‘Eat a Bowl of Tea’ was written by Louis Hing Chu, and made into a film, directed by Wayne Wang in 1989. It takes place in the time after World War II when the United States has gotten rid of its strict immigration laws for China since it was an ally during the war. It began in 1875 with the Page Act which prevented Chinese women the ability to immigrate to the United States. In 1882, Chinese laborers were denied permission to immigrate, and then it escalated until 1924 when no Chinese nationals were allowed. The effects of these acts are shown in ‘Eat a Bowl of Tea’, especially with the Chinatown community, Ben Loy’s parents, and Ben’s own marriage. The Chinese Exclusion Act unintentionally defined gender inequality within Chinese American families before and after World War II; Chinese women were left behind or expected to play a specific role, while the men could live their lives with more freedom and pursue a career.
One main example of the effects caused by the exclusion laws was the main setting for the film, Chinatown in New York, where the majority of the residents are men, especially older gentlemen. As quoted in the beginning scene, “…No Chinese woman could come to America. Not even a wife, not even a daughter” (Wang, 0:03:14). Most of them have left their wives and daughters behind in China and either send money or gifts to them. This means that there aren’t any families present in Chinatown at the time. Regardless of this, a lot of these gentlemen have careers and they have also established their own ‘Fratriarchy’, a brotherly association, as they are all a part of a generation of immigrants with similar backgrounds and traditional values. The reason why the societal structure is set up this way is unintentionally due to the Chinese exclusion laws, specifically the Page Act, which made it illegal for Chinese women to immigrate alongside men. As a result, the Chinese men are able to live their lives in America, while the women back in China were inevitably left behind.
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Ben Loy’s parents are another prime example of how the exclusion acts have affected the Chinese family structure. When his father, Wah Gay, left for the United States, he had to leave Ben’s mother behind in China, since part of the exclusion acts forbade women from immigrating as well. This has happened with a bunch of families in China, making it a very matriarchal society. When Ben Loy goes back to China to get married and his mother sees what his father has sent her as gifts, she comments: “He sends me this fancy junk so that he doesn’t have to visit me himself” (Wang, 0:16:24). It’s been over twenty years since she last saw him face to face, and she has come to the conclusion that Wah Gay will never come back to China, and has left her behind for good, and doesn’t seem to care about her that much anymore. Despite this, she doesn’t try to find other companionship and just surrounds herself with all of her other female friends.
However, his father, Wah Gay, has been living his life in the United States as a bachelor, visiting female sex workers from time to time, despite him knowing that he has a wife back in China. He has a lot more freedom than his wife does, having a career and his own business. Since living in the United States, he hasn’t gone back to visit her and in his response letters, he lies and says: “…That his business is ‘so-so’ so that he doesn’t have to send her more money” (Wang, 0:06:26). He clearly enjoys his rather trouble-free life, and doesn’t aim to change much of it. Ben’s mother had her role from ‘a wife’ changed into an unintentional sacrifice for Wah Gay to be able to further his life in the United States, and she was left behind as a result of the exclusion laws barring her from coming along.
The final example of how the Chinese Exclusion Act unintentionally affected is seen in Ben and Mei Oi’s marriage. Ben initially brought Mei Oi back to the United States to have a happy marriage and children, but that didn’t happen. Instead, Ben was given the title of restaurant manager and had to leave Mei Oi at home by herself almost all the time, making her role an unintentional housewife, offering her little freedom to do anything else. Another part of her role was defined by the rest of the Chinatown society; since they were the youngest couple of childbearing age, after the Chinese Exclusion Act had been repealed, the older generation expects her to carry children so that a new generation could be born. With all this pressure placed upon Mei Oi, she decides to get pregnant as soon as possible and ends up cheating on Ben, which inevitably ruins her reputation. Despite this, Ben is able to move around and get other jobs, and he even has an opportunity over in San Francisco as a radio announcer. To this Mei Oi angrily replies, “You’ve got a chance to start over again…take it…!” (Wang, 1:38:08), which further proves that she would have nowhere to truly go. These specific instances further prove that Ben Loy has a lot more freedom and opportunity than his wife does, even after the affair. This is a true gender inequality showcased in their marriage.
In conclusion, the film ‘Eat a Bowl of Tea’ focuses on providing a story about a young marriage in Chinatown after World War II, yet the real story of the film is how the Chinese Exclusion Act unintendedly caused the societal and family structure of Chinese Americans to be unequal, especially in regards to gender. That gender inequality caused Chinatown in New York to become a ‘Fratriarchy’ and the community in China to be a sort of matriarchy. Women were either left behind or stayed at home, while the men were living their lives with little to no trouble. This film is clearly showcasing that the women were ultimately sacrificed or downplayed to the role of ‘housewife’ in order for the men to be able to further their careers or lives along. They were regarded as extra baggage that they couldn’t carry along or could hold them back. The exclusion laws weren’t created to prevent Chinese families from immigrating and prospering in the United States, but it ultimately turned out to be that way.
Works Cited
- “Chinese Exclusion Act”. The African American Policy Forum, African American Policy Forum, http://aapf.org/chinese-exclusion-act
- “Chinese Immigration and the Chinese Exclusion Acts”. Office of the Historian, U.S. Department of State, https://history.state.gov/milestones/1866-1898/chinese-immigration
- Wang, Wayne. Eat a Bowl of Tea. Sony Pictures Entertainment, 1989.
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