Characters and Characteristics

Mr T.W. LI

 Also called `Ah-Wah’ by his mother and `Edward’ by his wife

 A 63 years old Singaporean businessman
 Successful and wealthy
 Has humble beginnings – grew up in a little wooden hut in Tanjong Rhu

Organised and logical a filial and loving son ashamed of background

Split between traditional and modern values prefers the simple life

Character traits Examples of textual evidence

 Wants to look like `a man who had inherited his
money ,not earned it’ (p.19)
 Likes to count ships and find stability and security in
numbers. (p.19)
 Thinks the rooms in his house are too big and too
many. (p.20)
 Dislikes his wife’s gatherings with her friends where
they eat cakes made with expensive foreign fruit.
(p.20)
 Bought binoculars for his mother too see better.
(p.20)
 Makes sure that his mother’s burial is done the
right way. (p.19)
 Decides to take care of the family altar as his
mother would want him to. (p.35)
 Proud of the modern life he has built but tries to
keep tradition alive in his home. (p.35)
 His children have Chinese names. (p.20)
 He addresses his mother as `Ah-Ma’. (p.20)

Ah-Ma

 Mr T.W. Li’s mother

 Ying’s grandmother, `Popo’ (Cantonese for grandmother)
 Mother of nine children, grandmother of thirty-four and great-grandmother of seventeen
  Small, thin ,with grey hair and a bent back

Treasures family kind and understanding stubborn Traditional

Character traits Examples of textual evidence

 Remembers the time when she was poor but
happy, when she was close to her son (p.28)
 Refuse to go for an eye operation to remove
her eye cataracts (P.19)
 Insisted on using real candles for years (p.26)
 Takes care of the family altar (p.25)
 Makes sure that the ancestral worship
customs are followed properly (p.25)
 Understands her son who is trying to
distance himself from his past and keep
quiet (p.23)

Ying

 Mr Li’s daughter
 Going to further her studies in New York

Strong-headed loving and caring split between traditional and modern values and beliefs.

Character traits Examples of textual evidence

 Takes care of her ill grandmother in the
hospital (p.31)
 Donate blood to her grandmother (p.31)
 Argues with her grandmother (p.25)
 Argues with her Second Aunt over the
burial clothes for her grandmother (p.31)
 Argues with her father in the hospital (p.32)
 She call her father and grandmother by
their traditional Chinese address , `Baba’
and `Popo’ and she speaks in Cantonese
(p.25-26)
 Does not see the importance of following
traditions properly and keeps telling her
grandmother that ` it doesn’t metter ’
(p.26)
Helen

 Mr Li’s wife
 She does not seem to have much respect for Mr Li.
 Loves socialising with her friends

Mr Li’s father

 Used to be a boat builder in Tanjong Rhu

Setting

Tanjong Rhu used to be a small shipyard for small fishing boats. The protagonist’s father used to be a
boat builder there. The story unfolds eighty years down the road. Tanjong Rhu is filled with multi-
stories office building. The protagonist Mr Li has his office in the one of the buildings.

The ancestral altar is an important location for the story. With a photograph of his late father
installed in the altar, Li’s mother Ah-Ma talks to her late husband after formally lighting joss sticks
and bowing ritually while telling him of the events in her life.

Physical setting

Place Key events

Mr Li’s office overlooking the Singapore  Ah-Ma visits the office to try and see
harbour Tanjong Rhu where her children grew
up
A big and modern house with a swimming pool  Mr Li presents the new binoculars to
in the garden his mother in the garden
The altar room  Ying argues with her grandmother
because she will not let Ying help with
the joss sticks.
 After Ah-Ma death, Mr Li tries to take
care of the altar and continue the
tradition of ancestral worship.
The hospital room  Mr Li visits his dying mother and tries
to ask her about his childhood in Tanjog
Rhu
 Ying looks after her grandmother
  Mr Li scolds Ying for threating Ah-Ma
with disrespect
Tanjong Rhu  Mr Li’s father worked in the shipyard
building fishing boats
 Ah-Wah played on the beach, went for
walks with mother and dug for crabs

Social setting

Modern day Singapore

 Success and keeping up appearance are important.

 People have little time and patience for one another
 People distance themselves from old tradition – they adopt foreign names, have a taste for
fine imported fare such as foreign fruit cake
 Modern and traditional lifestyles and values clash

Early 20th century Singapore

 Life was hard

 People enjoyed simple pleasures
 People had time for family


Theme

 The conflict between traditional and modern values and beliefs

 Importance of adhering to customs and cultural traditions
 The importance of remembering one’s root
 Change is inevitable
 Moral values

 We must not forget our root

 Family is more important than wealth and success
 We must always be dutiful sons and daughters
 We must learn, understand and continue our culture and customs
 We must respect the elders
 Plot

•Mr Li is a
successful
businessman
who has Rising action •Mr Li talks
conducted his to his
mother's •looking at the Falling action mother at
funeral to the •He has a the altar. He
horizon
best of his distinct continues
philosopjically,
ability. feeling that the tradition
Mr Li realises •Mr Li places
he has of ancestral
what he has his late
forgotten worship and
forgotten. mother's
Exposition something his mother's
important. photograph habit of
The on the talking to
binoculars ancestral ancestors
evoke many Climax altar who have
memories. passed
away.

Resolution
 Synopsis

Mr T.W. Li is a wealthy businessman who lives in Singapore. The day after his mother’s burial, Mr Li
is in his modern office, feeling tired and worried. As he looks out of the window through a pair of
binoculars to count the ships in the harbour, he recall some recent events. The first is his mother’s
visit to his office. Ah ma wants to visit his office and use the binoculars to see Tanjong Rhu where
they used to live a long time ago. On the day of the visit, Mr Li’s daughter is impatient with Ah Ma
for taking her time over a ritual at the family altar. Mr Li dutifully scolds his daughter for being rude
to her grandmother. At the office, Ah Ma cannot see the harbour properly. However, she
remembers the happy days at Tnjong Rhu when her son was a child. Mr Li then recalls visiting Ah Ma
in the hospital and how he scolded Ying whom he thought was not threating her grandmother with
proper respect. Mr Li realises that he ought to take care of the altar now that his mother is gone. He
hurries home to the altar room to perform his duty as a filial son.
Tanjong Rhu
By: MInfong Ho
 Literature Component
Short Stories

Tanjong Rhu
And

Leaving

Name: Nurul Diyana Shahirah bt Noor Azmi

Class: 4 Ibnu Haitham
Teacher’s Name: Pn. Feizatul Akmar Nor bt Nurbi