Outside Reading - Week 3 Post A

Vocab:

cajoling (95) - to persuade by flattery or promises

contortionist (93) - a person who performs gymnastic feats involving contorted postures

Appeals:

1. "But I saw from the way she looked at me that I had balked too long; she had given up on me." (95) This is a logical appeal. Evelina knows that her Chinese tutor has lost her patience with her and that's why she suddenly becomes 'unable to teach' her anymore.
2. "The air was hot, muggy, and filled with the sound of feverish nocturnal insects. The smell was fecund, primeval, and bacterial. I felt as if we had flown not only  halfway around the world, but back several centuries in time as well." (105) This is an emotional appeal. Evelina thoroughly describes the feel and smell of China. She describes it so well that you almost feel like you're there. 
3. "At eleven o'clock in the night, after crossing the Pacific Ocean... Our plane arrived in Shanghai." (105) This is a logical appeal. This is just a fact that is being said. No emotion is trying to be sparked. 

Quote:

"We went along with the other passengers to the customs area, which was divided into three line, one for American tourists, another for returning Chinese citizens, a third for overseas Chinese. I hesitated, confused, scanning for the line that described me, who was none of these. A little evil chime, imposter, began to clang in my head." (106) Evelina feels lost as soon as she arrives in China. She doesn't know what to make of herself. Is she to say that she is from China, although she's this is her first visit? Or just a tourist? Evelina begins to search both her country and her roots to find out who she really is.

Theme:

A third theme that has emerged is the theme of finding yourself out; who you really are.