Amy Tan A Pair Of Tickets Summary

Amy Tan was born in Oakland, California in 1952. She is the only daughter of Chinese immigrants, John and Daisy Tan. She has two brothers, John Jr. and Peter.

When her father and brother, Peter died, both died from brain tumors. Her mother, Daisy, moved to Switzerland in 1967. Amy finished high school at Institute Monte Rosa, Montreux. Amy Tan majored in English at San Jose State, in California, in the 70s instead of becoming a surgeon like her mother wanted her too. After graduate work at the University of California, Berkeley, she began a career as a technical writer (a person who writes about mechanical and computer issues). As a release from the demands of her technical writing career, she decided to do fiction writing. Amy Tan a lot gained

“ A Pair of Tickets”, is about a father and daughter on a journey from America to China. The action from moving from America to China, also symbolizes the movement of Jing-Mei’s recognition of her identity as she shifts from her American culture to her new Chinese Culture that was already in her blood. Symbolism when you’re reading a story means a lot. Symbolism is shown in many different ways in “A Pair of Tickets”. The symbolism in this short story makes it come alive to the reader. A symbol in a pair of tickets is the color red. Red is different in the Chinese tradition from everyone else. Red symbolizes joy, happiness and celebration. Amy Tan repeats the word blood a lot in “A Pair of Tickets”. Blood symbolizes family in the story and their relations. At the beginning of the story Jing-Mei didn’t know her Chinese blood identity. Until she went to China to meet her sisters she never knew what it felt like to be truly Chinese. Another symbol in “A Pair of Tickets” is the make-up coming off her face when she gets to China. When the make-up comes off it could be her “finding herself” or her true identity of being Chinese. The names in “A Pair of Tickets” have a lot of meaning. Jing-Mei name means she is first, and that she is a young sister. Jing-Mei mother’s name was Suyuan. In Chinese, it meant Long Cherished Wish. It’s very ironic how her name is that and she had a

It is not only Jing-Mei who discovers her Chinese roots but also her father rediscovers his childhood Chinese in him. Both Jing-Mei and her father are going to China for the same reason, to see their sisters. Her father is going to meet his older sister, Aiyi, and Jing-Mei is going to see her half-sisters. They’re both very emotional when they see their sisters. Even though she is the only daughter to her father, in her mother’s eyes, she has two bigger sisters .The connection between the names of the mother and daughters is one of the things that attach Jing-Mei closer to her family and Chinese side. After Jing-Mei slowly begins to understands her mother more and about her sisters, she slowly realizes how important it is for herself to meet her half- sisters. It is the cherished wish that her mother has always dreamed of. Jing-Mei understands a lot more when she figures out what her name means. She now knows that her mother had given her that name in hope that maybe one day, Jing-Mei would be able to find her sisters and fulfill her mother’s long lost wish .Parallel to the names, is the names of the cities that have changed their spelling. For Example, Chungking is Chongquin. And Kweilin is Guilin. June Mays name also changes as she accepts her Chinese culture and identity to Jing-mei. The title A Pair of Tickets, is the story of a father and daughter on a journey from one place, America, to another, China.