American and Chinese cultures have major differences. Most of these differences are highlighted or presented in the film. When analyzing the film, it was important to identify some of the differences in order to understand the underlying message that Amy Tan wanted to communicate in the original work. Chinese society is the group of society as a whole. In fact, the Joy Luck Club was created in the same spirit after Chinese immigrants found it necessary to have a platform where they can interact and share their experiences in the new world. American society is different. If focuses on individuals and the benefit that a given action can have on the individual. The crash of cultures is represented through characters such as Waverly. After successfully playing chess, she realizes that her mother is bragging about her victory. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay However, as she has already been acculturated to the American way of life, she believes that victory should not belong to her mother. This is her own fight and so she should be allowed to celebrate alone. Amy Tan criticizes this approach. Waverly stops playing chess, ending a promising career. In this section, Amy Tan wishes to criticize American culture. Free speech is allowed in American society. This may be due to the fact that individual freedoms were respected in society. However, in Chinese culture, people must consider the effect of their actions on society as a whole. They cannot say certain words because they believe it will harm other members of society. Thus, while exploring different anthropological elements of the film, Amy Tan succeeds in identifying certain differences between the two cultures and the difficulty of trying to marry them. Thematic analysis The most prominent theme is the challenge(s) of cultural translation. The characters in the film fail to translate different elements of their culture into another culture. First, mothers want their daughters to have the best life possible. They believe that the best gift they can give their daughters is education. They also hope that after studying, they will marry good Chinese men and live a happy life. However, girls change their perception and vision of society when they go through the education system. At first they are angry because they are Chinese. They feel that their place in society is not guaranteed. Additionally, they are discriminated against on different occasions because they are reminded that they are not American. No matter how dedicated and determined they are to become American, they cannot succeed. Towards the end of the film, they accept the fact that their mothers had no problem being Chinese. They simply found themselves on the wrong side of a system. Amy Tan further explores mother-daughter relationships in the original work. In fact, it was incorporated during the development of the final version of the film to ensure that the themes were communicated without being altered. The complex relationship between girls and their mothers is due to generational and cultural differences and conflicts. The mothers were raised in China. They do not understand the difficulties their daughters experience in the United States. June Woo struggles to get her deceased mother's life back together. After the death of the mother, June is admitted to the Joy Luck Club. June's admission into the club is symbolically used to show the conflict that can arise when young.