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Li-Young Lee, "Persimmons"

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Cultural heritage and cross-cultural conflicts

Some readers have argued that the author's cultural heritage plays a primary role in his writing. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this argument? What elements in "Persimmons" are better understood by readers who are knowledgeable about Chinese art and culture? Read Amy Tan's A Pair of Tickets (p. 168 LIT and p. 159 LIT Shorter), or works by other writers who deal with childhoods lived in two cultures. Compare several of these experiences of bridging cultures with that portrayed in "Persimmons."

Considering interpretations

Here is a short interpretation of "Persimmons" by Tim Engles, published in The Explicator. Compare his interpretation to your own. What do the differences show about you as a reader?

Making poetic comparisons

Read the poems by Lee posted online. What sort of common themes, images, and style do you find? In particular, look at the poems he has written about his parents.

Think of or find other poems that connect images of fruit/food and family/women. For example, read William Carlos Williams's poem "This Is Just to Say" (p. 936 LIT and p. 703 LIT Shorter) or Jimmy Santiago Baca's "Green Chile" (p. 855 LIT and p. 638 LIT Shorter). What similarities and differences in themes, tones, and styles do you find with "Persimmons"?

Lee's poetry, with its sensual imagery, has been compared to the work of Walt Whitman, Denise Levertov, and Theodore Roethke. Each of these poets is represented with several poems in The Norton Introduction to Literature. Choose some poems by these authors and compare them to "Persimmons."

Other comparisons

The Chinese movie Eat Drink Man Woman (or Yinshi nan nu, see review by Damian Cannon) is not only rich in images of food and women but also attaches great importance to the role of the father. After watching the movie, consider significant similarities and differences between the movie's themes and styles and those of "Persimmons."

Think further about the image of the father going blind at the end of the poem. There are other literary works that portray significant characters going blind, such as Shakespeare's King Lear. How is blindness related to the central theme(s)?

The context of Chinese art

Encyclopedia Brittanica presents the following description of Chinese art:

Painting in China is thus essentially a linear art whose practitioners strive to transmit to paper an awareness of the inner life and wholeness of things by means of the quality of the brushwork. . . . Chinese artists have traditionally sought to express both inner harmony and harmony with the natural surroundings. Most Chinese painting is executed in ink monochrome with a pointed-tipped brush. The silk or paper surface allows no erasure or correction, so the painter must know beforehand what he intends to paint. The execution demands confidence, speed, and a technical mastery of brushstrokes that is acquired only by long practice.

For examples of Chinese art, view this illustrated art history chronology, a site out of Purdue University. Consider "Persimmons" in this context, particularly the final images. Is the style of the poem similar to the style of Chinese painting?

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