English 12: Crying in H Mart (analysis) by

What factors shape our values & beliefs?

azaandossa — 2024-02-13 17:49:49 UTC

An analysis of Michelle Zauner's memoir: Crying in H Mart

Point 1: Influential people in a childhood upbringing

azaandossa — 2024-02-15 17:54:23 UTC

The person we later become usually comes from who's in our lives during our childhood. We pick up certain words, traditions in cooking and (possibly) religion. There are many things that stick with us that is embedded into our memory that act as the foundations to certain things that we carry with us throughout our lives. In Michelle's memoir, she mentions how she picked up a compulsion to clean as a sort of "protection ritual" performed when she had any feeling of abandonment, which tormented her imagination.

Evidence of Point 1 (Quote, Ch2)

azaandossa — 2024-02-15 17:58:35 UTC

Quote: "I developed this compulsion to clean as a sort of protection ritual performed when I felt even the slightest bit abandoned, an eventuality that tormented my young imagination." (Pg. 21)

Something as simple as cleaning deeply connects with Michelle and her day to day life, acting as a strong bridge to her and her mother. It turned into a way to cope with the possibility of being alone, which as she said "an eventuality that tormented my young imagination."

Point 2: Food

azaandossa — 2024-02-20 17:55:17 UTC

Food. We all have our preferences on how certain ingredients are put together to make the food we are familiar with. Many families and/or cultures have a signature dish that tends to be an old recipe that's been passed down for generations. Everyone has a different style of food that resonates with them and that's usually because from our childhoods, which Michelle mentions numerous times throughout her memoir about her family & mother's cooking and how she still buys the same ingredients for the same dishes she once had like clockwork.

Evidence of Point 2 (Quote, Ch1)

azaandossa — 2024-02-21 18:08:28 UTC

Quote: "Food was how my mother expressed her love. No matter how critical or cruel she could seem, I could always feel her affection radiating from the lunches she packed and the meals she prepared for me just the way I liked them." (Pg. 4)

She further mentions how important her mother's cooking was later in her memoir. The care demonstrated in Michelle's packed lunches and the altering of foods to her liking always indicated how much she loved her. Despite the arguments and bad moments between them, they could always agree on the food they both knew.

Point 3: Personal Memories and Experiences

azaandossa — 2024-02-22 17:51:28 UTC

One major point in her memoir is her desire for independence throughout her early life. Michelle lives in a predominantly white town, yet later says how she wishes how she lived in an environment with a relation to her culture. This connects with how one's values and beliefs can be shaped through the journey we all go on. Michelle longs for independence while she's with her parents, which is why she chose to go somewhere far from there to see what paths there are for her.

Another point is her parent's desire to try the finer foods in life. She says how she's had different delicacies and rare/ high valued foods with her parents such as caviar and the intestines of certain animals. The value of food is different for everyone based off of their means or lack there of. For Michelle, it was a treat to try these new and expensive foods on those rare occasions.

Evidence of Point 3 (Quote, Ch2)

azaandossa — 2024-02-22 17:55:36 UTC

"What my parents lacked in high culture, they made up for by spending their money on the finest of delicacies. My childhood was rich with flavor- blood sausage, fish intestines, caviar. They loved good food, to make it, to seek it, to share it, and I was an honorary guest at their table.' (Pg. 23)

Those finer things were a great part of her life and memories with her parents to cherish. Again, we all have our own takes on different foods, our own personal value of going to fancy/ expensive restaurants, and the frequency of going there. Experiences like these are something many people can relate to but some, more than others.

Evidence of Point 2 (Quote, Ch6)

azaandossa — 2024-02-27 06:00:04 UTC

"My mother prepared for our reunions in her own way, marinating short rib two days before my arrival. She filled the fridge with my favourite side dishes and bought my favourite radish kimchi weeks in advance, leaving it out on the counter for a day so it was extra fermented and tart by the time I got home. Tender short rib, soused in sesame oil, sweet syrup, and soda and caramelized in the pan, filled the kitchen with a rich, smoky scent." (Pg. 70)

Again, after so many arguments, after pain and suffering in the family over the newest development, her mother, having cancer, still made such delicious and welcoming food to have a good time and a warm welcome back. After the welcoming back, Michelle talks about how it was such a nice time with nostalgia hitting with each bite. We can all relate to a certain food but given the events that have unfolded and will continue to unfold, this makes this moment, with every bite of short rib, all the more special.

Evidence of Point 3 (Quote, Ch6)

azaandossa — 2024-02-27 15:49:32 UTC

"As I descended the escalator of the Eugene airport, I half expected my mother to be waiting like she used to, alone in the terminal just beyond security, waving as I came into view. Instead, I found my father outside, parked by the baggage claim exit." (Pg. 71)

Michelle gets these memories flood her from time to time at this point due to her mother's illness, where they connect in places special to her. The feeling of finally getting off of a plane, breathing that new air, and waiting to leave to then see a relative or someone special to you is an experience many people have. For Michelle, that person was her mother but since she's now sick, she can't relive that memory again with the person she connects to the most.