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In the novel "Little Fires Everywhere" by Celeste Ng, the marxist lens is present in comparison of Moody Richardson and Pearl Warrens living conditions. In the beginning of the text, after Pearl and her mother Mia move into the home Mrs. Richardson rents out to them, Moody introduces himself out of curiosity of a possible new friend. As Moody gets to know Pearl and Mia better, he learns about their budgets and dependency on money to get by when he had "never thought about money, because he had never needed to", living as a wealthy kid in a wealthy town (Ng 23). Moody continues to learn, as he once believed working could be only considered a job until you have a regular pay-check, consistent working hours, etc. With that mindset he accused Mia of not having a "real job", until Pearl corrected him by announcing her mother "has a real job" as "an artist" (Ng 24). Even though Mia's job doesn't grant her an easy path to success, it is her passion and she enjoys it. Overall, the economic comparisons in this novel have taught me that money is not equivalent to happiness, and one can only find joy in the tasks that they are passionate about.

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Minorities are constantly being weighed down by societal expectations and are set up for failure with their disadvantageous opportunities and treatment.  

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In this novel, Bebe Chew is an immigrant who comes to the U.S in pursuit of a better life. Yet in America, she finds "nowhere to turn" once she becomes a single mother (Ng 254). Due to the language and cultural barriers of the U.S, she is unaware that "welfare was a possibility" and "sees no safety net" (Ng 254). The barriers within American society that prevented her from receiving help meant she struggled to provide opportunities for herself and her daughter. Ultimately, she is forced to return to her homeland, cutting her completely off from the American Dream she came to achieve. This reveals an interpretation of the American Dream as being unattainable for people without knowledge of and access to English and American cultural norms.

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"According to Christensen (2017) that said the birth parent in the background can sense the segregation as though they are not important in their child’s life while they are watching their child be bathed with affection and support by other people." This quote from the literary criticism has connections to some of the discussions we had about this novel during our book clubs. This quote is specifically referring to the separation and unimportance Bebe feels seeing her child literally be adopted by another family. During our second book club, we discussed how Mia partially took the job at the Richardsons to be closer to her daughter Pearl. While the Richardsons may not have literally adopted Pearl, they gave off affection and support in their house to her, which gave Mia the same feelings of segregation and unimportance.
"The novel shows the life of a protagonist, Mia Warren, that has experienced commodification... in her life because of surrogacy."  - This quote from the literary criticism relates Mia's experience as a surrogate to Karl Marx's theory of commodification. During our book clubs, we also examined the experience and struggles of Mia through a Marxist lens. Commodification refers to the action of treating someone as an item. This connects to our third book club where we discussed how the Ryans treated Mia as a commodity because she would provide them with the baby they wanted, by chasing her down and providing her with resources like housing.
"The novel also shows the life of another protagonist, Bebe Chow, who has experienced alienation because of the adoption process of her child." - This quote from this literary criticism associates Marx's theory of alienation with the adoption process of Bebe's child. While we didn't explicitly look at Bebe's experience through a Marxist lens during our book clubs, we did discuss ideas connected to alienation as they related to Bebe. Alienation refers to one being isolated from a group, an activity, or a production. In a literal sense, one can refer to May-Ling as being Bebe's production since she birthed and raised her; thus her being taken away was a form of alienation. Additionally, in our fourth book club, we discussed how some residents of Shaker, such as Mrs. Richardson, isolated Bebe through discrediting her valid claims on May-Ling. This also provides a clear example of alienation being directed to Bebe during the adoption.

All in all, reading this literary criticism was helpful for our group because it added new ideas to our thinking on class in this book, while reinforcing other ideas we had discussed in our book club.

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Ernest Morell Lens & Outside Research: What Historical Events Might Have Influenced the Text?  

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Ernest Morell Lens & Outside Research: What Historical Events Might Have Influenced the Text?  

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In this novel, which is set in the late 1990s, the residents of Shaker Heights take a specific approach to race. They believe "that in the future" people will "look past race" ( Ng 152). This belief is inspired by the ideology of "colorblindness" which according to the Washington Post is a "selective and distorted reading" of MLK's dream of judging people by character rather than skin color (Washington Post). While this outlook first developed in the 1980s, it really rose to prominence in the mid-1990s during Bill Clinton's presidency within efforts to combat rising racial tensions (Stamped). The portrayal of this historical movement in the novel seems to be part of an effort to criticize the ideology. As we have seen throughout this year, it is impossible to look past race because it influences all areas of people's lives. This novel reveals the devastating consequences that occur when people try to look past race.
Amazon linked to Stamped-
https://www.amazon.com/Stamped-Antiracism-National-Award-winning-Beginning/dp/0316453692/ref=pd_lpo_1?pd_rd_i=0316453692&psc=1

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The race lens in "Little Fires Everywhere" is present during the trial deciding May-Ling's parental guardian between Linda McCullough's and Bebe Chow. Mrs. McCullough is a white American woman who has lived in Shaker Heights her whole life. Her adoption of May-Ling, a baby of Chinese heritage, was not an issue until her birth mother, Bebe Chow, requested to take custody of May-Ling after abandoning her. As this conflict became public, people began to question if it is more appropriate for a child to grow up circulated around their culture or assimilating to the American ways. Mrs. McCullough fulfilled those worries by first changing May-Ling's name to Mirabelle, as she wants “Mirabelle to grow up like a typical American girl” with her knowing “she’s exactly the same as everyone else” ( Ng 153). This mindset is called colorism and terminates one’s ability to celebrate their difference because they are oblivious of their true identity. During the trial, the lawyer of Bebe, Ed Lim, a man of Chinese culture, began to question Mrs. McCullough on this topic, and made her cry out of fear of losing her child due to her ignorance of Chinese culture. The lawyer of Mrs. McCullough, Mr. Richardson, found a way to benefit his case from their encounter and racially profiled Ed Lim. He wrote an article stating “an angry Asian man didn’t fit the public's expectations, and was therefore unnerving”, but an Asian man could be “socially inept and incompetent and ridiculous like a Long Duk Dong” (Ng 267). These comments are unfair stereotypes that were used against the lawyer who didn’t do nothing wrong during the questioning.

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Amongst the prim and proper lifestyle of Shaker Heights there is societal expectations to maintain an orderly way of life. Garbage cans must be dragged out to the back "to avoid the unsightly spectacle of trash cans cluttering the curb" (Ng 9). Within this orderly town are individuals like Mrs. Richardson who thrive off of perfection. Izzy, daughter to Mrs. Richardson, is a damper to their picture perfect family as she dresses differently, acts out, and jeopardizes the family reputation. The Warrens, the new family in town of a lower socioeconomic status appear to similarly complicate the deluxe superiority of the "utopian" community as they aren't able to maintain such an elegant lifestyle in comparison to the rest (Ng 8). Bebe Chow reinforces this concept through a battle of custody for her formerly abandoned daughter against a wealthy white family. Bebe, a poor Chinese immigrant, grows to desire her child and finds it unjust that her daughter has been placed with the aforementioned white family, the McCulloughs. The McCulloughs embody the ideals of Shaker Heights whereas Bebe, an underprivileged outsider, devastates their state of perfection.

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The perfect town "Little Fires Everywhere" is set in.

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Celeste Ng is a Chinese-American writer based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She was born in 1980 in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania, to immigrants from Hong Kong. She attended Harvard University after growing up in Shaker Heights, Ohio. She has written a variety of short stories but published her first novel in 2014 which won the Amazon Book of the Year award. After writing Little Fires Everywhere she was awarded the Goodreads Choice Awards Best Fiction Book accolade.

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Our group very much enjoyed the book "Little Fires Everywhere" by Celeste Ng. It was mostly an easy read, but it dealt with heavy topics and plot lines that overlapped each other in an organized manner. The characters were very well developed with their flaws and perfections equally emphasized making it easier for one to relate to them. I would recommend this read to anyone interested in a fictional novel that questions identity, motherhood, and the American Dream through a focus of two families opposite of each other. Even though this read was set in the 1990's, there were many contemporary issues that can still be seen today.

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It was also rated as the second best place to live in all of Ohio.

Shaker Heights is among the best places in the United States to live, according to a new study from the review website Niche.

The city was named the 12th best suburb in all of America, with various factors considered such as schools, housing, diversity, and activities. Shaker Heights received its highest grades (A+ each) for public schools and raising families, ranking 22nd among suburbs for the latter category.

Among Northeast Ohio suburbs, Shaker Heights was the only one to crack the overall top 50, and also ranked as the second best place to live in all of Ohio behind only Columbus suburb Grandview Heights. Solon came in at No. 13 in Ohio.
"Shaker Heights is in Cuyahoga County and is one of the best places to live in Ohio. Living in Shaker Heights offers residents a suburban feel and most residents own their homes. In Shaker Heights there are a lot of restaurants, coffee shops, and parks. Many families live in Shaker Heights and residents tend to lean liberal. The public schools in Shaker Heights are highly rated."
With a population of 27,749, Shaker Heights boasts a median home value of $218,500 and a median household income of $82,830. The only grades categories in which it did not receive at least an A- grade were cost of living (B) and weather (C-), although no grade was given for crime and safety.

Carmel, Indiana, located about 45 minutes north of Indianapolis, was named the best suburb in the U.S.

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Study names Shaker Heights 12th best suburb in America

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It was also rated as the second best place to live in all of Ohio. Shaker Heights is among the best places in the United States to live, according to a new study from the review website Niche. The city was named the 12th best suburb in all of America, with various factors considered such as schools, housing, diversity, and activities.

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Little Fires Everywhere (Hulu) Trailer HD - Reese Witherspoon, Kerry Washington series

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In "Little Fires Everywhere", the author Celeste Ng provides many examples of motherhood affecting one's identity. Izzy Richardson and Pearl Warren were both born in two completely different environments. Right at birth, Izzy was treated different from her other siblings due to her mother's constant "rush of anxiety" and "fear" over Izzy's health (Ng 110). This protective behavior over Izzy only provoked her to act out even more. Each time she did something not socially accepted by her mother and Shaker Heights, she crumbled under the disappointment. However, when Mia Warren, Pearl's mother, came into Izzy's life, she felt understood and heard. It was "easy for Izzy to pretend that Mia was her mother" while taking the role of Mia's daughter, Pearl (Ng 92). This jealousy of Pearl continued when Mrs. Richardson acted as though she was part of the family. In reality, this satisfied Pearl's cravings, as she wished for a more stable life that didn't include switching schools every year and worrying about making enough money for the month. When talking about the Richardson's with her mother, Pearl described them "as if they were a TV show she was fascinated about" (Ng 38). This made Mia worry that theRichardsons' influence would make Pearl ungrateful for her current living arrangements. With these mindsets of Pearl and Izzy, it can be concluded that identity and desires can be stronger than blood.