How we cite our quotes: (Line)
Quote #1
I am Marilyn Mei Ling Chin
Oh, how I love the resoluteness
of that first person singular
followed by that stalwart indicative
of "be," without the uncertain i-n-g
of "becoming." (1-6)
The speaker begins the poem by picking apart the words "I am." These words indicate a definite identity, whereas the speaker suggests that her own identity is a lot more uncertain and indefinite.
Quote #2
My mother couldn't pronounce the "r."
She dubbed me "Numba one female offshoot" (20-21)
These lines point to the difficulties that come with adapting to a new language and a new culture. The speaker's mother can't pronounce her American name "Marilyn" properly. Her inability to say this name suggests the way in which the new American culture alienates the speaker from her family.
Quote #3
"To kill without resistance is not slaughter"
says the proverb. (70)
The speaker's reference to a proverb here raises the question of which culture this proverb is taken from. Is it a Chinese proverb? Is it American? If this is a Chinese proverb, then the speaker's translating it into English for us. This also brings up the question of how one culture is "translated," or adapted, into another.