Change In The Novel Balzac And The Little Chinese Seamstress

There is a snake by the name of Spruce, who whenever taken from his terrarium, upon his return he will circle around every inch of his home, anxious that it might have changed while he was gone. Change can be a scary thing, especially when it comes to where you live. Set in China the novel Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress follows a seventeen year old boy, and his best friend, Luo, after they have been forced to move to leave their families, and move to a village in the country. The year is 1971, and Chairman Mao, the communist leader of China, has declared that a vast number of children are to be moved to the countryside to be “‘re-educated by the poor peasants’”(6). The protagonist and his best friend are sent to the countryside for

One day after doing the Chinese Seamstress’ nails, the narrator longs “to ask if [he] might kiss her red nails when I [he returns] the next day”(152). However, he stops upon reminding himself “of the prohibitions arising from [his] gallant commitment to [his] friend and commander”(152). By this point in the book, the narrator has become comfortable, and accepting of the ideas “of women, love and sex”, as a result of Western books, and more importantly has become comfortable with his environment. The only thing holding him back from giving in to his feelings about the Chinese Seamstress, is his loyalty to his friend. However, now that he’s relaxed, and has exposed himself to these new ideas, he eventually gives in. The narrator slowly succumbs to his feelings, allowing himself to think about the Chinese Seamstress sexualy as shown when one night the narrator abandons “himself in the dark to a betrayal that [leaves] his pants sticky”(157). The narrator fantasizes about the Chinese Seamstress sexually, and in doing so “abandons”, or in other words, gives up on trying to be loyal to Luo. This is only the start, as the narrator allows himself to think more and more about the Chinese Seamstress in this way. By thinking of the Chinese Seamstress in a romantic way, the narrator allows himself to develop a feeling of closeness to the seamstress. This is revealed to reader when upon discovering the Chinese Seamstress is pregnant, the narrator thinks, “I felt as if it were my child...I would have married her myself had the law permitted”(159). The narrator feels such a connection to the Chinese Seamstress, that he feels the baby is his responsibility, and is willing to marry the Seamstress. This shows the vast transformation of the narrator, as he goes from refusing to even entertain any romantic thoughts about