Characterization

Jing-mei (June) Woo: She is the daughter of Suyuan and Canning Woo. Jing-mei and her mother always had a troubled relationship. When her mother dies, Jing-mei has to deal with her mother's death After her mother's death, she realizes that she never really knew her mother. Jing-mei begins to learn her mother's history and begin to see that China is a part of who she is. When she finally meets her half-sisters in China, she feels like she has her mother back. She also realizes that she and her mother always argued, her mother really did love her and care for her.

Suyuan Woo: She is the mother of Jing-mei, Wang Chwun Yu and Wang Chwun Hwa. Suyuan Woo was the wife of Canning Woo and Wang Fuchi. Suyuan had a traumatizing past--she got separated from her twin daughters and lost her first husband, Wang Fuchi, in the war. Though she married Canning in China and moved to California, she never forgot her daughters and spend the remainder of her life searching for them. Suyuan was also the founder of the Joy Luck Club.

Waverly Jong: She is the daughter of Lindo and Tin. Waverly was a proud and spoiled bratty girl. However, Lindo had control over her and was able to  make Waverly see flaws where she never saw them before, so that she is never satisfied, like her mother.

Lindo Jong: She is the mother of Waverly, Vincent, and Winston. and the wife of Tin Jong. Lindo's best friend is Suyuan, but they bickered constantly. Lindo also tries to take credit for Waverly's success as it was a part of Chinese culture and also because she feels close to her daughter. Lindo tries to control her life and gets upset when Waverly decides to marry a white man. However in the end, she accepts Waverly's decision and accepts him.

Lena St. Clair: She is the daughter of Ying-ying and Clifford St. Clair and the wife of Harold Livotny. Lena spent her childhood fearing that her family could fall apart. Because of this, she becomes easily frightened. She lets her husband bully her. However, Lena then slowly begins to realize her anger towards him.

Ying-ying St. Clair: Despite being born a rich and spoiled girl, Ying-ying ends up poor. She sees herself as strong on the inside, but knows that she has given up her strength so she will no longer cause herself any pain. She marrieds Clifford St. Clair but feels nothing towards him.  Towards the end, Ying-ying begins to regret her decision because it has made her daughter weak. But she turns the situation around and teaches her daughter how to be strong.

Rose Hsu Jordan: She is the wife of Ted Jordan, daughter of An-mei Hsu. Rose often feels guilty and powerless. She constantly blames herself when a bad situation occurs, like the death of her younger brother or her failing marriage. But then she realizes that her mother wants her to be strong and finally stands up to Ted. Rose Hsu then feels closer to her mother because of this.


An-mei Hsu: She is the mother of Rose Hsu Jordan and the wife of George Hsu. An-mei is both strong and weak at times. She knows that she and her daughter Rose are sometimes too easily influenced by others. But An-mei also believes strongly that she can make things right. She learned to have believe in herself, and to stand up for herself.