The+Bridegroom


 * Summary**

"The Bridegroom" by Ha Jin is a story told by Old Cheng, a traditional Chinese American man struggling to understand and accept homosexuality. Old Cheng has an adopted daughter named Beina who by society's standards, is not a very beautiful woman. As Beina grows older Old Cheng becomes worried that she will never marry a decent man and have children. When Huang Baowen, probably the most eligible bachelor in the town, proposes to Beina, Old Cheng is completely shocked. After 8 months when Beina does not immediately become pregnant, Old Cheng becomes worried because even as a married man, Huang still has women throwing themselves at his feet. One night when Baowen does not return home from a social event, Beina tells her father and Cheng begins to call around for him. When Cheng locates his son-in-law, he and a council of many other leaders in the community are told that Huang Baowen and several other men were being held in jail for a "social disease" called homosexuality. Cheng tries to keep the charges hidden so that Beina is not made a fool of and so that Baowen can be declared mentally sick. As the story progresses, Cheng has an internal conflict with staying true to his traditional values and protecting his daughter. Baowen eventually enters a mental hospital and receives shock therapy to "cure" himself. Doctor Mai, the physician on duty, then reveals to Cheng that homosexuality is not a disease, and that it may be congenital, thus there is no cure. Cheng loses hope for his daughter's marriage, and then becomes extremely furious with Baowen when it is discovered that he is having a relationship with a male nurse at the hospital. Baowen is sent to prison for his crimes, and Old Cheng then tries to convince Beina to divorce her husband out of shame. As Beina stands her ground and remains firm about supporting her husband, Cheng believes he has no other choice but to disown his daughter and son-in-law.

The topics in this story are homosexuality, denial, society standards, old world traditions and family.
 * Topics**

Briefing skimming the story before I choose it, I thought it was just going to be a story of an traditional Chinese wedding. However, after reading it, the story was quite unexpected. I was intrigued by what would happen to Beina's character as the story of Baowen progressed, but it dragged on so long that it became boring and I lost interest. The constant denial of Baowen to his true self made the story drag but I'm assuming that's how most people in that era would approach homosexuality: constant denial and looking for a quick fix. Beina's character to me seemed completely oblivious to Baowen's "disease". She constantly denied that he could be a homosexual and even when the facts showed he was, she made excuses for him. "He just wanted to have a good time. That was all. It's nothing like adultery or bigamy, is it?" (183) She is referred to by Cheng as a "stupid girl" (62) for not seeing the truth sooner. As I understand, it is a bad thing for Chinese women to speak ill of their husbands, so maybe Beina's unfaltering support for her husband was just in her nature.
 * Evaluation**

After finally finishing the story, I felt for Old Cheng's character. He was put into a position that he had no control over. As an adoptive father to Beina, he did all he could. He went as far as using his influence to procure a home for them after their wedding, then again using his work contacts to help Baowen get into a mental hospital instead of prison. But no matter how much he tried to help Beina and Baowen, they seemed stubborn and unappreciative. There wasn't much fun or humor to the story, but homosexuality wasn't a joking manner in that time period. This story shows a great picture of how homosexuality was viewed by Chinese American culture. "Homosexuality originated in Western capitalism and bourgeois lifestyle." (23) If your interested in reading more about an early view of homosexuality, then I'd recommend this story.

Jin, Ha."The Bridegroom." //Literature and the Writing Process.// Ed. Elizabeth McMahon et. al. 10th Ed. Boston: Pearson, 2014. 365-378. Print.
 * Works Cited**

**WIKI PART 2**


 * Resources**


 * Database Resource: Author Background on Ha Jin**

Ha Jin was born February 21, 1956 in China. Never completing his education due to the closing of schools during the Cultural Revolution, he joined the army at age 14 and later learned how to speak English by listening to the radio. When the Chinese schools reopened, Jin attended Heilongjiang University and graduated with a degree in English. He then earned a master's and then travelled to America to continue his education, Jin enrolled in Brandeis University in Massachusetts and earned a Ph.D in 1992. Jin had intended to return to China to teach but decided to stay in the United States after seeing the Chinese government's suppression of the 1989 student-led demonstration in Tiananmen Square. Ha Jin is now a U.S. citizen and teaches at Boston University.

Smith, Wendy. "Coming to America." //Publishers Weekly // 17 Sept. 2007: 29+. //Literature Resource Center //. Web. 1 Apr. 2015.


 * Internet Resource:** Information on "The Bridegroom"

This article focuses on the different themes that run through "The Bridegroom". The article shows the main character, Cheng is completely focused on appearances. Everything in the story, from Beina's marriage, to Beina's looks are related to his standing in society. This article focuses more on Cheng trying to keep up appearances in a sense, despite how his actions and feelings are portrayed. Cheng in this way, becomes a conformist, trying to "fix" everyone and the irony is that he is the chief of security at the plant.