Chapter Four, Flashback, Amy Tan. The Joy Luck Club

The Moon Lady

"And I want to tell her this: We are lost, she and I, unseen and not seeing, unheard and not hearing, unknown by others".

Page 67

"Auntie" Ying-ying St. Clair opens up this chapter talking about how she has lost herself. She watches her daughter and her family become lost in materialistic things. She feels that her daughter notices things she has to do, but does not see the pain and agony her own mother feels. Ying-ying knows that years of pain has caused her to lose herself. She recalls when she was just a curious little girl. While remembering the Moon Festival with her Amah and her family she recalls a wish she made to the Moon Lady. Ying speaks of the time her family went on a party boat to enjoy the day of the moon. She was only at the age of four at the time, but vividly remembers falling off the boat into the dark waters. She was rescued and brought to the shore, but was extremely frightened since she was lost. While she waited to be rescued by her family she watched the play of the Moon Lady and remembered her Amah said she would grant her one "selfish desire". She wished to be found.

Ying-ying St. Clair remembers this wish because she had never stopped wishing it. Her Amah had taught her of the five evils to be afraid of and she let that take over her life. She wants a sense of peace within herself and within her family. The lack of peace of mind Ying-ying has, has strained her relationship with her daughter. This is a reason why she is deathly afraid of being forgotten by her daughter.

It appears to me that Ying-ying St. Clair seems to be in a state of depression. I am not sure what has caused her to lose herself, but it seems like it would create even more distance between her and her daughter. The quote is explaining how Ying-ying thinks that she and her daughter are alike. Ying-ying thinks that her daughter has the same fears as she does, but is living without trying to protect herself from them. Many people today have depression that seems to cut them off from the rest of the world. Living in constant fear takes a huge toll on themselves and their loved ones. Fear can destroy people.

Ying-ying St. Clair has a Flashback in this chapter. She recalls the wish she made at the Moon Festival when she was four years old. "But now I remember the wish, and I can recall the details of the entire day, as clearly as I see my daughter and the foolishness of her life"(67-68).