Guidelines

• Your essay should include a clear, defensible thesis presented in your introduction.
• Back up your argument with at least three pieces of textual evidence, thoroughly analyzed.
• Examine the roles of at least two characters (e.g., Marilyn, James, Lydia, Hannah, or Nath) and how their internal silences contribute to — or complicate — the central tragedy.
• Address a counterargument: for example, consider whether systemic issues (like racial bias or gender discrimination in 1970s America) play an equal or larger role in the family's dysfunction.
• Conclude by reflecting on the broader thematic implications: What does Ng suggest about the consequences of silence within families and society?

Support your argument with specific textual evidence, and discuss how Ng employs narrative structure — including the novel's nonlinear timeline — to emphasize that what is left unsaid has a profound impact on the characters, just as much as what is actually spoken.

• Marilyn's unfulfilled ambitions and the pressure she places on Lydia
• James's fixation on assimilation and belonging as a Chinese American man
• Lydia's silence and her performance of the identity her parents expect
• The marginalization of Hannah and Nath within the family dynamic

Skills Assessed

Argumentation, textual evidence, thematic analysis, narrative structure