SHame!, mY InstinCt saYs s0... lalalala~ ;-)

SHAME by Shirley Geok-Lin Lim

Originally illustrated by Miko Lau & A Hafiz M

Summary of the Short Story Entitle -SHAME-

     The story is about Baba Nyonya families live in strong culture beliefs. Mei Sim has been scolded by her mother as she sat with her legs opened which is an  inappropriate practice in her culture. The story continued, with Mei Sim and her mother visited Mei Sim’s grand-aunty. Here, the narrator introduced Siew Eng, a daughter of Mei Sim’s grand-aunty. Siew Eng was being abused, tortured and discriminated by her own mother as her mother believed with the fortune teller’s words. The fortune teller had told grand-aunty that the girl would eat her blood.

     Later, Uncle Muti and his son came to visit grand-aunty. Mei Sim went outside the house and tried to befriend the boy. An incident happened where Mei Sim offered the boy to touch her dress as the boy never saw such a nice dress before. Soon, Mei Sim’s mother found out about the incident. Her mother was very shocked and angry as the act where a boy touch a girl is very much prohibited in their culture. A huge shame filled Mei Sim. When she was about to burst into noisy weeping, Mei Sim screamed, stretching her body straight as an arrow, confronting her lie that the boy did it, he pulled at her dress. 

The Significance of The Title -SHAME-
¨The word shame had been highlighted in this story. At the first part of the story, we had been exposed with the incident where Mei Sim’s mother scolded her for inappropriate and impolite acts where Mei Sim opened her leg wide. Later, we can find it at the last part of the story where Mei Sim felt ashamed of herself for being disrespectful.


¨Throughout the whole story, the word “shame” has appeared numerous times. Eg: pg 32, paragraph 6. “… We women must accept our fate. If we want to have some fun also, stomach will explode. Where can we hide our SHAME?....”


¨Shame is determine as a dignity and image of the person. In this culture, once the person did something which could scratched her/his image, he/she will be isolated from the society.


Literary Criticism
¨Literary criticism is used to bring about facts from texts, which enable a reader to analyze and criticize the meaning of the text. Throughout the past century, literary criticism has evolved in a number of ways. This happens because of the constant change in society, therefore meaning whatever happens politically or in our society, literary criticism evolves to fit within world and its current events. 


Social Criticism
-culture
-beliefs
-traditions


Social Criticism
¨The criticism provokes us to think why and how we are responding in a certain way.


¨It is related to the traditions, beliefs, the way one thinks, the norms which in relation with the arts in Baba and Nyonya culture. 


Cultural Aspect

¨Baba Nyonya society (peranakan) must behave according to their society’s expectations.

¨In Peranakan’s culture, girls are not allowed to sit with their legs open as it is not polite. 

¨Eg: Mei Sim’s mother said “We’re going to visit Tua Ee. And don’t sit with your legs open there. She think I bring you up with no shame.” Pg 25.

¨Mei Sim’s mother scolded her “Ta’ malu!”

¨“you no shame! Close your legs.”

¨Even at the end of this story, Mei Sim stuck with an accident where her mother caught her with

a little boy who was trying to touch her dress and that she felt a huge shame filled her.

¨In this story, we can see how much concern Baba and Nyonya society towards their manner.

¨In Malaysia, Baba and Nyonya culture was well known in their way to nurture their society 

(protect and preserve)

Traditions Aspect

¨Malay influence is very strong in their clothing and food, but they have also retained their

Chinese heritage, especially their religion, name and ethnic identity.

¨Girls must wear skirt. (ancient chinese culture & malay Culture)

¨As we can see, throughout the whole story, all the female characters are wearing skirt.

¨Pg 26. “Skirt”, “kebaya”.

¨This piece of literature also has portrayed a sense of Chinese culture in it as Baba Nyonya is a

mixture of Chinese culture and local Malay culture. 

¨Eg: samfoo (pg25) , beaded purse(pg28).

¨The characters are having Chinese-styled names. (Mei Sim, Siew Eng, Jeng Chung)

Mei Sim’s mother visited her aunty at least once a week with gifts of fruit, pulot, and ang-pows

and consulted her on every matter in the Chung family’s life.

¨This shows that, the Malay culture such as visiting among relatives are still practiced at that

time.

¨During the ancient time, they retained some practices of Chinese cultures but at the same time

adapted local Malay traditions in order to minimize the culture shock. 

Cultural Taboo

¨Most Peranakans are Hokkien ancestry. They speak Baba Malay (creole dialect) which contains many Hokkien words.

¨“Mei Sim could only hear the trishaw man mumbles like, “hey…yau soo….chei….” Pg 27.

¨Noted that “yao soo..” carries the meaning that “wanna die ah!!!” (negative meaning)

¨Mei Sim’s mother said that the trishaw man was angry at puppy dog, bringing him bad luck.

¨Commonly, Baba and Nyonya societies are still believe in the fortune teller and about the luck. 

Superstitious

¨Eg: Pg 31, third last paragraph.

¨“Mother said Siew Eng was cursed. The fortune teller had told her that the girl would eat her

blood, so she wouldn’t nurse or hold the baby, had sent her to a foster mother, and had taken her

back at seven to send her off to the kitchen where she slept on a camp bed”.

¨Mei Sim’s grand aunty is superstitious. She treated her daughter badly and violently because of

the fortune teller.

¨Eg: “You must stay for lunch, I have already told that prostitute daughter of mine to boil the

rice….”

¨pg 29. “Grand-aunty had four sons, of whom she loved only the youngest, and a daughter who

she treated as a bought slave…”

¨Pg 31. She shouted and slapped her daughter.

¨Pg 33, paragraph 5, line 4-8. Purple bruise bloomed on Siew Eng’s arm, just because she walked

slow.

¨Her mother never assumes her as a family member in the house. Eg: pg 33, paragraph 5, line 8,

“…my house.”

¨Mei Sim’s grand-aunty physically abused Siew Eng.

¨ Her mother did not provide appropriate care for her.

¨Eg: Pg 31,  “Siew Eng hung her head. Her samfoo was faded and worn at the trouser bottoms,

the thin cotton print didn’t hide her strange absence of breasts. She was already sixteen, had

never been sent to school but had worked at home washing, cleaning and cooking since she was

seven.”

¨Besides, she also mentally abused Siew Eng by using harsh language, such as “Sundal” pg 31

¨“what do you say? What do you say, you prostitute?” Pg33

Gender Criticism

¨Gender theory explores sexuality and difference in gender discussions, as they relate to literary

theory.

¨Gender  is the fact that they are male or female.

¨Gender literary criticism is the assessment, analysis, study and debate on gender.

¨Two main gender criticism : feminine (broadly) and masculinity.

Gender Stereotyping 

¨There is a difference between men and women in the society at that time.

¨Eg. Page 32, paragraph 6“…We women must accept our fate. If we want to have some fun also,

stomach will explode. Where can we hide our shame? But men, they think they are datoks because

they can do things without being punished…”

¨Women are submissive, men are portrayed to be dominant at that time.

¨History of Chinese and Malay until now, male is always dominant over female.

¨Mei Sim’s grand-aunty prefers son than daughter.

¨This is related to the culture and their tradition. As in both Chinese and Malay culture, they put

focus on male as they will become heir of their family. Female is not having important position and

roles in family, their rights have been ignored.

¨Eg: pg29, paragraph 4. “Grand-aunty had four sons, of whom she loved only the youngest….”

¨This shows that men are more preferable than women.

¨Man is dominant, woman is submissive….

-The End-

Analysis by Miko Lau (my classmate) & I 

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