"Lost Sister"

We just recently read a poem called "Lost Sister". It was about a girl from China that moves to America, because she disliked her life in her strict homeland. After she got to America, her life became so different and she ended up missing China and her old culture.


Important Quote

"There is a sister
across the ocean,
who relinquished her name,
diluting jade green
with the blue of the Pacific"

This quote is about when she first comes to America and how she gives up her name, Jade. This is an important quote because it marks the first change that occurs in her life after she arrives in America. The quote mentions diluting jade green. When you dilute a color, it becomes lighter and not as strong. This could signify that once she crossed the Pacific Ocean, her Chinese culture wasn't as strong as it once was. Or it could also mean that once she crossed the Pacific Ocean, she became less pure. This might be because she wasn't a strict rule obeyer anymore since she moved to a free country.


What does this poem say about how our "self" is created?

"Lost Sister" shows us how traditions and one's culture add to a person's identity. Once Jade left China, she left behind her traditions as well. This caused her to become lost, since she was alone and had nothing familiar around her. She didn't know how to function; she needed China and her family.