Week 11 ELA Lead Lesson - Chinese Cinderella-1

et’s recap PAF of the texts covered so far:
Week 11 Lead Lesson

‘Chinese Cinderella’
The Big Question
How important is emotive language in influencing the reader?

Understanding the next text: Chinese Cinderella
• Adeline Yen Mah writes to inform, explain and

describe. She is writing for a general audience who
may be interested in childhood memoirs, or perhaps
in understanding the different culture that Adeline
comes from. She writes in such a way that we
understand not just what happens, but the emotional
impact on her of each incident in the passage.
5
Example- How to annotate a
text
6
7
Understanding the text
e key to understanding the piece is to understand Adeline and her

oughts and feelings about boarding school and her ambition to
vel to England. Most important of all is her relationship with her
her.
8
he title- Chinese Cinderella
• What do you think the novel is

about from the title?
• What do you know about the story
of Cinderella?
Chinese Cinderella – the secret story of
an unwanted daughter
Adeline Yen Mah
• Adeline Yen Mah (Chinese: 馬嚴君玲 ; pinyin: Mǎ Yán

Jūnlíng) is a Chinese American author and physician. She
grew up in Tianjin, Shanghai and Hong Kong, and is known
for her autobiography Falling Leaves. Currently, she
divides her time between southern California and London.
She is married to Professor Robert A. Mah with whom she
has two children, as well as one from a previous marriage.
ackground Information
• Born the fifth child to an affluent Chinese family
Adeline's life begins tragically. Adeline's mother
died two weeks after her birth due to
complications bought on by the delivery, and in
Chinese culture she is considered bad luck. This
situation is compounded by her father's new
marriage to a lady who has little affection for her
husband's five children. She displayed overt
antagonism and distrust towards all of the
children, particularly Adeline, while favouring
her own younger son and daughter born soon
after the marriage.
he Story in this extract
Adeline Yen Mah is a 14 year old girl who comes

from a wealthy family. However, she is rejected
from her family and is at boarding school. Her
autobiography talks about how she went home and
was praised by her father for the first time because
she had won a writing competition.
She doesn’t believe what has happened to her and is
overwhelmed at the fact that her father has also
agreed to send her to England to study.
Characters: Adeline
he hides her embarrassment/dismissive – “I had forgotten”(26)

espectful of / in awe of her father - "He looked radiant. For once, he was
roud of me" (line 58). "I had given him face." (line 58-59).
he agrees with her father almost without question to go to England She is
urprised at being invited to enter the “Holy of Holies” – Her father’s room
hich in the book she refers to as the “Holy of Holies" - in the novel her father
ever invites Adeline and her siblings from the previous wife, but welcomes
hildren of the current wife.
t the start of the extract she was expecting that someone had died- for
omeone who hasn’t read the book I think this can be interpreted as a
essimistic thought
Adeline’s father
hows the characteristics of a typical/stereotypical Chinese father.

ery strict with his children
ends to love only some of his children, usually male children
elieves that all of his child’s achievements are because of his doing. –(e.g.
deline winning the writing competition was his doing.)
hemes and Motifs:
otifs
eams vs. Nightmare
15)“nightmare”
73) “heaven”- associated with a ‘deep eternal slumber’ or ‘dream-
ke’
51) “Am I dreaming”
ine 61-62)“I only had to stretch out my hand to reach the stars.”
15
Tone
• Excitement/
• Fear
i) “Foreboding” and “nightmare” (Line 15- gratefulness
16) i) “Agree? Of course I agreed.” (Line 86)
ii) “my heart gave a giant lurch” (Line 71)
iii) “Don’t look so scared” (Line 40) ii) “Bliss was it in that dawn to be alive”
iv) “uneasy when I wondered why he was (Line 88)
being so nice, thinking, Is this a giant ruse iii) “Thank you very, very much” (Line
on his part to trick me? Dare I let my guard 89-90)
down?” (Line 37-39) iv) “My whole being vibrated with all
the joy in the world. I only had to
stretch out my hand to reach the stars.”
anguage
• We notice that Adeline’s family is rich.

However, all the way through we notice that
she is living in emotional scarcity – isolation
from her immediate family.
• Adeline uses emotive language to show her
reactions to different situations.
• Adeline always uses specific words and
phrases to show how she feels out of place. She
conveys her sense of rejection.
tructure
• It is an autobiography written by Adeline Yen Mah.

• The autobiography is written in chronological order
which helps with the pace of the story.
• This extract comes at the very end of this book
• The pace of the autobiography starts slowly and
increases as we go through the story.
• All three tenses are present in the text;
- Past: “I knocked on the door” – (Line 33)
- Present: “I do believe” – (Line 66)
- Future: “Father, I shall go to medicine school” – (Line
85)
iterary Devices
• Reference to other quotes – “Bliss was it in that dawn to be

alive” (line 88) [see next slide]
• Rhetorical questions – “Study?...” and “Does it matter what
you do after you get to heaven?” (line 72-73) and “Is it
possible? Am I dreaming? Me, the winner?” (line 51)
• Metaphor – “I only had to stretch out my hand to reach the
stars.” (line 61-62)
• Repetition – “very, very…” and “heaven.. heaven”
• Alliteration – “replied rudely” and “warm wind”
19
From, Wordsworth's Poetical Works, Volume 3: 1805 (The
Prelude- autobiographical poem)
The French Revolution as it appeared to enthusiasts at its
commencement
o finish
Consider PAF for ‘Chinese Cinderella.’
-Why did Yen Mah write it?

-Who is her audience?
-What type of text (form) is it?
LESSON COMPLETE
SEE YOU NEXT LESSON!

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et’s recap PAF of the texts covered so far:

Week 11 Lead Lesson

How important is emotive language in influencing the reader?

• Adeline Yen Mah writes to inform, explain and

e key to understanding the piece is to understand Adeline and her

• What do you think the novel is

• Adeline Yen Mah (Chinese: 馬嚴君玲 ; pinyin: Mǎ Yán

Adeline Yen Mah is a 14 year old girl who comes

he hides her embarrassment/dismissive – “I had forgotten”(26)

hows the characteristics of a typical/stereotypical Chinese father.

• We notice that Adeline’s family is rich.

• It is an autobiography written by Adeline Yen Mah.

• Reference to other quotes – “Bliss was it in that dawn to be

Consider PAF for ‘Chinese Cinderella.’

-Why did Yen Mah write it?

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