The Good Earth

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1931

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Summary

Background

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapters 1-7

Chapters 8-14

Chapters 15-26

Chapters 27-34

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Literary Devices

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Symbols & Motifs

Fealty to Superiors, Elders, and Parents

Buck’s attention to the details of traditional, customary behavior informs the narrative regarding not only the expected, proper responses of Chinese citizens but also the manner in which one person—a societal superior, like an older relative or someone higher on the social scale—can control the behavior of another. For instance, Wang Lung’s unmarried, teenage female cousins behave in a manner unacceptable when they flirt with adult men. He fears that their actions will reflect badly on his family. He confronts his aunt about this, and the next day his uncle seeks him out. His uncle speaks in a circumspect fashion, failing to address the issue that concerns Wang Lung. Wang Lung, for once, speaks his mind, and his uncle slaps him. According to custom, Wang Lung must accept this punishment for having addressed his elder with honesty rather than deference.

These unspoken but universally recognized rules comprise a motif the author uses to help people who are not Chinese grasp the importance of politeness and respect that traditionally permeate interactions among Chinese citizens. Through the level of adherence to these social mores, Buck reveals important aspects of each character in the novel. For example, regardless of the treatment she receives from Wang Lung, O-lan never deviates from expressing profound respect for him. When she confronts unwelcome strangers at her home, however, she drops her deferential tone and assumes authority. Listening to a firebrand revolutionary speak about rising up against authority, Wang Lung politely asks him an important question. The speaker responds by insulting Wang Lung’s intelligence and social standing. Thus, the author implies that these new revolutionaries won’t abide by traditional Chinese customs and values. Regardless of whether this is good or bad, Buck uses it to demonstrate that revolutionaries intend to challenge the extremes of wealth and poverty by upending traditional customs.

Good Destiny Versus Bad Destiny

Another motif that Buck examines is the notion of individual destiny. Many of the characters are superstitious, including Wang Lung. They show this as they visit the various worship sites of the three prevailing religions of the day to burn incense offerings. Beyond these cursory petitions for blessings, however, is an underlying sense that an individual has either a good or a bad destiny. Uncle and his wife each occasionally comment on Wang Lung’s good fortune, saying that he has a good destiny. Having a good destiny, they assert, allows Wang Lung to overcome setbacks like famines and floods. Uncle, on the other hand, fathers only girls and owns land that doesn’t want to produce good crops. Thus, they assume that Uncle has a bad destiny rather than taking responsibility.

A traditional American perspective on this subject would say that Wang Lung is doing what any good capitalist would do: saving money, spending it wisely to increase his base, and diversifying by becoming a landholder and lender. Buck’s perspective is that Wang Lung succeeds because, despite the many setbacks he faces, he never forgets the primacy of the earth. His success, the author implies, comes not from hard work and perseverance or because of divine blessings but because he makes himself one with the forces of growth and fertility.

O-lan seems not to have a superstitious or religious bone in her body. A consummate survivor, she does what’s necessary and best to provide for her family in every circumstance. Buck, who depicts O-lan as a practical, no-nonsense, results-oriented person—just like herself—comes from a profoundly religious background, one that she conveniently used to get herself back into China when she had no intention of becoming a missionary.

Social Class Structure

When reflecting on social castes in Asia, readers may feel tempted to focus on the famous caste system in India. While traditional 19th-century China had no formal caste structure, Buck uses this motif to show that clear social distinctions between various groups exist. At the top of the social order are the landholders who own property through the aegis of the now-dissolving Qing Dynasty. The author portrays these individuals as walled-off, out of touch, and in danger of losing their vast wealth. Below this group, the well-off merchant class conducts business and keeps the economy flowing. Beneath this is a group consisting of professionals: teachers, geomancers, priests, and physicians. Next, come the shopkeepers and hosts. Beneath this group are the small landholders like Wang Lung, his father, and Uncle, followed by workers who have no real estate holdings.

As Buck describes them, these groups recognize one another on sight and each understands his “place” in society. Wang Lung sees raised eyebrows when he shows up in the teahouse where he meets Lotus, not because he goes to her early every day but because he dresses like a farmer. One of the first changes he makes at that point is to acquire a new wardrobe so that he’ll appear to belong to the merchant class. Having a proper place in such a group tends to enforce the rigidity of the social order and make it more difficult to escape financial extremes.

The social structure noted here refers only to men, however. Although excluded by gender from participating in elements of society reserved for men, woman have their own social standing. Buck illuminates these classes clearly, demonstrating how these groups perpetuate the subjugation of Chinese women. Wives and “concubines” of the wealthy top the social order. Daughters from this group can expect to retain high social standing. Common women, as noted, fall into groups delineated as servants, “concubines,” workers’ wives, and sex workers. Among common women, the highest achievable status is being married with a male child. Thus, when Wang Lung’s affection for O-lan is supplanted by the sex worker Lotus, O-lan complains that she’s his wife and has borne him a son.