Imre Eigerman

March 12, 2024

Mr. Smith

G Block

In Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford, The lack of communication

between Henry and his father factors into the development of the plot because it feeds the

animosity between Henry and his father, in turn resulting in their relationship becoming

increasingly more strained as time moves forward.

The story starts with Henry initially being very tractable towards his father, despite their

lack of communication. This initial obedience Henry had toward whatever his father told him to

do is demonstrated in the interaction when his dad told him to wear the “I am Chinese” button,

and Henry does so even though he thinks it is absurd and doesn't want to. “The contrast seemed

absurd. This makes no sense, he thought. My father's pride has finally got the better of him”.

Henry thought his father was losing his logic and being unreasonable, this shows that Henry is

being critical of his fathers order to wear the button. “M-ming bak?” Henry asked in perfect

Cantonese. “I don't understand.” His father slapped his face. More of a light tap really, just

something to get his attention. “No more. Only speak you American.” The words came out in

Chinglish”. Henry asked his father to clarify why he needed to wear the button but his dad hit

him and refused to elaborate why. “I don't understand,” Henry said in English. “Hah?” his father

asked. “If I'm not supposed to speak Chinese, why do I need to wear this button?” “Hah, you

say?” … Once again Henry asks his father to explain and his father ignores him. This

demonstrates a lack of communication between Henry and his father because Henry often asks
his father to explain the reasons for his orders, but Henry's dad always ignores him or refuses to

explain. “His father turned to Henry again, giving him a backhanded wave, shooing him off to

school. Since Henry couldn't ask in Cantonese and his parents barely understood English, he

dropped the matter, grabbed his lunch and book bag, and headed down the stairs and out into the

salty, fishy air of Seattle's Chinatown”. This passage portrays Henry's tractability toward his dad

because even though he is bewildered by the order to wear the “I am Chinese" button and thinks

it is nonsensical, but he does it anyway because his dad told him to and he doesn't want to

disobey him. Also, In addition to his father's unwillingness to communicate, Henry's parents also

don't speak English well enough to hold a real conversation, meaning that the only language they

can all communicate articulately in is Cantonese, which Henry's father forbade him from

speaking anyway. This presents a very frustrating situation for Henry in terms of communication

because he can’t communicate with his dad.

As the lack of communication between Henry and his Father persists Henry becomes

more rebellious and they become increasingly more hostile towards each other. This increased

rebellious spirit in Henry is highlighted in his decision to hide a Japanese American familys’ (the

Okabes) belongings for them while they are sent to a camp, despite his father's strict demand that

he should absolutely not do that. “My mother told me to take them to the alley and burn them.

She couldn't bring herself to do it. Her father was in the Japanese navy. She wanted me to burn

all her old photos from Japan.” Keiko looked at Henry with sad eyes. “I can't do it, Henry. I was

hoping you might hide them for us. Just for a while. Can you do that for me?” Henry replied. “I

can hide them in my room” (Ford page 95). Keiko asked Henry to hide her family's photos for

her, Henry knowing that this would be disobeying his father did it anyway without hesitation.

This demonstrates increased rebelliousness in Henry because this interaction is a divergence

from how Henry used to obey his father without question, even when he disagreed with him. As

their lack of communication persisted and their hostility toward one another increased, Henry's

dad did something that would alter the course of Henry's life. In retaliation for Henry becoming

more rebellious and in a bid to end his relationship with Keiko, which his father despised, His

dad intercepts Keiko's letters to Henry behind his back, effectively ending his relationship with

her. “At the thought of Keiko not coming back, or the more dreaded yet all-too real

alternative—that she'd forgotten or moved on—Henry grew less worried and simply began to

despair”. (Ford page 254). Keikos letters were becoming fewer and fewer, without Henry

knowing why, which caused great distress to him. When the letters stopped altogether, Henry

shifted from desperate and upset, to being in a pit of bottomless despair. Eventually, the crushing

truth came out, but far too late and Henry was devastated, despite not being able to bring himself

to feel anger towards his father on his deathbed. “You fixed it, didn't you?” Henry spoke with

quiet resignation, unable to feel anger toward his dying father. He wanted to feel it, but unlike his

father, he wouldn't allow himself to be defined by hatred. “You used your position with the

benevolent associations and fixed it so that my letters never made it to Keiko. So that hers never

got delivered. That was your doing somehow, wasn't it?” Henry looked at his father, fully

expecting him to die at any moment, leaving him with that question unanswered. Instead, his

father inhaled one last time, one long draw, and confirmed what Henry had already guessed.

With his dying breath he nodded, and said it again. “Wo wei ni zuo,”I did it for you” (Ford page

263). This increased hostility between Henry and his father ultimately resulted in tragedy, the

relationship and deep feelings between Henry and Keiko being torn down. Although ironically,

the culmination of all the emotions from all the dark moments of Henry's relationship with his

father, and most importantly Henry's fathers covert actions to end his son’s relationship with
Keiko transcended anger and hate, instead it just left Henry feeling hollow inside and and

emotionally drained into acceptance of his reality.

Overall Henry's relationship with his father was defined by silence As Henry said to

Sheldon “We lived under the same roof, but didn't speak for two, almost three years; at least he

didn't speak to me, didn't acknowledge my presence” (Ford 258). In the end, the lack of

communication in their relationship was tragic because not only did it rob them of the caring

they should have had towards one another as family in the first place, but it also robbed Henry of

his relationship with Keiko.

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
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