Literary works have the power to make comments about reality by carefully manipulating its narrative. A story of any genre usually has three parts: a beginning, middle, and an end. The beginning is the set-up, the middle is the complication and/or turning point, and the end is the resolution, or sometimes lack thereof. Within these different parts of a story, however, there are certain conventions specific to each genre or story type, and thus deviating from them is usually a deliberate commentary made by the author. When it includes an ambiguous ending, the deliberateness is clearer. By following the narrative arc of an adventure story but deviating from its conventions, “The Smuggling of Tie Co” by Sui Sin Far compels the readers to connect
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The American Dream can be achieved in two ways: by pursuing your dream, or by making sacrifices so that the people you love can pursue their dreams. Most first generation Asian Pacific American parents follow the second approach to the American Dream. They come over from their home country, sacrificing everything they had, to America where they have nothing, and start from scratch to provide the resources for their children to pursue their dreams. My own parents embarked on this adventure, as my mother gave up her luxurious life of riches and my father gave up his position as the #2 salesman in all of Korea, and came to America in order to give me and my sister the opportunity to follow our dreams. Tie Co’s love confession and death compose a direct analogy to this American Dream. Tie Co jumped into the water, sacrificing himself for Fabian, so that he would not have to go to jail and would be able to continue his life and pursuit of happiness. Tie Co’s love for Fabian, just like Asian Pacific American parents’ love for their children, motivates his sacrifice and death, just as the first generation parents do by sacrificing everything and essentially killing their former life. The ambiguous ending of the story comments on the American Dream by the notion that it is a double-edged sword. Just as the audience feels both happy and sad about the ending of “The Smuggling of Tie Co,” the children of immigrant parents feel happy with our opportunities, but heartbroken when we realize the sacrifices that our parents had to make in order to provide those
The American Dream can be achieved in two ways: by pursuing your dream, or by making sacrifices so that the people you love can pursue their dreams. Most first generation Asian Pacific American parents follow the second approach to the American Dream. They come over from their home country, sacrificing everything they had, to America where they have nothing, and start from scratch to provide the resources for their children to pursue their dreams. My own parents embarked on this adventure, as my mother gave up her luxurious life of riches and my father gave up his position as the #2 salesman in all of Korea, and came to America in order to give me and my sister the opportunity to follow our dreams. Tie Co’s love confession and death compose a direct analogy to this American Dream. Tie Co jumped into the water, sacrificing himself for Fabian, so that he would not have to go to jail and would be able to continue his life and pursuit of happiness. Tie Co’s love for Fabian, just like Asian Pacific American parents’ love for their children, motivates his sacrifice and death, just as the first generation parents do by sacrificing everything and essentially killing their former life. The ambiguous ending of the story comments on the American Dream by the notion that it is a double-edged sword. Just as the audience feels both happy and sad about the ending of “The Smuggling of Tie Co,” the children of immigrant parents feel happy with our opportunities, but heartbroken when we realize the sacrifices that our parents had to make in order to provide those