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Chapter 20: Return to the Land of Freedom
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Mao’s Last Dancer, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Opportunity, Hard Work, and Success
Love and Family
The Power of Stories
Freedom vs. Repression
Summary
Analysis
As Cunxin’s time in Houston winds down, he rehearses for a ballet called Le Corsaire. He works himself to the verge of injury and exhaustion trying to make Ben proud and to bring honor to his teachers back in China. Ben offers to change the difficult choreography, but Cunxin refuses to give up until he’s mastered everything Ben asks of him. Ultimately, the ballet is a huge success. Chinese Consul Zhang attends a performance, glowing with pride for the glory Cunxin brings to China.
Although the book doesn’t go into much detail about the ballet, Le Corsaire is a love story with themes of freedom and slavery—a fitting ballet for Cunxin to be performing as he considers what his future might hold in the United States or in China. Typically, he works himself hard, since he knows that his success depends at least in part on his efforts. But the American context, typified by Ben’s choreography, is much more relaxed and concerned with the health and wellbeing of the dancers.
Themes
One month before his return to China, Cunxin dances the role of a prince in The Lady and the Fool when the Houston Ballet performs in New York City. It still takes a lot of effort, but this time he masters the prince’s casually arrogant attitude. The two weeks the company spends in New York allow Cunxin to fully drink in the all the city has to offer, especially in terms of dance. He takes master classes with great choreographers and dancers, and he even gets to see Baryshnikov and other famous dancers at work.
Cunxin insinuates that he masters royal arrogance because the freedom he experiences in America has allowed him to develop into a better dancer than ever before. The book implies choosing to pursue his relationship with Elizabeth has power too, since it also represents freedom and self-determination.
Themes
The more Cunxin thinks about leaving Elizabeth and returning to China, the more torn he becomes. He feels a duty toward his country and his family, but he also yearns for the freedom of expression and movement he has in America. Plus, he feels captured by his passionate feelings for Elizabeth. Three days before he’s set to return, after making passionate love with Elizabeth, he comes to a decision. He and Elizabeth go to Lori’s apartment and tell her they want to get married. Lori and Delworth help them arrange a courthouse marriage the following day. They keep the news—which will deeply affect Ben’s relationship with China—secret until the morning of Cunxin’s planned departure.
Cunxin has just described dancing in a series of ballets in which lovers overcome insurmountable obstacles to be together. His marriage to Elizabeth, then, exemplifies life imitating art. Cunxin’s life has done this before—he still uses the stories of his youth as keys to understanding the world around him. But for the first time, he borrows a Western story to frame his experiences: a love story like the ones he encountered in ballet and in the secret book he discovered in his youth.
Themes
When he can put it off no longer, Cunxin calls Ben and tells him that he has married Elizabeth, and he plans on remaining in America. As expected, Ben becomes extremely upset. Cunxin feels responsible for ruining Ben’s plans, but he refuses to return to the China and the limitations the Chinese government places on his life and his dancing career. Throughout the day, Lori and Delworth deflect phone calls and visits from Ben and other Houston Ballet members. Finally, Ben calls and asks Cunxin to at least take full responsibility for his decision with the Chinese consul. That way, maybe, they’ll stop blaming him and allow his exchange program to continue. Cunxin agrees, then calls Charles Foster for advice. Charles tells him not to go to the consulate, which is considered Chinese territory. But Cunxin does so anyway.
One crucial element of freedom that Cunxin hasn’t yet fully considered or dealt with is that other people can be caught up in the consequences of his decision. He cannot imagine reconsidering his planned defection—he only narrowly escaped China the last time. And now that he’s truly tasted freedom—and romantic love—he can’t imagine returning to the cage of communist China. But he does worry about how his decisions affect others whom he respects and admires, like Ben Stevenson and Teacher Xiao. And in his rush to protect the people he likes, he endangers himself.
Themes
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