Was Wicked Ghost coming back into the story at the end impactful to you? Did it feel well placed?
Created: 03/21/21
Replies: 6
Join Date: 03/19/21
Posts: 28
Join Date: 11/22/19
Posts: 31
Wicked Ghost is the archtype of every "good" person who becomes cruel and vengeful because of jealousy and greed. Her excessive pursuit of the members of the Tan family suggests that her life has not been kind to her prior to the Communist Revolution and that she has been harboring negative feelings for those in a better place socially and economically for a long time.
The literary choice to reintroduce this character in profoundly reduced circumstances at the end of the book is, perhaps, the author's way of reinforcing the aphorism, "as ye sow, so shall you reap."
Join Date: 05/16/16
Posts: 172
Join Date: 01/10/21
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Join Date: 08/16/17
Posts: 175
Wicked Ghost is an important representation in the story of evil that arises also from within a culture. Not every bad thing that plagued the Vietnamese was external. The return of the family necklace was a small miracle that strengthened the family in rebuilding. It seemed a little contrived, but could easily have happened in a small rural community.
Join Date: 03/17/21
Posts: 6
I was surprised by his re-appearance but did guess that Tam's grandfather was him the way he described him when we first heard of his strange grandfather. I was disheartened that there wasnt a redemption part ....but it is more realistic for that character to not see his "wicked" ways and atone.
Join Date: 05/25/17
Posts: 23
Wicked Ghost was one of the least sympathetic characters in the book but his actions did result in Mr. Hai becoming deeply involved with Huong's family, having decendents who were his opposites, and keeping the jewel from being permanently lost by Huong's family during the 1955 Land Reform.
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