The character I picked to analyze is Mary {Paik Lee the main character that presents the whole story. Through reading the story I have determined that Mary's best trait is perseverance. I came to this conclusion because through out reading the story, Mary proves her self to be a go get er. If she wants something she gets it. Starting at a young age she wanted to provide for her family and so she got a job right away. Also as she gets older she strives to get what she wants even when things are preventing her. Like when she learned that she couldn't conceive. She would not take no for an answer. She went to a doctor that specialized in that and eventually got what she wanted. Also when she wanted to find stability, she earned that life for her self with her husband while taking care of her family and husband as well. " It took two years to pay for the fruit stand. Then we saved enough money to buy one piece of furniture at at time..." "One afternoon as I was preparing to close up, a young man came in, obviously very drunk. He slapped me hard on the back and said, "Hi Mary!" in a loud voice. I was so surprised and annoyed that I turned around and hit him as hard as I could on his back and said, "Hi Charlie!"... Two days later, he came in, apologized, and said, " Something bothers me. Why did you call me Charlie?" I replied, "Why did you call me Mary?" He said, " I though all you Jap women were Mary."... Every time he came in, he wanted to know more about Oriental people and Asian countries."(Quiet Odyssey, Mary Paik Lee, p.74 & p.77) These quotes show Mary getting her way. With the first quote it shows her husband and her having nothing and starting a fruit business that is, by the time the second quote happens, it thriving. With the second quote, Mary teaches that boy a lesson. She talks to the boy and asks him why he assumes all Japanese women are called Mary? Even though she isn't Japanese she fights for all Asian American women.She shows the young man that people just decided to stereotype all races. Which the boy agrees to and eventually apologizes for. After that situation, they became good friends and the young man wanted to learn more about the Asian people. This trait really effects the story through how the plot plays out. With her perseverance her family reaches stability when her husband and her work hard to maintain their fruit stand. It also affects her relationships with people in a good way. Through Mary's feisty but perseverant attitude she is able to talk her way into people heads and make friends along the way. This trait gives her favor in the white community even though she is an Asian American. The quote above can apply to this fact.
Over all, Mary is a great and admirable character. She fights for what she wants and doesn't give up. She works hard to be treated as equal, achieve stability, and reach her goals. Here best trait of perseverance is what helps push her though life even when life seems impossible.
Over all, Mary is a great and admirable character. She fights for what she wants and doesn't give up. She works hard to be treated as equal, achieve stability, and reach her goals. Here best trait of perseverance is what helps push her though life even when life seems impossible.