Analysis Of An Ocean Apart A World Away

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Recommended: The role of women in literature

One of the greater messages conveyed through An Ocean Apart, A World Away, pertains to the eradication of sexism, encouraging equality between all genders, and re-establishing the independence of women in many cultures. The author demonstrates the struggles of one individual assimilating into a foreign culture. The difference between the Chinese and American culture is evident as are the attempts of the main character to assimilate, and adapt to his/her new surroundings. The novel compares the stereotypes women face in both the Chinese and American culture and clearly regards it as an issue. An Ocean Apart, A World Away is a unique story with an important message, providing great insight into the history of China while maintaining a subtle sense of humour to keep the story entertaining. It also has a strong female protagonist but failed to successfully develop secondary characters. Other female characters could have aided the story in giving a stronger message as well as creating a more interesting plot. The plot lacked many details during the events, causing the plot to seem rushed. Although the story is lacking in some aspects, readers will find themselves fully engrossed into the daily lives of Chinese women during the early 1900s.
Bibliographical Information

Namioka, L. (2002). An Ocean Apart, A World Away. New York, NY: Delacorte Press.
Lensey Namioka

Lensey Namioka is a Chinese-born American writer of many popular novels for both young adults and children. She was born on July 29th, 1929 in Beijing, China. In 1937, Namioka and her family were living in Nanjing but fled westward during the Japanese Invasion. They eventually made their way to Hawaii, and ultimately settled in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Namioka attended Univ...

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...ural knowledge as well as the lack of respect for these cultures.
Personally, I really liked An Ocean Apart, A World Away by Lensey Namioka because of the insight provided regarding values, beliefs, customs, languages and traditions in the Chinese culture. In general, it illustrated the cultural norms for a Chinese (Zhuang) family which helped me compare it many of the other cultures I have already been exposed to such as Pakistani, Indian, Korean and Canadian. The writing style of the novel is very clear and focused on the main purpose throughout the novel. Additionally, Namioka explains the reasoning and behind the events of Yanyan’s life, her choices, and the political environment in China to reduce any confusion of the readers. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who would like an interesting read, but is unable to set aside the time for a long novel.

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