Mona in the Promised Land by Gish Jen
"Mona in the Promised Land" by Gish Jen is a poignant exploration of identity and cultural transformation within a multiethnic context in 1960s and 1970s America. Set in the affluent suburb of Scarshill, the narrative shifts focus from the parents, Ralph and Helen Chang, to their daughters, Mona and Callie, embodying a lively and satirical tone. The story delves into Mona's fascination with Judaism, which serves as a backdrop to the family's navigation through complex themes of race, religion, and assimilation. Jen weaves humor into serious social discussions, reflecting on the era's Civil Rights movement and the Vietnam War.
The characters, including Mona's Jewish boyfriend Seth and her sister Callie, explore their identities against the backdrop of a diverse community, prompting questions about heritage and belonging. Throughout the novel, the Changs grapple with their Chinese roots while embracing new cultural influences. The episodic structure allows for various interactions, culminating in Mona's marriage ceremony that symbolizes a fusion of identities. Despite the hopeful conclusion, the narrative leaves the future open-ended, showcasing the ongoing evolution of cultural identity and individual experience. Jen’s work invites readers to reflect on the complexities of identity without succumbing to stereotypes or assumptions.
Mona in the Promised Land by Gish Jen
Excerpted from an article in Magill’s Survey of American Literature, Revised Edition
First published: 1996
Type of work: Novel
The Work
With the narrative focus shifting from Ralph and Helen Chang to their daughters Mona and Callie, an antic ethos replaces the mood of melancholy that informed Typical American. Living now in the prosperous New York suburb of Scarshill (based on Jen’s childhood home, Scarsdale), the Changs are initially delighted with all of the cultural and social elements of a multiethnic community.
Mona’s unexpected infatuation with Judiasm is presented with a high-spirited satirical style which sweeps over everything the Changs encounter. This is Jen’s way of dealing with the serious issues of the 1960’s and 1970’s—the Civil Rights movement, the Vietnam War. Without being didactic, Jen addresses the racial, religious, and aesthetic questions that her characters encounter as an aspect of cross-cultural transformations.
Seth Mandel, Mona’s Jewish boyfriend, wears a dashiki to show his commitment to Black Pride. Callie studies Mandarin at Harvard and eats rice with everything, while her parents prefer organic and health food. Ralph discovers that the black and Mexican employees he regards as unimaginative can contribute significantly to the operation of his restaurant. When the Changs become concerned that Mona is losing her heritage, the local rabbi suggests paradoxically, “the more Jewish you become, the more Chinese you’ll be.” Compounding the ethnic mix is a Japanese student (who Mona at first assumes is Chinese) undergoing continuous identity alterations which confound everyone’s expectations.
The narrative structure of the novel tends toward the episodic, but Seth and Mona’s relationship, which distresses Helen, is a controlling thread, leading to a marriage ceremony which concludes the novel on a very positive note, resulting in a reconciliation of opposing viewpoints epitomized by Mona suggesting Changowitz as a surname emblematic of their new Chinese/Jewish fusion. Nonetheless, the future is open-ended and uncertain. Callie now seems more “Chinese” than her parents; Mona might not be as committed to her new identity as she seems; and Ralph and Helen continue to try to balance their increasing material prosperity with a lingering concern about their responsibilities to their Asian heritage. Jen’s continuing investigation of the determinants of individual identity is designed to resist any kind of preconception about a person, regardless of his or her place of origin, appearance, or current life pattern.
Sources for Further Study
Booklist. XCII, April 15, 1996, p. 1421.
Library Journal. CXXI, March 15, 1996, p. 95.
Los Angeles Times Book Review. May 26, 1995, p. 2.
Mademoiselle. June, 1996, p. 105.
The Nation. CCLXII, June 17, 1996, p. 35.
The New York Times Book Review. CI, June 9, 1996, p. 16.
The New Yorker. LXXII, July 8, 1996, p. 78.
Newsweek. CXXVIII, July 15, 1996, p. 56.
Publishers Weekly. CCXLIII, March 11, 1996, p. 40.
The Washington Post Book World. XXVI, May 12, 1996, p. 3.
The Women’s Review of Books. XIII, September, 1996, p. 25.