploiting Kim to mask her lack of cultural awareness and authentic experience.

It’s only during her Princeton alumni interview that Desdemona realizes her disconnect from her Chinese heritage. The Princeton alum sympathizes with the “hardships” she must’ve faced as a minority and a woman, even comparing her life to those of the women in the Joy Luck Club, a book and movie adaptation about the social and cultural struggles of Chinese immigrants. In an attempt to relate to her culture, she goes home and immediately listens to a Chinese lesson, watches the Joy Luck Club, and asks her dad Ed about their ancestors. When his answers are insufficient, she takes a DNA test only to discover she’s Mexican, then proceeds to engage in a tequila drinking game and throw herself a distasteful quinceañera. As I read this play, I thought back to Elena Franchi’s article “What is cultural heritage?”, and her description of it as “our belonging to a community” and “our bond to the past.” Although Desdemona’s parents clearly didn’t pass down tangible or intangible heritage to her, even when she strives to immerse herself in a culture, it’s so offputting and offensive to the true culture. She’s not trying to explore a community, she’s only concerned with “finding meaning” and being a “person of ‘color’ color” to make herself more appealing to Princeton.

After chasing an identity for so long, Desdemona’s parents tell her that she’s adopted and she’s not Chinese or Mexican, but Korean. I’m adopted too, so I’m familiar with feeling lost when it comes to your identity, or grappling with wanting to continue living the way that feels natural to you, the way you were raised, but also wanting to discover more about your background. In this moment I felt compassion for her and found her actions that followed–her fit of rage–justified. When destroying the persona she created, I interpreted that as her finally becoming content with being herself, as well as opening herself to opportunities for true self-discovery. Overall, I took Desdemona’s conflict and character development as a personal reminder to enjoy the life my parents and I have created here, but to continue educating and revisiting my roots as they are both a part of my identity.