Translucent Jade Flashcards
“My Grandfather made me a gift”
Technique: Symbolism
Effect:
Symbolic of Ten’s intergenerational cultural connection.
“made” highlights the authenticity and genuine nature of the gift.
“ my mother’s/ flashed into view”
Technique: Enjambment
Effect:
Ten’s use of enjambment highlights the physical separation between her and her traditional culture at the adoption of her Western name
“ Common in its place of origin, here her gift sparkled and sang”
Technique: Juxtaposition + Personification
Effect:
- The juxtaposition between gift and common highlights how Mauteen Ten’s Western name is common, and the experience of Australian Asians taking up a Western-sounding name is also common.
- Sibilance is used to create a soothing sound effect to highlight the calming nature of adopting a Western name
“ Not that his was jostled aside, but it sort of slipped away”
Technique: Metaphor
Effect:
Ten’s grandfather’s gift being “ slipped away” reflects, her metaphorical loss of culture as a different culture consumes her
“Pristine. I tried it on”
Technique: Truncated sentence
Effect:
The truncated sentence creates a sense of hesitation to use her Chinese name after several years and a sense of hesitation after being disconnected from her culture for so long
“As if from a world I hadn’t inhibited but heard stories about”
Technique: Simile
Effect:
Ten connecting her culture to a “story” highlights her sense of disconnection from her Chinese culture. S her rediscovered connection seemed fictional and superficial. Highlighting to the audience the difficulty of reconnecting with cultural heritage to encourage them to change the perceptions of Chinese Australians that they’re always connected to culture and that assimilating into two cultures is easy.
“Sometimes I felt an imposter
Sometimes I thought it reflected hidden aspects I could own.”
Technique: Anaphora
Effect:
Ten’s use of anaphora creates an emotional effect on the audience, as the repetition of “ Sometimes” reflects her desperation to find a full sense of identity by reconnecting to her Chinese culture.
“What vibrations are these”
Technique: Rhetorical question
Effect:
Ten’s use of rhetorical questions emphasises her detachment from her Chinese culture, at the unfamiliarity with pronouncing her name and her longing to reconnect with it.
“Does this begin to become me,/do I to it belong?”
Technique: Rhetorical question
Enjambment
Effect:
- Rhetorical question highlights Ten’s inner turmoil about belonging to her Chinese culture
- Accompanied by enjambment further conveys Ten’s concern about not belonging to her Chinese culture
“This translucent, slowly-yielding music/
Chinese name.”
Technique: Extended metaphor
Effect:
- The extended metaphor throughout the poem refers to Ten’s acceptance of her Chinese name. The acceptance of her Chinese name reflects her reconnection to her Chinese culture and subsequently getting back in touch with her identity.
- Supported by slow yielding to highlight that the process of finding acceptance was long it has a positive effect as she can reconnect with her Chinese culture
” Chinese name”
Technique: Truncated sentence
Effect:
- Reflects her acceptance and attempts to reconnect to her lost culture.
-The symbolism of the gift as her name and cultural identity is confirmed and highlights her acceptance and acknowledgment. -A sense of disconnection still remains which adds to the idea of the gradual nature of finding an identity.
