Mai Character Analysis in On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous

Rose’s sister, Lan and Paul’s daughter, and Little Dog’s aunt. Mai immigrates to the United States from Vietnam with her family, but she soon moves in with Carl, her abusive boyfriend. Mai relocates from Connecticut to Florida, but Rose continues to go to Mai’s former Hartford home, convinced that Carl is beating Mai and will kill her. Mai is present at the end of the novel when Lan dies of metastatic bone cancer. She feeds her mother rice with hot jasmine tea and swears the rice was just harvested from the Go Cong District in Vietnam. Like Little Dog and Rose, Mai is a direct product of the Vietnam War, and her father, Paul, was a white American soldier stationed in Saigon.

Mai Character Timeline in On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous

The timeline below shows where the character Mai appears in On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

...Rose’s rusty Toyota. “He’s gonna kill her, Ma,” she says to Lan, talking about sister, Mai. Mai’s boyfriend, Carl, has been known to beat her. The clock says 3:14, and Little... (full context)

...hand. Lan and Little Dog continue yelling, and Rose finally gets back into the car. Mai isn’t there, she says, and neither is Carl. Lan tells Rose that Mai hasn’t lived... (full context)

...room is quiet and still. Lan is on the floor on a mattress with Rose, Mai, and Little Dog by her side. Rose says Lan’s name again and she weakly opens... (full context)

It is 10:00 in the morning when Lan begins to die. Mai points to Lan’s feet, which have turned a deep purple color. The feet go first,... (full context)