Name: Class:

Fish Cheeks
By Amy Tan
1987

Amy Tan is an American writer whose work often provides insight into the experiences of
Chinese Americans and family relationships. While her parents emigrated from China, Tan
herself was born in Oakland, California. Skills Focus: In this lesson, you'll analyze how the
author develops the narrator's point of view. In this lesson, you’ll practice analyzing how an
author develops a narrator’s point of view. This means determining what the narrator thinks or
believes and examining how the author uses actions, dialogue, and thoughts to develop this
point of view. As you read, take notes on the narrator’s point of view of her culture.

[1] I fell in love with the minister’s son the winter I

turned fourteen. He was not Chinese, but as
white as Mary in the manger. For Christmas I
prayed for this blond-haired boy, Robert, and
a slim new American nose.

When I found out that my parents had invited

the minister’s family over for Christmas Eve
dinner, I cried. What would Robert think of
our shabby Chinese Christmas? What would
he think of our noisy Chinese relatives who
lacked proper American manners? What "Untitled" by Jametlene Reskp is licensed under
terrible disappointment would he feel upon CC0.
seeing not a roasted turkey and sweet
potatoes but Chinese food?

On Christmas Eve I saw that my mother had outdone herself in creating a strange menu. She
was pulling black veins out of the backs of fleshy prawns. 1The kitchen was littered with
appalling 2mounds of raw food: A slimy rock cod with bulging eyes that pleaded not to be
thrown into a pan of hot oil. Tofu, which looked like stacked wedges of rubbery white sponges.
A bowl soaking dried fungus back to life. A plate of squid, their backs crisscrossed with knife
markings so they resembled bicycle tires.

And then they arrived — the minister’s family and all my relatives in a clamor3 of doorbells and

1. Prawn is a common name for shrimp, used particularly in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
2. Appalling (adjective) causing shock, disgust, or alarm

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 rumpled Christmas packages. Robert grunted hello, and I pretended he was not worthy of
existence.

[5] Dinner threw me deeper into despair. My relatives licked the ends of their chopsticks and
reached across the table, dipping them into the dozen or so plates of food. Robert and his
family waited patiently for platters to be passed to them. My relatives murmured with pleasure
when my mother brought out the whole steamed fish. Robert grimaced. Then my father poked
his chopsticks just below the fish eye and plucked out the soft meat. “Amy, your favorite,” he
said, offering me the tender fish cheek. I wanted to disappear.

At the end of the meal my father leaned back and belched loudly, thanking my mother for her
fine cooking. “It’s a polite Chinese custom to show you are satisfied,” explained my father to our
astonished guests. Robert was looking down at his plate with a reddened face. The minister
managed to muster up a quiet burp. I was stunned into silence for the rest of the night.

After everyone had gone, my mother said to me, “You want to be the same as American girls on
the outside.” She handed me an early gift. It was a miniskirt in beige tweed. “But inside you
must always be Chinese. You must be proud you are different. Your only shame is to have
shame.”

And even though I didn’t agree with her then, I knew that she understood how much I had
suffered during the evening’s dinner. It wasn’t until many years later — long after I had gotten
over my crush on Robert — that I was able to fully appreciate her lesson and the true purpose
behind our particular menu. For Christmas Eve that year, she had chosen all my favorite foods.

"Fish Cheeks" by Amy Tan from Seventeen Magazine. Copyright © 1987 by Amy Tan and the Sandra
Dijkstra Literary Agency. Reprinted with permission, all rights reserved.

Unless otherwise noted, this content is licensed under the CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license

3. Clamor (noun) loud and confusing noise

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 Text-Dependent Questions
Directions: For the following questions, choose the best answer or respond in complete
sentences.

1. What does the menu description in paragraph 3 reveal about how the narrator views
her family's cultural traditions?
A. She views them as humorous.
B. She views them as disgusting.
C. She views them as honorable.
D. She views them as annoying.

2. How does the narrator's embarrassed attitude towards her culture affect the way
she describes events in the passage?
A. She describes the food as foreign and unappealing.
B. She focuses on her desire to be more "American."
C. She focuses on her crush's reactions to her family.
D. She criticizes every little detail of her mother's cooking.

3. Which piece of evidence best reveals the narrator's feelings about her family's
behavior during dinner?
A. "And then they arrived — the minister's family and all my relatives in a
clamor of doorbells and rumpled Christmas packages." (Paragraph 4)
B. "Robert and his family waited patiently for platters to be passed to them."
(Paragraph 5)
C. "I was stunned into silence for the rest of the night." (Paragraph 6)
D. "And even though I didn't agree with her then, I knew that she understood
how much I had suffered during the evening's dinner." (Paragraph 8)

4. Which word best describes the tone of paragraph 5?

A. miserable
B. cheerful
C. shocked
D. proud

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5. What does Amy's mother mean when she says, "Your only shame is to have shame"?
(Paragraph 7)
A. It is wrong for Amy to be embarrassed of her family's traditions.
B. It is wrong for Amy to be embarrassed of her love for American food.
C. It is wrong for Amy to be embarrassed about having a crush on Robert.
D. It is wrong for Amy to be embarrassed about fitting in with her classmates.

6. What does paragraph 8 reveal about how the narrator's point of view changed as she
got older?
A. She realized the minister's son was not as friendly as she thought.
B. She learned to love her mother's cooking, which she previously hated.
C. She regretted not expressing her real emotions to Robert and his family.
D. She learned to appreciate her family and her Chinese American identity.

7. What does paragraph 2 reveal about the narrator's point of view? How does the
author develop this point of view?

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 Discussion Questions
Directions: Brainstorm your answers to the following questions in the space provided. Be
prepared to share your original ideas in a class discussion.

1. How does the speaker's family act during dinner? How does the minister's family act
during dinner? Why do they act so differently? Explain.

2. What shapes a person's identity? Is it possible for a person to change their identity?
Should they try? Explain.

3. What do you think could be the positive or negative consequences of ignoring your
family's past and traditions in favor of something that seems more popular or
"normal"?

4. Refer back to paragraphs 7 and 8. What does Amy's mother understand about family
that Amy couldn't see as a fourteen year old? How is the relationship between family
members different from other relationships? Do you agree that it is important to
remember and stay true to your culture, heritage, and traditions? Why?