It has been argued that personal character or traits are culturally nurtured. An individual’s character can be attributed to how a person was brought up. However, the behavior of a person is mostly based on the family characters and how someone was brought up by his or her parents.
However, in “Han Wu-Niang and The Story of Ying-Ying,” the character’s personalities are based on how they were brought up, and therefore, the critics are right the stories are meant to illustrate personal character flaws, not a story associated with tradition. It is because the Master was so apologetic when he realized his mistake and went ahead to apologize, and there are no chronological events explained in the stories to connect the character with the traditional norms of society.
In the article “Han Wu-Niang sells her charms at the New Bridge,” the behavior of Chin-nun’s family is a clear example of a character flaw. It is evident the entire family of Chin-nun was aware of and understood the kind of life their daughter was having and how she earned her income. The family made a clear plan to make sure that Master Wu and Chin-nun had an affair despite the fact that they knew that Master Wu had a wife and a son (Shuo 318). The family made sure that Master Wu fell in love with their daughter so that they could get a share of Master Wu’s wealth. In traditional or normal life, no parents would allow their daughter to have sexual intercourse with a married man inside their matrimonial home. It is, therefore, a clear sign of character flaw, not traditional life, which has eroded the family of Chin-nun (Shuo 316). It is pointed out that Chin-nun was a known prostitute, and she was the sole provider for her family; therefore, the family did not have any name or manners. However, the story in “Han Wu-Niang is a character flaw because prostitution has never been a traditional or permanent job, and some turn to prostitution since it can be avoided as well. But since the family had a bad character, did not have manners, and did not care, they allowed their daughter to practice prostitution right under their nose. It is noted that anytime Mater Wu comes for a visit, the fat woman would excuse herself just to allow her daughter to have an affair in exchange for financial support.
According to the article, it seems the family of Chin-nun allowed Master Wu to have a sexual affair between chin-nun and Master Wu to continue because of the financial gains they were getting from Master Wu. It was the family method of survival, and therefore, the family had no problem with the kind of prostitution taking place right inside the family house. However, this can only be allowed by a family without any manners and bad character since it allows your daughter to sell her body to the highest bidder, put the family name in a bad light, and no family would want to associate with it unless the entire family has accepted prostitution as their way of surviving. Therefore, the story is about the character flaw of the family of Chin-nun. The article “The Story of Ying – Ying is also a testimony of character flaws. In a traditional society, marriage was holy and preserved for mature couples, and it was supposed to take place willingly. It is noted that Ying-Ying, or the ninth, was married away against her will to an old man called Dragon (Ying 234). It is unbelievable that her father could do that, knowing her daughter is fifteen years old. Therefore, the act symbolizes a character flaw since it is not traditional for girls to be married at fifteen, and marriage is also supposed to take place willingly without anyone feeling oppressed.
Though Ying Ying, or Ninth, was wronged by her father, she had all the right to be made. The idea of organizing a separate army to fight against her father seems to be against all odds of a traditional and normal lifestyle. It can only be possible where there is a fault in the character of the family or parents, like what is noted in the family of Ying–Ying (Ying 316). It is, therefore, possible that the story “The Story of Ying-Ying” is the personal character flaws of some people in society. Based on the article, the relationship between Ying Ying and her parents was not as cordial as many people would expect. Ying felt that her parents were dictatorial and subjected her to certain principles and rules which she did not agree with. Though she came from a dynasty family, she felt it was time to send her father away and take over leadership, and this is the reason she looked for a partnership with Chuo. Ying-ying believed that the state of Mi requires a steady, strong, and honorable leader to redeem the state of the nation, and therefore, she cannot be trusted with such responsibility. She believed her father was absentminded and, therefore, could not be allowed to lead their great land. This is based on the fact that he married her away to Dragon despite knowing the character of Dragon.
However, the use of charm to make someone fall in love so that he or she can be confused so that one can benefit is a sign of being unkind, and it can also be a sign of character flaws. It is stated in the article that Chin-nun collaborated with her father to use charm, so she got Master Wu (Shuo 319). Chin-nun several times put Charm inside Master Wu’s tea to confuse him (Shuo 317). In Master Wu’s dream, he comes close to reality, which makes him confess and stop the relationship. The fact that the family was using charm to lure him so that they could get finances and allow the relationship to continue means the family has had no manners, and therefore, it is a clear sign of error in character, which needs to be addressed. Similar to “the story of Ying-Ying, the behavior of soldiers with ladies they meet in the restaurant and on the street shows there is something wrong. On the same note, Ying-Ying complained that the ancestor would feel embarrassed if they found out what his father had done, and therefore, it might be logical enough to stage a coup against her father, and therefore, according to her, it was needed. But in a real sense, it shows the division in the family.
In conclusion, the “Story of Ying-Ying and Hon Wu-Niang” shows a story of a personal character flaw, not tradition. It reflects detailed family division and dirty traits as well since in both articles, in the family of Chin-nun and Ying-Ying, the bad relationship in the family is clearly demonstrated, as well as the misuse of a family member to extort money from men. Though the relationship between Chin-nun and her mother is cordial, it seems her mother was using her to get money, and therefore, it is a sign of character flaw in the family. On the same point, there was bad blood between Ying-Ying and her father, and that is the reason she wanted to overthrow her father from the Kingship and even partner with her father’s rival so he could be removed through military intervention. It makes the two stories a personal character flaw.
Works Cited
Shuo, Kun-Chin hsiap. “Hon Wu-niang Selling her charm at the Bridge Market.” Traditional Chinese Story (2000): 312-322.
Ying, Ling. “The Story of Ling-Ying.” The Classic Tale (2002): 213-242.
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