In the American Society by Gish Jen is, on the surface, an entertaining look at the workings of a Chinese-American family making their way in America. The reader learns about the life of a Chinese-American restaurateur and his family through the eyes of his American-born daughter. However, when we examine the work in depth, we discover that Jen addresses how traditional Chinese values ​​function in American culture. It addresses the difference in gender roles, the generation gaps between immigrants and their American-born children, and the hesitance of these immigrants to conform to the American way of life. To truly understand multicultural literature, one must first try to understand the cultural context. of the author. In the case of this piece, we are looking at Chinese culture and Jen's experiences that shaped her writing. Gish Jen is a second generation American. His parents immigrated separately in the 1940s. His mother came to America for higher education and his father came as part of the war efforts during World War II. With the rise of communism in China, both were forced to stay here and ended up building their lives together and raising their 5 children as Americans. Because they arrived in the second of three "waves" of Chinese immigration, the reasons for their arrival and the process of assimilation into the American way of life were very different from those of other Chinese immigrants. During the first wave, from 1849 to 1882, the reasons for immigrating were mainly economic. Thousands of poor young men came from China to work in America. However, in 1882 the Chinese Exclusion Act was passed, causing the second wave of immigrants to contain only diplomats, merchants, and students. Chinese immigrants were separated from mainstream America and lived in Chinatowns without diplomatic rights until the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Along with this law came the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 , which allowed more Chinese to come to America to be with their families. This was also the time when equality was demanded by many young Chinese Americans. We are currently in the third wave of Chinese immigration. Right now, most people who come here are either well-educated Chinese or people looking to escape the repression and political instability in their home countries. Chinese culture is rich in traditions and values, which p...... middle of paper ......e water, Mr. Chang placed this pride above his judgment by throwing to the both the shirt and the suit in the water. This story is an allegory of life for many Chinese Americans. Many came to America for the opportunity to lead a better life. Entrepreneurship is an integral part of this American dream. The Changs' ownership of a creperie represents a large number of Chinese owning their own restaurants when they arrived in America. Mr. Chang's hesitation to Americanize and his idea that "embracing what he embraced was love" also represent the view of many Chinese immigrants. Jen's own parents retained some of their own ideas about how she should live her life. They did not believe that writing was an honorable thing for a woman to do and did not support her decision until her photo and story were published on the front page of a Chinese newspaper and "their people" accepts it. Immigration to the United States. Accessed 03/27/2005. Lauter, Paul. 03/23/2005.