Is The Good Earth still relatable?
The Good Earth, a book about the end of the Qing Dynasty, reflects the transition of a cultural period of China’s past. Whether through the perspective of a farmer, scholar, businessman, or woman, the book portrays them all in a realistic manner. The main character Wang, an earnest farmer with a strong devotion to land, connects all the characters together into one complete story.
Over 60% of SMIC students have claimed to have Chinese family roots. However, although many students are Chinese in ethnicity, they do not feel any sense of connection with the book.
“It’s a very thought-provoking book,” recalled Jada Xu (10C). “[But] it was somewhat hard to relate to the book because we live such comfortable lives; it’s hard to imagine living in such conditions.”
Nonetheless, there is still a fair amount of empathy towards the Chinese characters. “I like how realistically it portrayed the farmer’s rise to wealth–––his traditions, and his thought process. My grandparents would tell me stories about their childhood, and they sounded a bit like the farmer. My grandma before the Cultural Revolution owned a dye factory, and her storytelling sounded like the narrator’s,” Elyse Shan (10B) revealed.
Jada and Elyse’s perspectives reflect the distance between SMIC students and traditional Chinese people but also sheds light on their understanding toward each other’s mindsets. This places SMIC-I in a very interesting spot––we’re significantly more westernized than the local Shanghai schools but still definitely more Chinese than the other international schools. And this cultural middle ground is what makes SMIC unique.
Photo Courtesy of Marilyn Ben