The Ginger Tree

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Trudy The father was a Japanese aristocrat and knew that if the son stayed with the non-Japanese mother, he would be a sort of outcast. He wanted his son to…moreThe father was a Japanese aristocrat and knew that if the son stayed with the non-Japanese mother, he would be a sort of outcast. He wanted his son to be considered fully Japanese and lead a Japanese life, so he arranges him to be adopted into a wealthy Japanese family in need of a son to carry on their name. If he had not looked Japanese, or had he been a female child, it would have been likelier that he be allowed to stay with the mother. In the novel, however, it becomes clear later on that people of mixed Japanese ancestry did have a role in society, as lawyers, bankers, and such. So it is unfair, in the end, what the mother was made to suffer.
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Оксана Черкас Probably. I don`t know if the author of the book meant this, but think such interpretation is possible. Though, in my opinion, in this case their barr…moreProbably. I don`t know if the author of the book meant this, but think such interpretation is possible. Though, in my opinion, in this case their barrenness is not quite fair: they were driven to what they did, they didn`t want to take those male roles. According to the book initially they wished simple woman`s happiness as most of women do. So, to punish them for taking on male roles and to spare those who pushed them to this is not fair. So, I think the main message of the book is not about their childless because of rebel.(less)
Оксана Черкас I think she was 21, because when Mary set off for that trip to merry that Peking husband chosen for her, she wrote in her diary she was 20. And after …moreI think she was 21, because when Mary set off for that trip to merry that Peking husband chosen for her, she wrote in her diary she was 20. And after some time she mentioned that it was her birthday she spent on the ship. So, 21.
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