How we cite our quotes: Citations follow this format: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #7
Brave Orchid held her hand when she appeared vague. "Don't go away, Little Sister. Don't go any further. Come back to us." If Moon Orchid fell asleep on the sofa, Brave Orchid sat up through the night, sometimes dozing in a chair. When Moon Orchid fell asleep in the middle of the bed, Brave Orchid made a place for herself at the foot. She would anchor her sister to this earth (4.349).
In moments like these, we see how much Brave Orchid cares for her sister despite the way she acts when Moon Orchid's husband is involved.
Quote #8
Sometimes I felt very proud that my mother committed such a powerful act upon me. At other times I was terrified – the first thing my mother did when she saw me was to cut my tongue (5.16).
Kingston shows how heavily influenced her storytelling skills are by her family: her mom has physically changed the way she can communicate by snipping her tongue.
Quote #9
[Family members] would not tell us children because we had been born among ghosts, were taught by ghosts, and were ourselves ghost-like. They called us a king of ghost. Ghosts are noisy and full of air; they talk during meals. They talk about anything (5.101).
Kingston points to the complication of growing up in a culture different from the one of your family's. Both Chinese and American, Kingston is treated as an other in her own family because of cultural and national difference.