Folding Won Tons in Analysis Essay Example

he implies that he is striving for excellence which implies that he has very high standards set for himself. This could be related to theme later on because the reason for his high standards might be due to family pride or honor.

Near the ending, the diction of the poem changed. The quote “…to seal my misshapen flowers,” and the words “new blossom…Newborns huddled,” implies that he acknowledges them to be his own creation. Also, he is admitting that although they are not perfect, he accepts them the way they are. Since he compares them to flowers, he is implying that none of them are exactly the same, but they are all beautiful. Also, he compares them to newborns because they might not be perfect, but they were his own creations and therefore, his diction is somewhat accepting and proud which transitioned from implying incompetence.

The diction changes one last time at the ending. Words such as ‘overflowing’ in the quote “the soup bubbles to overflowing…” suggest impatience and anxiety. His word choice suggests that he is excited to finally have made his food and he is eager to consume it. The Type of Poem is free verse. This can be confirmed because the author creates his own rhythm. An example of this is when he breaks his stanzas in between thoughts. Therefore, the poem is considered free verse because it is read thought by thought rather than line by line.

Also, he breaks the last stanza midsentence which is also very creative and sets the focus to specific words. The author breaks the stanzas according to his thoughts and actions. A new

stanza is formed when he is moving on to the next procedure in creating his won-tons. All this figurative language aside, the Abraham is trying to convey to us his feelings about his first time living alone or away from his mother. He is basically telling us the procedures in which he attempts to mimic his mother’s extraordinary won-ton creating skills.

He is telling us about how he is failing to create them perfectly like he thought he would be able to. They aren’t terrible, but not nearly as proficient as his mother’s won-tons. However, he decides to fret over the little flaws and imperfections of his creations. However, later on he accepts them as his first creations and a test of him being able to survive on his own by creating his own food. He even compares them to flowers to express his perception of their beauty. Although none of them are the same, they are all indefinitely beautiful. At the end, he is anxious and eager to finally consume his first self-made won-tons.

However, he then decides to save some for another day. The tittle “Folding Won Tons In” may seem like a simple tittle at first that doesn’t really have any symbolic or connotative meaning. However, based on your own perception, the simplicity of the tittle itself could suggest that it holds much more meaning than a procedure that describes how to make food. The simplicity of the tittle could suggest that making food could mean much more than just filling your stomach. A simile is used in the first line of the poem when he states “I’ve seasoned the

pork like I imagine my mother would. ”

In this simile, he is comparing the action of seasoning the pork to a fragment of his memory of his mother doing it. This suggests that he admires his mother in the sense of her advanced cooking techniques. When he describes the sheets of skin as ‘doughy’, it suggests that the texture is very smooth and covered in flour. This is imagery because it appeals to the sense ‘touch’. Not only is this phrase “Sheets of doughy skin,” imagery, but it is also alliteration. The repetitive s sound in front of ‘sheets’ and ‘skin’ add a nice ring to the phrase.

The purpose of the alliteration is to bring focus to it. The phrase afterwards states “I only have the skill to buy. ” That means that he wants the readers to notice the suggestion that even if he tried his best, he would not be able to create good won-tons. In the quote “Thumb and forefinger peel each tender white scrap of noodle from the clinging stack,” he is using personification to further describe the stack of noodles. He is personifying the single tender white scrap of noodle by saying that it is delicate, and soft; by saying that it is very sensitive.

He uses such description with personification because he wants to emphasize the delicacy of the noodles. Abe wants the readers to focus on this because he wants us to wonder why he is being so careful with it. Eventually, we’d be able to make the connection that he wants to make it perfect because he wants to mimic the way his

mom makes it so that it can be just like hers. He obviously loves his mom very much because he is trying to recreate the moments they had together. He wants to experience it all again. Also, he describes the stack as ‘clinging’ to emphasize the adhesiveness of the noodles.

Again, he uses alliteration in the phrase “Mimicking from memory…” Abraham wants to put emphasis on this because he wants the readers to make the connection between him and his mom. He wants us to realize how special she is to him and that he wants to recreate those memories. In his quote, “My hands powderdusted,” he compares powder to dust in a metaphor. Abe uses this metaphor because he wants to emphasize the connotative meaning of powder-dusted. It suggests that his hands were extremely unclean and this implies that he had to go through a lot of work to get to this stage. It conveys his overwhelming determination and hard work.

When he says “…acquainted with each new blossom…” he compares the freshly prepared wontons to new blossoms in an implied metaphor. He does this because he wants us to see the comparison between the prepared, unfinished won-tons and the beautiful blossoms of nature that are not completely open and bloomed yet. Afterwards, he states “I like them up like newborns huddled…” This suggests that the won-tons are like newborns in the sense that none of them are the same, yet they are very precious and special to him. Abraham Chang writes primarily in complex or inverted order sentences.

It usually takes him three to four lines to complete a thought;

sometimes it even takes a stanza. Abraham’s tone shifts multiple times through the poem. In the beginning, he seemed rather self-depreciating and unconfident. “…pepper, scallions chopped imperfectly. ” He decided to describe the chops imperfect because he wanted to suggest that it wasn’t good enough. He wanted it to be perfect, yet he was no able to because of his lack of skill. He also states “Sheets of doughy skin, I only have the skill to buy. ” This implies that he is so unskillful, that although he was able to buy it, he is incompetent to actually create the won-tons.

However, his tone changes later on to a somewhat nostalgic attitude. He treats the noodle scraps with such care which was implied when he described the scraps as ‘tender’. This suggests that he was very determined to do everything perfectly. The reason why he wanted us to realize this is because he wanted the audience to recognize his connection with his mother. He probably helped his mom create won-tons all the time. He wanted to relive this moment but is unable to because first of all, he is alone; second of all, he lacks the techniques and skills to.

The tone is nostalgic which is evident when he says “Mimicking from memory. ” That means that he was thinking of his past. Afterwards, the tone changes one last time to accepting or satisfied. When he compares the freshly prepared won-tons to new blossoms, he is expressing that he feels his won-tons are just as beautiful and pre-determined as nature is. After, when he compares his won-tons to newborns, he is accepting and

satisfied because he is suggesting that his won-tons maybe not be the same, but they are all very special to him.

“I set them on the table and decide how many I will save for tomorrow. ” This suggests that he is satisfied with not eating all of it for the time being. There is opposition between the poet and himself because in the beginning of the poem, he seems to have high standards and is very self-degrading. However, near the middle of the poem, he seems to accept his own creations and is more satisfied with whatever he had created. He seemed to have the attitude of “this is my first time and I tried my best. ”

There are several themes or universal messages throughout the poem, but there is only one that entirely covers the poet’s feelings. Life is unpredictable and we should value everything that our parents do for us because we won’t know for sure if they will be able to do it next time. The reason why he was trying so desperately to create the perfect won-tons is because he was reminiscing on his past memories of when he and his mom would spend time together making won-tons. He loved his mother’s won-tons as much as he loved her because it would allow them to spend time with each other.

However, he probably didn’t truly value this because he did not know how life would be like without it. Now, when he is attempting to recreate that moment, it does not work out. First of all, he is alone, so that completely defeats the purpose. Second

of all, he lacks the skills to create perfect won-tons just like his mother did. He is feeling lonely without his mother and he misses her. We should always value our parents and every little thing they do for us because in the future, they might not be there to do those things for us.