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Ruby Field

Mr. Smith

H 11 ELA

3/18/23

Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet

Henry’s and his family is a Chinese family living in America during the time of the

Japanese discrimination. Henry doesn’t have a good relationship with his parents but especially

his father. The miscommunication between Henry and his father made it hard for them to have a

relationship due to them not being able to respect each other's different beliefs about the

Japanese discrimination going on in America, but someone must accept their identity in order to

find peace.

The different opinions between Henry and his father about the Japanese discrimination in

America made their relationship very poor. Ford shows their different beliefs by saying, “They

can exclude anyone. They can exclude us. Or German immigrants.” His father looked at Henry,

setting the letter down. “Or the Japanese” (Ford 69). Henry is showing his concern with the

situation with the Japanese discrimination going on in America to his father. His father has

different beliefs about the situation than Henry. Henry thinks that there is a possibility that they

could be the next group that people in America turn against. Similarly, “His father pointed at the

door. “If you walk out that door— if you walk out that door now, you are no longer part of this

family. You are no longer Chinese. You are not part of us anymore. Not a part of me” (Ford 185).

This quote shows the relationship Henry and his father had. His father told him that himself and

the Chinese community would disown him. His father telling Henry this shows that his love for

Henry is conditional to Henry’s actions. With the miscommunication and the lack of respect that
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Henry and his father gave each other made them resent each other. His father telling Henry that

he is no longer Chinese is his father trying to take away from Henry’s identity.

The relationship of miscommunication and disagreements between Henry and his father

got passed down a generation to Henry and his child. Ford states, “The lack of meaningful

communication between father and son was based on a lifetime of isolation. Henry had been an

only child, without siblings around to talk to, to share things with constantly. And Marty was the

same. Whatever stumbling methods of communication Henry had used with his own father

seemed to have been passed down to Marty” (Ford 61). With the miscommunication and

isolation that Henry struggled to form a meaningful relationship with his father, Henry is now

scared of seeing the same problems get passed down with his son. Furthermore, “Henry also

didn't bother to tell Marty about the second mortgage— the one he'd taken out to get him through

college when the student loans ran dry. Why make him worry? Why put that pressure on him?

School is hard enough as is. Like any good father, he wanted the best for his son, even if they

didn't talk all that much” (Ford 9). Even though Henry and his child didn’t get along he still

wanted the best for Marty just like Henry’s father just wanted the best for him. Henry didn’t want

to tell Marty about his money problems to not put more stress on Marty. Henry dealt with his

money situation alone to not put any unnecessary worrying on Marty. No matter what happened

between Henry and his son, Henry always would want the best for Marty similarly to Henry and

his father.

When accepting who someone really is they can finally start the healing process. Ford

helps us understand Henry’s healing process by saying, “That's fine. Be who you are,” she said,

turning away, a look of disappointment in her eyes. “But I'm an American” (Ford 60). Henry

decides to uphold his Chinese identity in order to separate himself from white Americans. Henry
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finally understands that there is nothing wrong with being different then others and he chooses to

express it. Similarly to himself and his father, ”His father had said once that the hardest choices

in life aren't between what's right and what's wrong but between what's right and what's best”

(Ford 204). Although Henry and his father didn’t get along that well, Henry still cared about

what he thought and listened to what he said to him. His father wanted Henry to know that life

isn’t about the rights and the wrongs meaning how and why people treat you like a certain way.

It's about what’s right and the best way how someone responds to a situation or a person in a

certain manner. Henry learns that being Chinese is not a bad thing and starts to finally express

who he is this way.

The lack of communication and effort with Henry and his father made it nearly

impossible for them to form a relationship, and their different options also didn’t help. That

relationship got passed on to Henry and his child, although Henry always just wanted the best for

him even if they didn’t really talk. Henry’s identity issues made it hard for him to truly express

himself, so once Henry understood that his heritage is important to who he is as a person, he

finally could accept himself.

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Words cited

Ford, Jamie. Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet: A Novel. Ballantine Books, 2019.

Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet

Essay Rubric
Skill N Foundational Proficient Advanced
Y

Thesis Establishes References the Effectively

a basic prompt makes a claim
claim Makes a claim incorporating a
about the text complex idea;
Somewhat contrast, cause
developed and effect, etc.
through the essay Developed
throughout the
essay

Claims Makes a Previous (and) Previous (and)

statement Somewhat Considers the
that requires considers the thesis of the
evidence to thesis paper
support Effective use of
transition
words/phrases

Evidence Some Includes multiple Includes a

evidence pieces of variety of
relates to evidence/ specific,
the thesis examples that meaningful, and
clearly relate to well-chosen
the thesis and evidence that
individual claims relates to the
Includes multiple thesis
pieces of
evidence in each
body paragraph

Analysis Somewhat Explains how Explains

explains evidence well-selected
how supports topic points of
evidence sentence of comparison
supports individual among
topic paragraphs evidence and
sentence Explains how their connection
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and thesis evidence to the thesis

supports the Effective use of
thesis of the close-reads
essay
Some indication
of close-reads +
weaving quotes

MLA Format Some elements missing No errors in MLA format

or some errors in MLA
format

Conventions Shows Most quotes are All quotes are

evidence of correctly correctly
basic integrated integrated
proofreadin Follows essay Shows evidence
g organization of careful
Shows evidence proofreading
of proofreading

Fluency Simple use Demonstrates Strong use of of

of use of grade level vocabulary,
vocabulary vocabulary, diction,
Simple diction, sentence sentence
sentence structures structures
structures Accurate use of
text specific
vocabulary