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Title: Well Written, Bad Representation
Review: Although the book was written well, it does not represent Chinese. I couldn't get over the fact that Kingston made Mulan a victim of Chinese male misogyny. Look up the Ballad of Mulan yourself and see if there is anything about Mulan being abused. Bear in mind, Mulan never had a tattoo. And, the Chinese character for "woman" and "slave" are not the same. And, there is no "forbidden stitch" in Chinese literature. And, Kingston misuses the word "ghost".Many feminists like this book, but don't forget, Kingston is doing this in spite of Chinese people (specifically, males)! Sure, this isn't a book of history (Kingston says she is not perserving Chinese myths and fairy tales), but I don't think it's fair to ruin the Ballad of Mulan doing it and making up phony stories about Chinese. If anybody uses this book for a term paper or a dissertation, beware! You are using a book from an author who doesn't know Chinese literature.
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