TANJUNG RHU BY MINFONG HO

ELEMENTS NOTES REMARKS

PLOT SUMMARY EXPOSITION
 Mr. Li sat alone in his office after his mother’s burial
 He forgot to count the ships like he used to routinely

RISING ACTION
 He looked at the harbour using a pair of binoculars and
recalled the time when he bought it for his mother so
that she could see better
 That morning he wanted to bring his mother to his
office, his mother had morning praying ritual
 At his office, She said she couldn’t see the ships but
instead recalled the good times they had when they
stayed in Tanjung Rhu in the past

CLIMAX
 He felt guilty for refusing to listen to her story and for
forgetting about his childhood memories
 Ah Ma fell sick and passed away

FALLING ACTION
 He finally understood about the importance of
tradition and realised that he had to look after the
altar
 He rushed home but couldn’t find the key to the
drawers where his mother kept the joss sticks for
prayers

RESOLUTION
 He finally remembered how Tanjung Rhu used to look
like.
 He was overcome by emotions.
 He felt awkward talking to his mother’s photograph
and left the room.

SETTINGS PHYSICAL
 Tanjung Rhu - where Mr. Li grew up
 Mr. Li’s office overlooking the harbour
 The hospital room
 The altar room

SOCIAL
 Modern day Singapore – success are important,
generally impatient, less time for family tradition and
prefer to adopt foreign culture
 Early 20th century Singapore – life was hard but people
value simple things and their family more

CHARACTERS & MR. T.W. LI / EDWARD/AH WAH

CHARACTERISTICS  A 63 year-old successful Singaporean businessman
 A filial and loving son
 Preferred the simple life
 Ashamed of his background
 AH MA / POPO
 Mother of 9 children, grandmother of 34 and great
grand-grandmother of 17
 Small and thin woman with grey hair and bent back
 Preferred the simple life
 A traditional person
 A stubborn person

YING
 Loving
 Modern
 Persuasive

MR. LI’S WIFE

 Modern and enjoys a luxurious lifestyle

THEMES TRADITIONAL VALUES VS. MODERN IDEAS

 Ah Ma upholds the traditional practices
 Mr. Li and Ying represent the modern society that put
little emphasis on tradition

PAST VS. PRESENT

 Ah Ma (past); Mr. Li (present)

REGRET
 Mr. Li regretted how he treated his mother in the past
and how he never paid attention to her stories when
she was still alive

GENERATION GAP
 Each generation has their own ways of thinking and
doing things
MORAL VALUES WE MUST NOT FORGET OUR TRADITIONAL VALUES
ALTHOUGH WE LIVE IN THE MODERN WORLD
 A symbol of our identity and roots

WE MUST LEARN TO APPRECIATE OUR LOVED ONES WHILE WE

CAN
 We don’t know when our loved ones will leave us
 Love and appreciate them while they are still alive

MONEY CAN BUY MOST THINGS, BUT IT CANNOT BUY

EVERYTHING
 Enjoy the simple things in life
 One can have lots of money to spend, but that doesn’t
guarantee happiness and peace of mind

WE MUST LEARN TO RESPECT AND TOLERATE EACH OTHER

 Speak gently to an elderly and respect their beliefs and
ways of doing things