In the short story “The White Umbrella” by Gish Jen, the narrator, a twelve year old girl, struggles daily with the situation she is in. She is in a Chinese American family where her mother constantly works to keep the family stable. The narrator’s younger sister Mona isn’t as aware of the situation as the older sister. After school one day, the girls walk to their piano lesson in the rain. Their mom is working, so the two of them must walk in the dreaded weather. Once, they get on the piano teacher’s house, Mrs. Crossman, they are questioned on why they are wet. The main character answers with an outrageous lie, and continues misleading the teacher the rest of the lesson. Before the lesson began, Eugenie Roberts, a girl in the grade above, finished her practice.…show more content… Eugenie has the ideal life for the main character. The girl sees a breathtaking white umbrella that she has assumes is Eugenie’s. The main character became obsessed with white umbrella. Eugenie and her mom leave, and the umbrella is left at the house. At the end of her piano time, the two sisters wait outside for their mother. Time passes and Mona decides to keep dry inside the house after Mrs. Crosman offers. The older sister refuses and says that her mother should arrive any minute. Time passes and the mother is still not there. Minutes before she arrives, Mrs. Crossman gives the umbrella to the main character, telling her that it was hers not Eugenie’s. When the girls go with their mother, they get into a small accident, and the narrator takes this as an opportunity to throw away the umbrella. Evidence will show that the narrator wants to be an American girl. This is shown because the girl constantly lies about her family. Also, she idolizes Eugenie and her
