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Stream of Consciousness
Style
Explanation and Analysis:
"A Thousand Years of Good Prayers" is narrated in third-person limited omniscient, otherwise known as close third-person. The narrator closely follows Mr. Shi after his arrival in the U.S from China. Because this story highlights the differences between Chinese and American culture and between traditional and modern views, being able to closely observe Mr. Shi gives the reader more room for sympathy and understanding towards him. This is because Mr. Shi's stream of consciousness allows the reader to see more of Mr. Shi's thought process.
Another unique aspect of this story's style is the noticeably different amounts of dialogue between the characters. Dialogue becomes essential to the story, as the story revolves around the importance of talking. Even though Mr. Shi and Madam come from drastically different cultures, they are able to understand each other. Mr. Shi tells Madam about his wishes for his daughter and at the end, he reveals the truth about himself. Dialogue becomes another way in which the readers get insight into Mr. Shi's mindset. In one conversation, he tells Madam:
The wife would've done a better job of cheering the daughter up.... They were close to each other. Wasn't that I was not close to them. I loved them dearly. It's what happened when you were a rocket scientist. I worked hard during the day, and at night I couldn't stop thinking about my work. Everything was confidential so I couldn't talk to my family about what I was thinking about....
Mr. Shi recalls how little he talked to his family. But now he is under different circumstances that allow him to talk more freely about the past. Being retired and no longer working as a rocket scientist in China, Mr. Shi is able to talk about his work and past. The above paragraph also shows that Mr. Shi acknowledges the distance between him and his daughter. Talking to Madam becomes a way for Mr. Shi to not only tell his story but also to experience a form of catharsis.
In contrast to Mr. Shi's conversations with Madam, his conversations with his daughter are more stifled. The conversations usually are one-sided, with Mr. Shi asking his daughter questions and his daughter giving short answers. The juxtaposition between the conversations of Mr. Shi and Madam and Mr. Shi and his daughter magnify the divide between Mr. Shi and his family. At one point, his daughter says: "Baba, if you grew up in a language that you never used to express your feelings, it would be easier to take up another language and talk more in the new language. It makes you a new person." Mr. Shi's inability to speak English well and his daughter's inability to speak Chinese well further thickens the wall between them. The length and content of the dialogues between characters play a prominent role in showing their cultural and emotional differences.
Related Themes:
