Identity Shaped by Silence

Female Voice in Maxine Hong Kingston’s The Woman Warrior

Oct 12, 2008 Allison D. Schisler

As the Chinese and Chinese-American young women of Kingston's memoir develop their individual identities, an expectation of silence pervades their experiences.

"‘You must not tell anyone,’" my mother said, "what I am about to tell you" (3). Maxine Hong Kingston’s memoir The Woman Warrior’s opening lines convey the overarching theme of identity shaped by silence present in the book. This silence has the most dramatic or devastating affects on the lives of Kingston and her no-name aunt.

Kingston’s Relationship with Her Mother

The overarching theme of silence is revealed in Kingston’s relationship with her mother. As Kingston reveals her disillusionment with the cultural expectations to Brave Orchid, she tells her mother, in an attempt to assert her individuality, “When I get to college, it won’t matter if I’m not charming. And it doesn’t matter if a person is ugly; she can still do schoolwork” (201).Brave Orchid responds by saying that Kingston is not ugly. When Kingston replies that Brave Orchid has always said Kingston is ugly, her mother replies, “That’s what we’re supposed to say. That’s what Chinese say. We like to say the opposite” (203).

The silence expected of Brave Orchid causes Kingston pain. As a young woman developing her identity, Kingston believes herself ugly because of her mother’s silence and emotional reservations. Indeed, because Brave Orchid was taught to be silent, Kingston believes herself inadequate.

The expectation of silence not only shapes Kingston, but also Brave Orchid herself. Kingston notes that “It seemed to hurt her to tell me that” (203). The cultural expectation—that women remain silent concerning personal matter and humble concerning compliments—forced Brave Orchid to tell her own daughter she is ugly, causing both mother and daughter pain.

This silence, however, forces Kingston to evaluate both her cultural expectations and roles, however, and ultimately encourages her individuality.

Kingston’s Relationship with No-Name Aunt

Kingston’s no-name aunt, whose story Brave Orchid reveals to Kingston in the beginning of the memoir, is also devastatingly affected by the expectation of silence. She does not reveal her sexual relationship with a man other than her husband, nor does she discuss her obvious pregnancy.

Perhaps this expectation stems from fear of the truth or reality, for none of the no-name aunt’s family members confront or discuss her pregnancy: “No one said anything. We did not discuss it” (3). Because of the silence, neither Kingston nor the reader ever become aware of the circumstances of the aunt’s pregnancy, whether rape or passion.

As silence pervades the family, so too devastation pervades the no-name aunt who is the victim of silence. And ultimately, the expectation of silence causes the aunt to take her life and the life of her newborn; the reason for her action, Kingston reveals, is the “never-said” (10).

The female characters in Kingston’s memoir—namely, Kingston and her no-name aunt—experience various cultural expectations. One such expectation, identity shaped by silence, serves as the overarching theme of Kingston’s The Woman Warrior.

Kingston writes, “Be careful what you say. It comes true. It comes true” (204). This expectation of silence and subsequent fear of the truth—of revealing faults or placing blame—haunts the lives and stories of the women in Kingston’s memoir, perpetuating dramatic and sometimes devastating results.

Vintage, 0679721886, 1989

The copyright of the article Identity Shaped by Silence in American Fiction is owned by Allison D. Schisler. Permission to republish Identity Shaped by Silence in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

Maxine Hong Kingston's The Woman Warrior

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