The story started with the author recalling his youth. He recalled his father and personally expressed that his father is important to him. He loved his father very much. “When a son or daughter dies, the parents have another or adopt another child to raise and love”. “When a father dies, there is only violence” (Wong 8). I think I can feel how the author felt that time because I treated my parents as the center of my life. When I was young, I love to be around with my father. He taught me things and told me stories and different things. Now that I am here in the US, everything is just different and I miss my parents. I think the author want to express his loneliness and that loneliness has a large impact on him. Interestingly, he also revealed that her mother had the loneliness moment too where her mother received a letter from China after she married to Rainsford’s father telling her that China was closed to her, that it is no longer her home (Wong 10).
The loneliness expanded to Ransford's great grandfather where he worked alone in the US as a railroad worker. His great grandfather came to the US illegally. The risk of getting in to the US is very high where they were chained together on the lifeboat and cannot escape or swim when disasters happened. His great grandfather has a wife in China, yet they can’t get to see each other. Although she eventually made the way to the US, she was killed in this land. To the great grief, the great grandfather determined to move deeper into this land. But then, the great grandfather sent his son back to China for being rejected by this land. From here, we can see there is another separation which eventually leads to loneliness.
“The wind did not bring death, but the dread of it in any season was even more powerful than the freezing nights of winter that stiffened the limbs of the sleeping workers”. “After few hours, the wind makes them deaf, and after a few days of the strong wind, they begin to lose their sense”. The author is excellent at using or creating these scenes to show reader that loneliness is more intimidating than death. He vividly presented to readers how lonely people were during the railroad construction period in 1800’s. How much dedication should one made to stay and work under such a condition? Probably no one, but Chinese workers had no choice, but to bear the loneliness so that they can earn income for their love ones in China.
This story is full of sorrows and memories. Rainsford showed his loneliness by tracking the history of his family through letters. I especially like the part when he talked about many Chinese workers had contributed their time, effort, skill, and even lives here in the US, yet not being recognized in the history today and just quietly buried in this land. Also there were funny conversations between Rainsford and the Indian old man. The Indian old man was making fun of Rainsford that he was more Chinese than Rainsford. Another thing that I think is great was when the Indian old man told Rainsford: “This is your country. Go out and make yourself at home.” (Wong 83). I think this is the message to tell Rainsford that is it time to get out of grieves and loneliness.
2 comments:
You're right that aloneness and loneliness are central aspects of Homebase. I think this is actually something that our narrator and protagonist, Rainsford Chan, comes to understand about his family and cultural history: it is marked by grief and loss and isolation, and these are legacies passed down to him.
Hi Arvin,
I felt smoothly to read along your post since we share the same view by regarding loneliness as the central aspects of “Homebase”. As you said, our narrator Rainsford Chan told the whole story through his eyes exclusively, and he also organized it by discussing different characters that had influenced his life in terms of aloneness.
Right, Rainsford loved his father very much. Although he didn’t have too much memory about his father because of his early death, Rainsford did also express he missed his father. Somewhere in his book, he calls his dad a “man of journeys”, and he feels the spirit of his dad in all the journeys he himself takes, especially in a canyon near Gold Run. Rainsford’s mother, another character mentioned in his book, taught him “how to construct exotic floral arrangements”, which related to her job and personal skill. Rinsford’s visit to Angel Island at the end of the novel gives him a greater awareness of the violence and survival that his grandfather experienced. Similarly, all these people are who did passed away and left him alone in the world. However, uncle and aunt, another two characters appeared afterwards keep supporting Rainsford’s living and let him move to their home in a small town in California, near the ocean.
All these losses are complicated with issues of racial identity that although Rainsford was born and lived in the United States, people always ask him where he’s originally from. Actually, he would like to be a real American person, rather than being treated as Chinese American. At that moment, he didn’t have father, mother and grandparents, nor he was been questioned about his racial identity. Rainsford began to imagine his life that stands for all of America. He calls this illusory, blond-haird, breakfast, whining his “dream bride”. His daydreams about committing heroic acts help him develop self-esteem and counteract the racial slurs he often experiences. So his habit of dreaming helps him to claim a place in life.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts~
All best,
Chao
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