Snow Flower and the Secret Fan
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| Snow Flower and the Secret Fan | |
| Author | Lisa See |
|---|---|
| Country | US |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Novel |
| Publisher | Random House, Inc. |
| Publication date | 2005 |
| Preceded by | Dragon Bones (See) |
| Followed by | Peony in Love |
Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, a novel by Lisa See (2005), is set in China in the 1800s. Narrated by Lily, an 80 year old woman, it is much different from See's previous work. It is not a book filled with murders and international intrigue. Instead, it focuses on the lives of the women in a small, remote part of Hunan. Most particularly it shows the relationship between Lily and Snow Flower, her closest friend, as it grows and changes over the course of many years. They are a laotong pair, bound together more closely than husband and wife. They undergo foot binding at the same time and communicate by writing messages to each other on a fan, using Nü Shu, a language that women used to communicate privately with other women. In addition to the language itself, the young women learn Nü Shu songs and stories.
Although both are born under the sign of the horse, they are quite different. Lily is the practical one, her feet firmly set on the ground, while Snow Flower is a flying horse that attempts to fly over the constrictions of women's life in the 19th century in order to be free. Their lives differ as well. Although Lily comes from a family of relatively low station, her beautiful feet play a role in her marriage into the most powerful family in the region. Lily ends up as Lady Lu, the region's most influential woman. Snow Flower is not so fortunate. She marries a butcher and has a miserable life filled with children dying and brutal beatings at the hand of her husband.
The novel depicts human suffering in many ways: the terrible trek up the mountains to escape from the horrors of the Taiping Revolution; the painful return back down the mountain trail with dead bodies everywhere; the physical and psychological pain of foot binding. And most all, there is detailed treatment of the suffering which Lily and Snow Flower experience in their relationship. Lily’s need for love and her inability to forgive what she considers to be acts of betrayal cause her to inflict harm on many people, Snow Flower most of all. Believing that Snow Flower has not been true to her, Lily betrays her by sharing all her private secrets to a group of women, virtually destroying Snow Flower's reputation. When Snow Flower is dying, Lily is called to her bedside and tends to her until the end.
As the book returns to the present, Lily is an 80 year old woman who has lived 40 years after her friend's death. Lily’s final words indicate that her love for Snow Flower remains: “But if the dead continue to have the needs and desires of the living, then I’m reaching out to Snow Flower and the others who witnessed it all. Please hear my words. Please forgive me.” [1]
[edit] Notes
- ^ See, Lisa. Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, p. 253. Random House Trade Paperback Edition (2006).
[edit] External Links
[edit] References
- Douglas, Carol Anne. "White Snakes and Secret Fans: Chinese Women in Fiction." Off our Backs, vol. 36, no. 3.
- Hopley, Claire. "A Wealthy Woman's Life in China Not So Long Ago." Washington Times. 09/11/2005.
- See, Lisa. "The Ties that Bind." The Times (UK), 01/14/2006.
