Lan Samantha Chang Water Names

In society, one’s culture and traditions are what makes a person’s character and personality. In most families, there are traditions that are passed down like folktales. Folktales are stories passed down person by person and eventually change slightly over time. However, the focal message of folktales always typically stick. Folktales teach valuable life lessons while entertaining the reader or in some cases the three granddaughters as seen in “Water Names.” The short story “Water Names” written by Lan Samantha Chang is a story of a Chinese folktale told by a grandmother narrating the tale to her three granddaughters. The folktale centers the symbol of water and the meaning manifests as the three young girls learn what it can do. The grandmother

Symbolism is seen throughout the short story and has a significant effect on the young girls at the end. At the beginning of the story, the three girls are playfully fighting; at the end, the girls are silent and are left with questions. The symbol of water has had this impact on the girls because it is seen as a majestic and virtuous force that has run within their family and made them strong. Waipuo, who is an elder, has come to understand this because it is depicted that she often sat with the girls in silence, and appears to be very strict. As an elder, Waipuo understands how important the water is and says that “our strength and spirit wear down mountains into sand. But even our people must respect the water.” The water is seen as a divine force that controls their lives and without it, the family would be weak and they would powdered down and broken apart, but because they understand the power and respect the water, they are strong and have value. Although the pearl ring is not as prominent of a symbol as water, it is still important when Waipuo tells the tale. The pearl ring symbolizes purity, and it foreshadows how pure and innocent Wen Zhiqing’s daughter was. This pearl ring provoked the daughter to believe that a beloved husband was waiting for her in the river, and when she had told her father this, he said it was “nonsense.” It was disregarded as real because Wen is older and wiser, while his daughter still believed this because she was young and naive. The pearl ring created a false hope and dream within her that lead her to hurry to the water during a terrible flood. The young girls can connect both symbols to their own lives and realize that the water is powerful, and it can help them, but it should not be played with because it is dangerous. The