LITTLE IRONIES by Catherine Lim
OVERVIEW
Teaching suggestion: Help
students acquire background
knowledge of Singapore and
Malaysia in the 1950s-1970s.
See Appendix A
Teaching suggestion: Help
students identify and clarify
themes common in the stories.
See Appendix B
Catherine Lims collection of short stories set in
Singapore burst upon the local literary scene in 1978
with resounding impact. It was hailed as the first
major work in prose by a Singaporean writer and it
provided sharp and insightful commentary on human
nature as well as the particular preoccupations of a
wide cross-section of Singaporean society. From the
struggling working-class of labourers, servants and
dependants, to the aspiring middle classes and the
proud and complacent wealthy, Lim surveys the needs
and obsessions of fathers, mothers, mothers-in-law,
spinsters, adolescents and young children. Bound by
convention, and observing the rituals of marriage, birth
and death, these individuals and families resist or
adapt to trying circumstances. The breadwinner in
Paper, for instance, succumbs to the Singaporean
dream of owning landed property by playing the stock
market, suffers depression and dies as a result of his
losses, but has a huge paper house burnt for him at his
wake. This ending exemplifies the kind of ironic
observations Lim makes in each case. The education
system receives its fair share of criticism with stories
like Adeline Ng Ai Choo and The Teacher while the
materialism in Singapore society is exposed in The
Taximans Story, The Jade Pendant and The Ugly
One. With humour and compassion, Lim dissects the
vulnerabilities of human nature amidst the pressure of
social expectations. While the background is rooted
firmly in Singapore from the 1950s to the 70s, the
themes are universal, and the narrative styles
interesting and varied enough to be meaningful even
to a technological and globalised generation.
THEMES
Materialism and the lure of money and
possessions
Many of the stories deal with the temptations of wealth
and what money can buy. In Paper Tay Soon and Yee
Lians desire to possess a beautiful house of their own
drives them to speculate dangerously on the stock
market. Tay Soons obsession with owning a dream
house is fuelled by his desire to keep up with the
Joneses, Dr Soo and his wife, in this case, who made
millions on the stock market, and by the general frenzy
for wealth and property that caught many
Singaporeans at the time.
Unsuitable liaisons and marriages are often entered
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into for the sake of money. In The Marriage, a
beautiful young woman marries a much older man for
his wealth while Mei Kwei in Properly Married finally
marries the man she has been living with so she can
inherit his wealth though he is literally dying on his
wedding day. Miss Pereiras suitor, Paul, woos her for
her money though she is a plump, graying 52- year
-old, but fortunately is rescued by her loyal gardener.

Wealth is pursued with a vengeance. In The Lottery,

against her better judgment, Ah Boh gambles
addictively in the hope of big winnings, while Chow Ah
Sum in The Chosen One harnesses superstition and
spirituality to fill her biscuit tin with donations. The
taximan in The Taximans Story eagerly ferries the
young girls and their European customers at Hotel
Elroy to earn a few dollars more while decrying the
lack of morals of the younger generation which
includes his own daughter!

Even daughters-in-law who see the prized furniture of

the older generation as eyesores quickly change their
minds when they find out that these antiques are
collectors items and treat the old folk with more
respect, as Karen does in Monster. What money can
buy is indeed treated with respect. Mrs. Khoos jade
pendant in the story, The Jade Pendant is envied and
admired. The exquisite gems in the story, The Ugly
One, are coveted by vain and grasping young women
who feel that it is a travesty that such beautiful
accessories should be peddled by a hideous old
woman.

Traditions, rituals and ceremonies

The grip of traditional values and practices has a
stranglehold on Chinese society. The desire for a male
heir and the right to acquire mistresses in order to
secure male offspring is given an ironic treatment in
Male Child. Time-honoured rituals must be carried
out at births, marriages and death, defying logic and
rationality. The man in The Father tries to assuage
his own guilt at causing the death of his daughter by
offering his dead daughter the food he should have
given her in life, and which his remaining hungry
children would have appreciated. Tay Soons family
burns him an extravagant paper house, the replica of
what he obsessed over in life and literally died for. Ah
Boh hopes that her mother will forgive her for her
negligence if she buys her the most expensive coffin
and offers her a hundred jossticks everyday with the

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prize money she has won.
In Properly Married, the sick and dying Thong Ngah is
dragged through every part of the wedding
preparations and ceremony until he collapses at the
registry, forced to participate in the traditional Chinese
as well as civil and legal procedure which will make Mei
Kwei his legitimate inheritor.

Social conventions, the influence and

expectations of others, the need for face and
an established code of behaviour
Chinese families in Singapore are seen to observe the
social values brought by their immigrant ancestors
from the Chinese mainland. They thrive on being
admired for their wealth and status as is observed in
The Jade Pendant. Mrs. Khoos daughter must host a
grand wedding for her favourite daughter; Lian Kim in
spite of the familys depleted resources. The ultimate
loss of face is suffered when the jade pendant,
meant for her own daughter, is worn by Ah Sohs
mentally-challenged daughter at this very wedding
celebration. The irony, of course, is that the frugal Ah
Soh, the barely-tolerated and lowly relative, had the
means to buy her fabled jewel and show it off on her
own daughter.

The corrupting influence of friends and ones

immediate circle leads gradually to moral
deterioration, as in the case of Tay Soons demise.
More chilling is the erosion of loyalty and duty to ones
own family in the case of Meng Choo in The Ugly One
when Rosalind, who claims to be her friend, influences
her into buying expensive jewellery, making her
neglect her monthly allowance to her family back
home, and presumably, causing the suicide of the
unfortunate peddler of the exquisite gems.

Poor relatives must also behave accordingly when they

live on the charity of their more fortunate relatives. In
Eggs, the aggrieved mother has to publicly beat and
scold her young daughter while taking her revenge by
buying her own supply of eggs and forcing these on
the hapless child who has little understanding of her
mothers behaviour.

Love
A cynical view of love is evident in the stories Love
and Miss Pereira. Love demonstrates that very
practical considerations can change ones romantic
concept of love. Frankie Liews impossibly

3
sentimental view of love, inspired by popular songs
and films, receives a rude awakening when his
beloved, Pearl, breaks up with him over the very
practical considerations of being burdened with an
ailing father-in-law and the possibility of Frankie
himself being assailed with a similar condition in old
age. She has already rejected her former boyfriend,
Hong, in fear of his financial commitments to his own
family. Pearls hard-headedness reflects the pragmatic
considerations that go into picking a spouse, in spite of
the popular concept of being in love when one gets
married.
Similarly, Miss Pereiras infatuation with the
unscrupulous Paul indicates her naivet. She believes
that she is in love with him and that her love is
sincerely reciprocated. While there is sympathy for the
elderly spinster in her feelings being stirred after years
of dormancy, the underlining warning is against a
nave belief in love.

Other types of love are presented in the other stories.

There is a mothers love for her daughter in spite of
adverse circumstances in The Jade Pendant as Ah
Soh buys the expensive jewel for her daughter who
had shown a liking for it. Then there is the tormented
mother of the child in Eggs who suffers humiliation
from her rich relatives but yearns to gratify her six-
year- old childs yearnings for an egg and a doll. Yet, in
The Jade Pendant, Mrs. Khoos love for her youngest
daughter seems inordinate as she struggles to satisfy
the latter with a lavish wedding while her daughter
hardly appreciates her mothers dilemma.

Family ties, the gap between generations and

the attachment to childhood and the past
This theme is strongly brought out in The Journey
when Richard finds himself stricken with cancer. The
wealth he has accumulated means nothing to him now
and he refuses to make the journey to New York to
consult doctors who may be able to offer him some
last hope of survival. His mind goes back to his
poverty-stricken past where the love of his mother,
grandmother and aunt saw him through hardship and
he decides to return to his real home in his dying days.
The gap between his house-proud wife and the women
who brought him up reveals the difference between
modern materialistic values and the deeper, selfless
devotion of a past era.
Similarly, in Monster the daughter-in-law resents her
mother-in-laws attachment to the past and what she

4
considers ugly and out-dated furniture which does not
fit into the dcor of her home. She is quite unkind to
the old woman until she learns how valuable her
ancient bed is. The cold-hearted Rosalind in The Ugly
One is drawn to the external beauty of the gems the
hideous old woman sells, but she herself is lacking in
inner beauty as she shows little compassion for the old
woman and gleefully passes her counterfeit notes.
She even influences Meng Choo against sending
money home though the latter still has feelings of love
and duty towards her family in Malaysia.

Plight of the marginalized

The stories illustrate the scorn and contempt with
which the poor, the mentally-retarded, the ugly and
the old are regarded, and the abuse they suffer at the
hands of even those who are close to them. The father
in the story of the same title strikes and kills his
retarded daughter while Ah Sohs simple-minded
daughter in The Jade Pendant is ridiculed, as are the
dependant mother-and-daughter in Eggs. Children,
in their ignorance and innocence, seem to suffer the
most, even at the hands of their own parents. Elderly
mothers-in-law are despised unless they have money
and property, and the ugly and deformed become
objects of fascination and curiosity, like the seller of
jade in The Ugly One.

Criticism of the education system in Singapore

The Singaporean concern with outward form and
correctness is criticized in The Teacher where the
teacher in question laments the lack of good English
used by the student in her work but misses the heart-
rending signs of distress in what she writes. Similarly
in Adeline Ng Ai Choo , the insensitivity of the
teachers and school authorities is clearly
demonstrated in their unrelenting officiousness in
defending their actions. The pressure under which
students are placed by both parents and teachers as a
result of an achievement-oriented society is shown by
the contents of Adelines diary before she plunged to
her death.

Human nature
Catherine Lim has confessed at a talk on her books
that she is most interested in the workings of the
human heart. This collection of short stories amply
illustrates the intricacies of human motivation,
exposing the subterranean urges and desires which
lead a person to plot and scheme to get what he or she

5
desires, to fall prey to obsessions and influences, and
to justify actions which are mean, unjust or morally
objectionable. Most of the characters fall prey to
avarice and acquisitiveness, whether of money or
possessions like a grand house, furnishings, expensive
jewellery. They are conscious of status and esteem,
keeping up with current trends or
what other Singaporeans are doing, like the
speculation in shares or acquisition of landed property.
They bully and despise the weak, take advantage of
them, reject the old and unfashionable if these items
or people are not useful to them, and then, with regret,
may perform some ritual or ceremony to assuage their
guilt.

However, there is also evidence of human virtue and

self-sacrifice. Ah Soh and the ugly one, through their
hard work and resourcefulness, manage to do better
than others more blessed with money and good
fortune. Even the opportunistic Chow Ah Sum
shrewdly capitalizes on superstition to give her a new
lease of life. Miss Pereiras gardener, out of loyalty to
her late father, saves her from a fortune-hunter while
Miss Pereira herself has led a blameless life prior to her
deception.

Quirks of fortune
The irony in all the stories, of course, results from a
remarkable combination of circumstances which create
both comedy and tragedy. The Chinese belief in fate
and fortune seems remarkably apt in the way things
turn out at the end of each story.
That Thong Ngah should collapse and die just before
his wedding to Mei Kwei is legalized, robs the woman
and her scheming relatives of certain fortune. Then
the remarkable dilemma created in Male Child when
Chan Poon finds that he cant have a male heir and a
second wife at the same time, his two dearest wishes,
is a classic combination of unimaginable coincidences!
More sobering is the ghastly discovery by Ah Boh that
the accident victim who is to help her win a big lottery
is her own pitiable mother. Whether it is fate or
character that determines these outcomes is as
intriguing a question in these short stories as in
Shakespeares plays.

SETTING AND ATMOSPHERE

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The setting is Singapore of the 1950s to the 1970s,
before the recent technological and globalization
changes came into effect. Thus, many of the elements
of the lifestyle of Malaysia, from which came our fair
share of earlier immigrants, are evident in the stories.
The large family in The Father, for instance, was a
feature of the past generation. So is the figure of
Chow Ah Sum, the old lady who sells tidbits in the
street corner. Dependants like Ah Soh and her
daughter, or the mother of the child forced to eat eggs,
were still a feature in the richer households. Richard in
The Journey grew up in an ulu kampong in
Malaysia. The growing affluence of Singaporeans who
could afford terrace houses and then yearned to own
semi-detached units and even bungalows was noted in
the 1970s together with the growing sophistication
which saw the middle class venturing into the stock
market, growing rich or becoming impoverished by
their speculations. The women, in particular, acquired
a taste for gems like jade and diamonds while they
furnished their homes with Italian marble and tiles and
sent their children for piano lessons. A new
snobbishness crept in and the older generation was
often disdained for their old-fashioned values like
frugality and sentimentality.

The atmosphere in the stories varies from the

complacency and smugness of those who have made it
in life and can enjoy their new luxuries to the
insecurity and desperation of the poorer working class
like Ah Boh who turn to gambling to make it big one
day. Petty jealousies and resentments within the
family, jostling for attention and esteem, idle gossip
and influencing of the more vulnerable members of
society take place. At the same time, the spectre of
tragedy looms as disease and death, loss of love and
money, husbands or wives threaten the major
characters.

However, the comic exaggeration of the situations and

the amazing coincidences makes all the stories
humorous and entertaining.
.

PLOT AND STRUCTURE

Each of the 17 stories is crafted around the idea of
irony, an unexpected turn of events which exposes the
contradictions inherent in life or human nature. The
outcome may be tragic and haunting, as in Paper
where the protagonist receives his longed-for dream of

7
an ideal house, but one made of paper, and after his
death, at the cost of his life. It could be fortunate, as
in Chow Ah Sum becoming venerated as a medium for
Kuan Yin, the goddess of mercy, and she no longer has
to worry about her livelihood. It may also be hilarious,
ludicrous and tragic at the same time as Thong Ngah
collapses just before his wedding to Mei Kwei is
legitimized.

Whatever the effects, the narrative usually builds up to

this ironic climax, engaging the reader and surprising
him at the end. Meanwhile, some element of mystery
and suspense is employed which the reader keeps
guessing. In The Jade Pendant, for instance, the
potential buyer of the jade pendant insists on
anonymity, and the reader may suspect that it could
be Ah Soh who is rumoured to have built up substantial
funds through selling her cakes.

As for the introduction to each story, Catherine Lim

plunges the reader straight into the narrative without
much preamble, and the theme is obvious right from
the beginning. Paper for instance starts with the
direct statements on Tay Soons yearning for a house:
He wanted it; he dreamed of it, he hankered after it,
as an addict after his opiate.

Thereafter, we are swiftly carried along with the main

current of the story. Thus, most of the stories are
succinct, with two of them, The Teacher and Adeline
Ng Ai Choo remarkably short, but with good reason.
The curtness and detachment in these two stories
require brevity, as if these deaths are to be coldly
dismissed as temporary disturbances in the well-oiled
machine of the education system.

The two longest stories, The Jade Pendant, and The

Ugly One, bringing up the rear in the collection, are
the more subtle, teasing out nuances of character
which are not as well-delineated in the shorter stories.
The Ugly One, in particular, skillfully draws out the
full ugliness of Rosalinds character and Meng Choos
corruptibility with a fineness of delineation akin to
Henry James portrayal of warped character in Portrait
of a Lady.

STYLE USE OF VIEWPOINT AND LANGUAGE

8
Most of the stories are told from the third-person point
of view where the omniscient narrator can give the
reader a sweeping view of the events and characters
and leave him to draw his own conclusions. Authorial
intrusion is sometimes present, as when we are told in
The Father that Mui Muis father indulged in self-pity,
but the reactions of others, like the simple-minded
villagers who concluded that he had truly loved his
child and forgave him his drunkenness, allow us to be
more critical of him, and judge him through his
subsequent actions which are still foolish and
irresponsible, squandering the money in a show of
remorse while depriving his other children of food.
However, the absence of authorial commentary is
most effective in a story like The Ugly One where
Catherine Lim allows the reader to come to his own
conclusions about Rosalind and her group of vain and
heartless friends who are ostensibly presented as
solicitous over the welfare of the unknowing Meng
Choo who will soon become as selfish and shallow as
they are.

The style of narration is given a more novel treatment

in the two stories about teachers and victimized
students. The Teacher makes use of a dialogue
between two teachers, with one commenting on his
students failure to write correct English while missing
the more important matter of her acute psychological
distress, remarking God, I wish I could help her! The
students essay, in poor English, conveys all the hopes,
fears and problems of the desperate Secondary Four
girl which the unintelligent and not empathetic teacher
has completely missed.

The other story, Adeline Ng Ai Choo makes use of a

newspaper headline and article, followed by the
subsequent letter from the teacher who marked
Adelines essay, to present the whole tragic incident.
The remarks exchanged at the teachers meeting, the
response from Adelines father, and the reading of her
diary clearly implicate the inflexible education system
and competitive parents.

Perhaps the most artful use of narrative lies in the

monologue of the taxi-driver in The Taxmans Story.
Delivered in Singlish, the taxmans story exposes the
hypocrisy and double standards of a father who
laments his daughters lack of morals but insists on
providing transport for those he labels as sinful, the
young women and their customers who need his

9

Teaching suggestion: Guide
students in recognizing irony
and satire from the language
used. See Appendix C
Teaching suggestion: Help
students shape their responses
to the impact of the stories,
leading them to enjoy the
humorous effects or feel the
sadness in the situations
created. See Appendix D
services. Once again, the reader is left to make his
own conclusions when the taximan says apologetically,
Must go off to Hotel Elroy there plenty young people
to pick up.
TONE
The tone is ironic throughout, as indicated by the title,
Little Ironies, the greatest irony being that the ironies
are indeed, quite large, major ironies that are tragic, as
in the suicides of pressurized students in The Teacher
and Adeline Ng Ai Choo, the loss of mind in Miss
Pereira, the loss of both mind and life in Paper or
the loss of integrity in The Ugly One. While the ironic
turn of events may be just laughable, as in Love, or
the tragic edge so greatly ridiculed as in Properly
Married, there is a great deal of nostalgia and sadness
in a story like The Journey where the protagonist
realizes, too late, that money and status can never
make up for real love and devotion.
The clever use of titles enhances the irony in some of
the stories. The most noteworthy is The Ugly One
where the reader is slowly led to see that that
someone like Rosalind is really the ugly one, and not
the poor old woman unfortunate enough to be born
with such deformed features but struggling to earn a
decent living. Monster has much the same ironic
effect, with the reader questioning if it is not the
materialistic daughter-in-law who suddenly changes
her attitude towards her mother-in-law and her ancient
bed once she knows how valuable that antique is.
The ambivalence in the title The Journey underlines
the irony of the final journey that Richard makes, not
to New York to attempt the cure for his cancer, but a
sentimental journey to the small town of his origins.
USE OF HUMOUR
Irony inevitably involves poking fun at people and
situations, very often to the point of caricature and
gross exaggeration. In spite of the seriousness of the
subject matter, the hilarious portrait of a dying man
who is assisted throughout the Chinese traditional
rituals right up to the fateful moment of signing the
marriage certificate, cannot fail but draw laughs with
its macabre humour. Similarly, the superstitious belief
of the unfaithful husband in Male Child that he has
somehow been cursed with only female offspring as a
result of his lack of compliance to Taoist ritualistic
behaviour is made fun of.
At times, the humour is gentle and compassionate, as
10

Teaching suggestions: Help
students see the appropriate
use of images linked to
important themes and ideas.
See Appendix E
when Miss Pereiras vulnerability is exposed, but at
other times, it is sharply critical and condemns the
behaviour of the rich and unkind, as in The Jade
Pendant and The Ugly One.
IMAGERY
As the themes are concerned with survival,
materialism acquisitiveness and the maintenance of
customs and traditions, the imagery is to do with food,
money, houses and jewellery.
Food
In The Father the dominant image is of food, coveted
by the six hungry children who remember their father
bringing home two whole packets of fried noodles
which they fought over. When their father hurts and
kills his own daughter, his appeasement comes in the
form of chocolates, biscuits and grapes that he lays
out as offerings at her grave. In Eggs, the eggs
become a symbol of the suppressed longings of the
deprived child and mother. The six-year old girl yearns
to satisfy her appetite with the eggs denied her by her
jeering relatives, her mother deliberately uses her own
money to buy half a dozen eggs to show that she can
afford them. These she forces on her daughter to
express her suppressed hurt and anger.
Money
Money is so important as a means of survival as well
as an indication of status and respectability that the
image assumes central importance in The Ugly One.
The counterfeit notes cost Rosalind and Meng Choo
to think of all sorts of ways to dispose of the bills in
Meng Choos possession. Under Rosalinds influence
they are used to purchase an item from the old
woman. The fact that they are counterfeit underlines
the falseness of Rosalinds character that she pretends
to be genuinely fond of Meng Choo and wants to help
and protect her. In fact, she is like an Iago, corrupting
the more naive younger woman and making her as
vain and materialistic as herself.
The possession of money has elevated Mrs. Khoos
position in society, and the loss of respect she fears
becomes reality when Ah Soh can afford to buy the
jade pendant from her.
InMiss Pereira, the sum of fifty thousand dollars is
the target of Pauls scheming and deception of the
11
pathetic spinster. It finally makes its appearance in the
paper bag which Ahmad, the loyal old gardener, flings
on Miss Pereiras bed, a symbol of his honesty and
integrity, qualities which Paul totally lacked.

In the other stories, money, though mentioned or

obsessed over, is not presented as such concrete
images. Still, there is reference to the little present of
money which the large-hearted employer gives to the
grieving father in the story, The Father. The man
counts the number of notes his wife hands timidly to
him, and vows never to spend it on drink, deciding to
use it to demonstrate his guilt and sorrow by buying
the food items to be offered to the dead daughter.
Then, there is the oblique reference to the money
donated to The Chosen One, but another image, the
household item of the biscuit tin, is instead used, that
it was filling up nicely.

Possessions houses, furniture, jewels

Elsewhere, the possession of money is expressed by

the imagery of houses and property. Tay Soons dream
house is the symbol of the Singaporeans dream of
making it, arriving at a stage when he can possess
landed property, a house of his own, in the fashion of
VS Naipauls A House for Mr. Biwas. Money is
mentioned as the forty thousand dollars initially saved,
and then, poignantly, at the end of the story, as the
ten thousand left for the funeral. In between the
money become the shares which prove to be worthless
when the market crashes, this is aptly conveyed by the
image of paper, paper which is what the shares are
written on, and become as insubstantial as the paper
house which will be burnt to Tay Soon.

In The Journey, Richard amasses property and

antique furniture which his wife sells to make further
profits. Their large detached bungalow is well-
furnished, and they live in luxury, but when he hears of
his terminal illness, he can only star e down at the
brown and gold carpet on their bedroom floor and is
consumed with self-pity. At the end, he yearns to
return to the simple village full of love and devotion
from the elderly women who gave him what was more
important than the transient possessions he had
accumulated.

Furniture is often presented as a source of discord

between generations. The different tastes and value

12

Teaching suggestion: Arouse
students awareness of how far
Lims characters present
credible portraits of different
types of Singaporeans. See
Appendix F
system of the well-educated and newly-rich like Karen
is reflected in the disdain she feels for old grandmother
who is sentimentally attached to the bed her daughter-
in-law regards as the monster. Yet, like Richards
wife, she shrewdly sees a business opportunity when
she is told that the ancient bed is a collectors item.
Jewellery
Gems, diamonds and precious stones like jade, much
revered by the Chinese, become images of
ostentation, outward show and symbols of wealth,
status and power. In The Jade Pendant, the family
heirloom becomes a powerful symbol of pride and
power, and then ironically, of changed fortunes. In
The Ugly One the paradox of such an ugly old
woman selling such beautiful items of jewellery
become a symbol of the ugliness of the rich young
women who adorn themselves externally but care
nothing for more intrinsic values such as honesty,
compassion and love for the family.
CHARACTERS
Depiction of character is fundamental to the irony
presented in each of the stories. The irony of the
wasted offerings in The Father, for instance springs
from the weak and violent character of the labourer
who, unable to control his drinking and his temper,
strikes at and accidentally kills his child. His maudlin
self-pity leads him to a demonstration of remorse and
generosity in a gesture to appease the spirit of his
dead daughter and his own conscience.
The working class
Singaporeans of all classes and different walks of life
come in for their fair share of criticism. The working-
class is presented as thoughtless and ignorant, driven
by the sheer will to survive, burdened as they are by a
lack of skills and good fortune, struggling to feed their
dependants and to maintain a semblance of dignity.
The taximan has a family to feed so he cannot
recognize the inherent contradictions in his fervour to
pick up lucrative fares while moralizing on his
daughters behaviour. Ah Soh and her mentally-
challenged daughter are examples of this class while
the woman and her six-year old daughter in Eggs are
more helpless and can only rage in ineffectual
demonstrations which inflict more pain on their own
family members. They are often trapped by
13
superstition, the need to observe accepted rituals and
observances as well as the struggle against their own
addictions. Ah Boh in Lottery cannot break out of
her compulsive gambling, even when her mother dies
in a road accident.

The middle class

The misplaced priorities of teachers and parents are
brought out in The Teacher and Adeline Ng Ai Choo.
In The Teacher, the unnamed teacher laments the
inability of Tan Geok Peng to use correct grammar
while the more important psychological needs of the
student go unnoticed. The final comment of the
teacher, If only she had told me of her problems. But
she was always too shy and timid to speak up, is
highly ironical as the girl had spoken her heart out in
the essay, but the teacher was only concerned about
her incorrect grasp of English. Once again, the title of
the story is ironical, as there is the implication that the
teacher has no right to be called one, being unable to
attend to the personal problems which traumatized her
young charge.
Parents are also characterized as insensitive and
uncaring in Adeline Ng Ai Choo as the man who came
to see his daughters teacher could not understand
why she took her own life, protesting that he only
wanted her to be someone of significance, without
realizing how he was pushing her to the limits of her
endurance.

Depiction of other middle-class characters is edged

with the criticism of this desire to keep up with the
standards of achievement expected, whether this is
acquisition of wealth, status, property or possessions.
Given the competitive nature of Singaporean society
and the tendency to compare themselves with friends
and neighbours and those who are more established
and accepted, middle-class workers like Tay Soon
dream of making money and owning property which
shows off their wealth. Women, especially, are
presented as acquisitive and materialistic Tay Soons
wife, Yee Lian, and Rosalind, in The Ugly One,
especially so.
There is also the presentation of some kind of
community that provides gossip, commentary and
speculation on events as well as advice on what to do.
This is most apparent in Paper, Miss Pereira and
The Ugly One. Very often, the advice is harmful and
corrupting, while at other times, this community
reflects the shallow values of those who envy the rich

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but secretly take delight in their embarrassment, as in
The Jade Pendant.

The wealthy
Depictions of the rich and established are unflattering.
Mrs. Khoo in The Jade Pendant despises poor
relatives like Ah Soh and her daughter, and cares only
for face, using her daughters marriage to show off
while trying to hide the familys declining fortunes. In
The Journey, Richards wife is also contemptuous of
his humble female relatives and respects only what
money can buy, including the prospective cure offered
by the trip to New York to see the best doctors.
The portrayal of Rosalind in The Ugly One is by far
the most masterly in the conveyance of a proud,
unfeeling socialite who is admired in society for all the
wrong reasons. So rich, so happy, so respected in
society! This is the portrait of a tai-tai who affects
all the external appearance of charity and civic-
mindedness, being a familiar face in the citys
orphanages and Old Folks Homes. She appears to be
kind to Meng Choo, including her in her parties and
giving her some of her expensive dresses, but in fact,
she is a vain woman flattered by Meng Choos
admiration and patronises the younger woman by
making her an adoring protg. Her devious and
unscrupulous nature is shown in her manipulation of
Meng Choo as well as her schemes to pass the
counterfeit money to unsuspecting parties, especially
to the ugly old woman whom she derides as the
monster guarding fabled treasures. Her lack of
conscience over the death of the old woman exposes
the hypocrisy of the rich who care only for public
appearances and have no real sympathy for the
disadvantaged in society.

Physical appearance
Catherine Lims use of significant details in presenting
the outward appearance of some of her characters is
noteworthy.

Although we hardly know what some of the main

characters look like (in Paper for instance, none of
the characters are described physically), details of
appearance in other stories complete the mental
picture for us. Miss Pereira, for instance, is described
as plump and graying, imparting the air of vulnerability
and ridicule to the portrait of an ageing spinster. Sixth
Uncle in Properly Married is characterized by three
long hairs on the black mole of his chin which give him

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 an unsavoury and lecherous air. Mei Kweis more
innocent nature is conveyed by her round, plump face
which is often wreathed in good-natured smiles. She is
not as conniving as Sixth Uncle and her other relatives
who are so much more aware of the implications if
Thong Ngah dies without being properly married to
her. Thong Ngah himself is a caricature of a sick old
man, literally on his last legs, with his protruding belly
and round florid face.

The presentation of decrepit old age in contrast to

youthful beauty is accomplished in The Marriage
where the 65-year-old husband is seen at his worst at
home in his singlet and shorts without his false teeth.
Attention is or drawn to his wrinkled sadly sagging
skin, full of the blotches and the desolation of old age
while his young wifes smooth fair young skin is a
remarkable contrast. Thus, the sacrifice that she
makes for the million he gives her and the three
hundred thousand to her family is acutely brought out.

QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION OR WRITTEN WORK

1. Examine the way each story ends and point out how each ending is ironical.

2. What aspects of Singaporean society are criticized in these short stories?

Choose two stories and show how Catherine Lim comments on these features of
Singaporean society.

3. With reference to two or three of the stories, show how money is an

important factor in the decisions made by the main characters in the story.

4. Comment on the part played by sickness and death in the lives of the main
characters in two of the stories.

5. How is the relationship between parents and their children brought out in
some of the stories? Refer in detail to any two stories of your choice.

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6. Several of the stories feature conflict within the family. With detailed
reference to any two stories, identify the source of the conflict in each case, and
how the matter is finally resolved.

7. How are children or offspring presented in most of the stories? Referring in

detail to two or three of the stories, show the importance of these children in the
lives of the families concerned.

8. Very often, the victims in society are the very young or the very old. How
true is this of any three of the stories in the collection?

9. How are women presented in these stories as opposed to the presentation of

men? Refer to three or four of the relevant stories.

10. Select two stories which seem to you to be narrated in an unusual but
effective method, and say why you find the method of narration particularly
suitable for that story.

11. Choose two stories which you find particularly humorous and point out how
the humorous effects are created.

12. Which stories do you find particularly sad or disturbing? Discuss why these
stories have that effect on you.

SUGGESTIONS FOR CREATIVE WRITING

1. This volume of short stories is set in the period of the 1950s to 1970s. Write
your own short story set in Singapore of the present day, i.e. in the 21st century,
reflecting changed circumstances and problems.

2. Assume that you are the taximans daughter from the story, The Taximans
Story and write about that day when you were with your friends outside the
coffee-house and your father came along.

3. The short story, The Marriage seems strangely unfinished. Write a two-page
sequel to the story of the young woman married to the elderly man.

4. Write a humorous short story in the fashion of Properly Married which makes
fun of a serious situation with comic excess.

SUGGESTIONS FOR DRAMATISATION

Most of the stories can be dramatised by small groups of students or solo actors
for the monologues (e.g. The Taximans Story, The Teacher).

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The Father: Dramatisation of the scene where the father goes to his daughters
grave to make the offerings. His highly emotional words can be spoken while a
group of students posing as his other children lie hidden before they come out
and greedily devour the offerings.

Paper: The scene where the funeral wake takes place can be dramatized with
his mother and wife speaking in turns of Tay Soons yearning for a dream house.

The Teacher: A single actor can read out Tan Geok Pengs essays, supplying
ironic commentary.

Miss Pereira: Students may choose to act out the final scene where she sits in
a daze while the gardener comes in with his revelation, or the scene where Paul
shows his true self to her and leaves her shattered.

Lottery: The dialogue between Ah Bohs employers can be acted out with the
subsequent scene of her discovery of the mothers accident.

Male Child: The suspenseful climax when the husband awaits the news of his
childs birth can be performed as a monologue detailing his disappointment with
his female children and his subsequent affair with his mistress.

Properly Married: Full justice should be done to the slapstick humour of the
interfering relatives who do all they can to dress and prop up the prospective
bridegroom up to the moment of his death as he reaches for the pen to sign his
name for the registry.

The Journey: The full pathos of the story can be brought out with a monologue
delivered by a sad and frail Richard sitting on a chair in his comfortable home,
pining fro his childhood abode.

Love: Each of the characters, Frankie, Pearl, Hong, walk in to dramatise the
throes of love and rejection while two students can mime the parts of Frankies
ailing father and concerned mother.

Eggs: A single scene showing the aggrieved mother forcing her child to eat the
eggs and snatching away the doll while ranting in melodramatic fashion should
bring out the twisted logic of such behaviour popular in Chinese families years
ago.

The Marriage: Visual effects should predominate as a beautifully-dressed

young woman attends to a feebler older man while a younger man hovers in the
background. Suppressed longing, pain and anguish have to be conveyed by the
woman while the elderly husband demonstrates self-satisfaction.

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Adeline Ng Ai Choo: The group undertaking this may wish to feature three
teachers and the principal in a discussion over the incident with the unfortunate
girl reading her essay as a kind of prologue to the teachers meeting.

The Chosen One: Again, a monologue would be a good idea as Chow Ah Sum
narrates her tale of good fortune from unpromising circumstances.

Monster: This could take the form of a telephone conversation between Karen
and a friend in which she complains of her mother-in-law and her monstrous bed,
but quickly changes her tune when she discovers the value of the ancient bed.

The Taximans Story: This could be produced as a monologue enlivened by

mimed walk-ons of the young people waiting to be picked up.

The Jade Pendant: The most crucial scene is at the wedding banquet when the
pendant is found round the neck of Ah Sohs daughter so some of the
preliminaries leading up the occasion can be acted out while the dramatic focus
is on the moment of Mrs. Khoos horror and embarrassment.

The Ugly One: Present a short dialogue between Meng Choo and Rosalind in
which both express relief that they had got rid of the counterfeit notes and
brushing aside the brief moment of guilt when Meng Choo wonders if they had
caused her death would highlight the crux of the story.

RELATED LITERATURE

1. THE COLLECTED STORIES OF KATHERINE MANSFIELD (2006)

Katherine Mansfields command of the genre of the short story is seen in this
comprehensive collection. Her insight into human character and her use of
symbolism and metaphor in stories such as Bliss and Miss Brill are clearly
illustrated.

2. ISLAND VOICES (2007) ed. Poon and Sim

This collection of short stories by well-known Singaporean writers such as Wena
Poon and Alfian Saat showcase their varied narrative skills and the ability to use
symbolism and imagery drawn from our urban landscape and cultural history.

3. THE MERLION AND THE HIBISCUS (2002)

These are the collected short stories from Malaysian and Singaporean writers
from pioneers like Llyod Fernando to the younger generation of Tan Hwee Hwe
and Alfian Saat.

4. TWO DREAMS: NEW AND COLLECTED STORIES (1997)

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Shirley Lim Geok-lin puts together stories she wrote as a Malaysian and then as
an Asian-America living and working in the United States. Her works highlight
the special dilemmas faced by girls and women.

5. GAMES AT TWILIGHT (1978)

Anita Desais atmospheric short stories reveal the insecurities of childhood,
young adulthood and the challenge of surviving in Mumbai.

USEFUL WEBLINKS

http://www.postcolonialweb.org/Singapore/literature/fiction/fiction6.html
Ban Kah Choon, What is Singapore/Malaysian Writing in English?
The former head of department of the National University of Singapores English
Department writes on some general characteristics of Singapore/Malaysian
literature and refers to Catherine Lims ear for dialogue and speech.

http://catherinelim.sg/2008/08/03/st-feature-little-ironies/
There is a newspaper feature on Catherine Lim and her volume of short stories
written by Sunday Times columnist Stephanie Yap, August 3, 2008, followed by
comments from readers.

http://catherinelim.sg/my-works/
This is Catherine Lims personal blog on all her works.

http://guanyinmiao.wordpress.com//?s=little+ironies
Some of the themes in Little Ironies are summed up well in this personal blog.

http://jongnical.blogspot.com/2009/02/little-ironies-stories-of-singapore.html
Discusses irony in The Taximans Story and asks how far our sympathies are
with the taximan.

http://jsseng12.blogspot.sg/2009/03/conflicts-in-catherine-lims-monster.html
Lam Chee Leong raises the question of conflict in the short story, Monster.

VIDEOS

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t-nDbX5j9lQ (Singapore 1964)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2V7ZLMU9jk (Chinatown in Singapore1955)
Video clips to generate discussion on aspects of Singaporean life in the 1950s-
1960s.

(Video links last accessed 28 February 2013)

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