Married at thirteen years of age to an unknown husband, and pregnant two months later! How could her parents allow such a horror to happen? Zem Ping Dong would soon understand the Chinese way: to accept fate and do what must be done, regardless of the cost

Beharry, David

Lindsey, Shawna

English

VCU Scholars Compass

might be appropriate for an all-white classroom, but there are fewer and fewer of such classrooms around. Obviously, teachers will have to make appropriate use of the material for their particular classrooms. One of the strongest statements made in the series is in the Secondary Curriculum Guide. In her essay, Suzanne Perry emphasizes the power of language : I llanguage is the medium through which we transmit culture." If we could get students to understand this concept, we would be on the way to helping them understand themselves, their own use of language to distort and stereotype, and the way language molds our perceptions of society. The flexibility and reasonable cost of this series make it a wise choice for school districts. Each filmstrip is short enough to use in a single class period and still allow time for discussion, and each guide provides a sufficient number of activities for varying skill levels and diverse subjects. The bibliography includes basic sources for librarians who wish to expand their multi-cultural holdings. The series would also be excellent for teacher training programs. There is enough information here to use both the visual and written media as models for students to develop their own materials for the classroom, or to modify the lessons to make them useful in a variety of settings. Students could take further advantage of these materials by using them as a foundation for preparing additional bibliographies and lessons plans. -Gretchen M. Bataille Iowa State University Arthur Dong (Producer). Sewing Woman. 16mm film, 15 minutes, black and white, rental $30.00 per showing, $45.00 two showings/one day; purchase $225.00, video (all formats) $195.00. Deepfocus Produc­tions, 1548 Lombard Street, San Fransicco, CA 94123 (415-776-9049). Married at thirteen years of age to an unknown husband, and pregnant two months later ! How could her parents allow such a horror to happen? Zem Ping Dong would soon understand the Chinese way: to accept fate and do what must be done, regardless of th� cost. To the Euroamerican, this attitude seems reprehensible, but to many Asians it is  a way of life. Sewing Woman shows the Chinese way thro�gh the story of Zem Ping Dong, an immigrant woman. Disowning 52 Explorations in Sights and Sounds. No. 3 (Summer 1983). her fi rst-born son was a n ecessity and  the fi rst step i n  getti ng  to America; si nce it was somethi n g  that had to be done,  she d id  so d utifu l ly .  By traci ng  the l i fe and hardships encou ntered by this sewing woman, the fi l m  clear ly  d ef ines the adjustment of a you ng  woman to Amer ican  ways and the peri ls  i nvolved i n  bri ng ing  her fa mi l y  to the United States. A lthough she had raised a fa mi ly  of her own i n  Amer ica, Zem Pi ng  Dong k n ew it wou l d  n ever be complete u nti l  her fa mi l y  i n  Chi na  cou l d  ga in  American citizenship. Sewing Woman tel ls of her struggle to do so in a clear, "matter of fact" m a n ner.  By explori ng  her l i fe and  the obstacles she had to overcome, the fi l m  depicts a candid view of l i fe i n  a land foreign to everything Zem P ing Dong  had ever known.  Although the fi l m  i s  short, Sewing Woman exce l l s  at g iv i ng  i ns ight i nto many Asian  trad itions. By exposi n g  some hard-to-comprehend custo ms, the fi l m  a ids the native-born American in fi n d i n g  at least some u nderstand ing  of the Asian  way. Sewing Woman is a must i n  any  ethnic or Asian  stud ies cu rr icu l u m .  -Shawna li ndsey David Beharry Cal i forn ia  State Po lytechnic University, Pomona Explorations in Sights and Sounds . No. 3 (Su mmer 1983).  53 

[Review of] Arthur Dong (Producer), Sewing Woman

https://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1093&amp;context=ess

[Review of] Arthur Dong (Producer), Sewing Woman

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