Authenticity Of Culture, Not Cuisine

Cheuk Kwan's series at first glance looks like a profile of Chinese cuisine in different places around the world, but as I watched the series, I think that the cuisine, or the authenticity of the cuisine, was not very relevant to consider, but the story and the history of the people behind the restaurants was rather more important. This was true particularly in the countries where most of the restaurants were profiled, because these were not places where people were familiar with the original flavors and incarnations of Chinese cuisine, but rather most people's experience with Chinese cuisine was limited to these restaurants. What that means to me is that evaluating the strength and extent to which Chinese tradition and history is preserved in these restaurants is not related to what is cooked in the restaurant. For example, in Cuba, the Cuban government can send however many people to China to train in the ways of Chinese cooking, but the restaurant that would be subsequently opened does not have necessarily the Chinese history and tradition behind it, at least not in the same way that the restaurant in Mauritius or even the one in Canada does, because the latter restaurants represent a part of Chinese history abroad, and not a conscious attempt to create authenticity.

In looking for an authentic Chinese overseas history in many countries however, I feel that looking to restaurants is particularly effective, because many new immigrants tend to open restaurants, which makes a lot of sense, because cooking is a skill that is very translatable to different places. As an immigrant, you know your own culture and your own cuisine the best, so it seems to be one of the most obvious ways to make a living. However, what I found most interesting was the dichotomy of motivations between restaurants run by first generation immigrants and restaurants run by descendants of immigrants. The former group seem to open restaurants by necessity, again referring back to the transferable skills theme, and they also don't want their children to take over the restaurants either. Restaurateurs who are descendants of immigrants however, seem to engage in the restaurant business more because they feel a need to represent their heritage and introduce their Chinese cultural roots into their non Chinese familiar homelands. It is the second (and beyond) generation that is more concerned about authenticity than first generation immigrants because latter generations strive to fortify connections to traditions that they feel affinity for; it is they who strive to reconcile two cultures, while first generation immigrants are more concerned with making a living before exactly preserving their culture. I would say that in the U.S., this same trend is also true. Consider chop suey, the chow mein sandwich, and other Americanized Chinese foods, which were created in the original immigrant run Chinese restaurants to make Chinese food more accessible to the American population. However, now that Chinese food is established in the American food culture, there has been a surge in demand for "authenticity", often headed by a new generation of chefs in Chinese cuisine who are decidedly not immigrant, but rather more global and fusion prone in their cuisines, such as chefs we have mentioned such as Ming Tsai or Masaharu Morimoto (the Japanese Iron Chef). I think it is for the reason that Chinese cuisine is well established in the U.S. that we can have restaurants like Blue Ginger, Nobu (in New York City), and other high end Asian restaurants, where the wait staff does not have to be Asian for people to consider the food there "authentically" Asian. This is in contrast to restaurants in the countries we saw in Kwan's series, where the presence of Chinese staff or Chinese cultural themes in the restaurant was a major factor in people accepting the cuisine to be "truly" Chinese.

Ultimately, the convoluted paragraph I typed above was meant to point out that looking at differences in the Chinese restaurants and the people that run them is a microcosm where we can look at some of the differences in experience between different generations of Chinese that live overseas. If we are looking at Asian American popular culture, I feel that this is extremely relevant because different generations of Asian Americans are in completely different demographics these days, with different motivations, different priorities, and different consumer patterns. In the United States, the growing demand for "authenticity" makes me optimistic about the state of Asian Americans, because to me, I feel that it means people are willing to learn about and aware of Asian traditions, values, and cultures.

Flower Drum Song is Chop Suey

I thought it was very refreshing to see a cast entirely of Asian Americans, especially considering that Flower Drum Song was filmed in the pre-civil war era. To put it into a historical context, during this period the U.S. was starting to enter French colonies of Southeast Asia and as the cold war in China was coming to an end, the Chinese Americans in the U.S. had to be portrayed as harmless and assimilated to American culture. For this reason I see why it may have been fitting to have a cast of Asian faces. Flower Drum Song covered the whole gamut of Chinese American stereotypes (the docile immigrant, the traditional father, the assimilated children, the "sex symbol"). What confused me however, were the contradictions in the characterizations that surfaced through the entire movie. How is it that Wang Ta's father is more conservative and traditional than Mei Li's father who is literally "straight off the boat" from China? Depriving Mei Li's father of a distinct voice or role in the movie seems to perpetuate the stereotype of the emasculated and powerless Asian man.

Flower Drum Song, much like the musical number, "Chop Suey", attempts to mix a generally western plot (the obstacle that lovers face but ultimately overcome) with several Asian stereotypes, which consistently reminds us as the audience that we are essentially dealing with "non-Americans". Underlying this is the general notion that assimilation is "good", and traditional Chinese ways are "bad" because the goal of the characters (especially Mei Li) is to learn more about American culture, or, in Master Wang case, realize that the "American way" is not so bad after all (when he opens a bank account). Yet throughout the movie we are reminded that the setting of the film is in Chinatown (with only a handful of White actors), there are seldom if any interactions with non Asians, and the cast is constantly poking fun at or perpetuating Asian stereotypes. The film creates a distinct contrast between those who are assimilated (like "Sammy" Fong), and those who aren't (like Master Wong), yet reminds us that they are still in Chinatown, and are not truly "American". What is the message that this film is trying to send about immigrants and assimilation to American culture? The only message I am getting is mixed.

Flower Drum Song: West Side Story of the West Coast?

I was surprised that most of the cast of Flower Drum Song was (or at least looked) Asian-American, and that there seemed to be only one Caucasian actor in the film (the mugger). Master Wong's remark that "All white men look alike" seemed rather ironically humorous to me. The characters seemed to run the gamut of Asian stereotypes: the Lotus Flower, the Dragon Lady, the Confucius father figure, etc. The story was rather cliche, but as entertainment, the costume and set designers did an excellent job.

This film reminded me a lot of West Side Story in its themes, choreography, colors, and cinematography. In fact, the two films were both released in the same year, 1961. The colorful costumes, the culture clash, the forbidden love affair are subjects echoed in both movies. I think its interesting how each film treats the immigrant experience in America. Upon Mei Li and Dr. Li's arrival in San Francisco, they discover that many of the Chinese people they encounter can't read or speak Chinese -- they are assimilated. When they go to Sammy Fong's club, Celestial Gardens, for the first time, they discover that most of the patrons are Chinese and that the performances are more Vegas-showgirl than traditional flower-drum song. What's more, the announcer tells the audience that all of the girls performing are "college grads", implying that the "new Chinese woman" is smart, sassy, and talented.

An emphasis on generational clashing was definitely evident throughout the movie, especially in the song "Chop Suey". Master Fong's kids are all "Americanized", playing baseball, dancing the cha-cha, and complaining about their ancient dad. Madame Liong's supermarket order of octopus, seahorse, dried snake meat, "longevity noodles" and a dozen thousand-year-old-eggs ("Make sure they're fresh!", she says), seems to be poking fun at traditional Chinese food. Master Wong complains that he wants a traditional Chinese girl for his son to marry, since the American Chinese girls are "without reverence or filial devotion". The elder characters in the film all cling to their customs and traditional ways, while the younger generation has attached themselves to American culture.

The "picture bride" system, therefore, would obviously seem archaic to someone like Sammy Fong. Sammy looks at Mei Li's picture, and dismisses her by saying "Mom picked her out for me," as if Mei Li was a new suit or pair of shoes his mother had purchased for him I found it difficult to like Mei Li, for all her meekness, deference, and modesty (she only slightly redeems herself at the end by breaking her marriage contract with Sammy). She submits herself to be practically auctioned off to the highest bidder -- one particularly troubling scene is when Master Wong inspects her teeth and comments on her fertility, while Dr. Li declares her "strong as a cow". Mei Li has no problem being treated as an object, because she wants to obey her elders. Linda Lo seemed much more interesting to me, although herself a stereotype of 60s femininity -- she says that although she has hobbies of ". . .singing, cooking, and first aid; the main thing is for a woman to be successful in her gender".

Although I feel that this film was still problematic, pushing Asian stereotypes and objectifying women, it was an entertaining study of a 1960s Rodgers and Hammerstein musical. Its message is not what I'd personally want white American audiences learning about Asian-American culture, but it's nice to see so many Asian actors on the big screen in a movie from the pre-civil rights era.