The Jade Peony (Symbol)
The jade peony is a small carved object, and one of Grandmother's most prized possessions. She received the jade ornament when she was a young woman in China; it was a gift from a traveling acrobat who visited the farm where she grew up, and taught her how to juggle. Even though it has been decades since she saw this man, Grandmother has treasured the jade object. The jade peony symbolizes memory and identity. Even though so much time has passed, and her grandchildren fixate on Grandmother's identity as an elderly woman, she continues to remember what it was like to be young and to experience wonder and desire. The object also symbolizes how the experiences of one's life, and especially one's youth, have an indelible impact.
Wong Suk's Cloak (Symbol)
Wong Suk owns a beautiful and expensive black woolen cloak, and this cloak is an important part of Jook-Liang's image of him. They use the cloak when they play together and stage performances, and the cloak adds to Wong Suk's impression of grandeur and theatricality, explaining part of why Jook-Liang is so enamored with him. The cloak symbolizes creativity, imagination, and fantasy, which are all things that Wong Suk brings to Jook-Liang's life. Wong Suk inherited the cloak as a thank-you gift after he saved the life of a wealthy Englishman while working on the railroad. It also symbolizes Wong Suk's optimism and resilience; he has lived a very hard life, but he has never stopped working to make the world a better place. He continues to do so when he sails back to China to repatriate the bones of many other Chinese men.
Death (Motif)
Grandmother talks often about her own death; paradoxically, she does so as a way to delay and ward it off. Her comments that she will likely die soon create a motif in the novel, which is furthered by other plot incidents such as Wong Suk returning to China to repatriate bones, Stepmother giving birth to a stillborn baby, and Jung-Sum losing both of his parents as a small child. The motif of death also foreshadows Grandmother's death, which is a significant plot point in the novel, and is heightened by the historical context, in which World War II is leading to many deaths. The motif of death is significant because it reveals that everything is temporary and transient; at the same time, even when an individual or a period in time passes away, memory and storytelling allows people to retain a connection.
Jung-Sum's Coat (Symbol)
Jung-Sum is given a coat by Old Yuen when he is around 12 years old. Old Yuen offers the coat to his own son, Frank, but Frank rejects it. The coat is initially too big and shabby, but various members of Jung-Sum's family and community work to alter and improve it. It becomes a very beautiful garment, and Jung-Sum takes great pride in it. The coat symbolizes how Jung-Sum and Frank both have traumatic family histories, but Jung-Sum is able to move beyond his trauma because he is embraced by a new family and community. Frank's refusal to take his father's coat symbolically shows that he cannot forgive his father, or try to establish a familial bond. Jung-Sum, however, is more open and flexible, and the collaborative nature of fixing the coat shows that he has become integrated within a community.
The White Cat (Symbol)
Shortly before Grandmother's death, she sees a white cat. She takes this as an omen of impending death, because the cat reminds her of the acrobat who she knew as a young girl, and who gave her the prized jade peony. The acrobat seems to have experienced albinism, since Grandmother describes him with entirely white skin and pink eyes. The white cat symbolizes how Grandmother's death is a peaceful and even joyous transition for her. She is going to be reunited with someone she has always remembered, and who may even have been her lost love. Because Grandmother has had such strong ties to her past and memories, death represents a kind of continuity for her. Time is more circular for her, and she is not afraid of death, because she has always preserved memories and stories.
