No.14 - AP Lit Big Questions 2 (Rosie's Paradox)

Keep in mind that I didn't proofread it or anything its just raw writing...

this is cringe don't read nor talk to me about it

Question:
How is unconditional love real?

My answer:
In the short story Paper Menagerie written by Ken Liu, Jack and his mother consistently experience a one-way love. Ever since Jack gets bullied at school for many unjustifiable reasons, he slowly drifts away from his Chinese identity – including his own mother. Regardless, his mother constantly attempts to bond with him and show love towards him, even though Jack’s attitude towards her is completely unreasonable.

Usually, when an individual comes to love someone, they tend to get affected by the other person’s reaction to their love. Whether it is a platonic, romantic, or parental relationship, it is inevitable that human relationships get influenced by how we are treated by the others; the better we get treated, the better we treat and think of them; the more poorly we get treated, the less we tend to value them. Unconditional love, as it can be inferred from its name, is the way of love humans develop regardless of how they are treated – no matter how they treat us, we still go back, loving them and showing affection.

Jack, in Paper Menagerie, distinctively treats his mother poorly; he tells her to speak English, not Chinese, to the family by refusing to talk to her if she were not to speak English, steps away from his mother’s heritage, and feels ashamed of his Chinese heritage which came from his mother. However, Jack’s mother is always supportive of Jack; she is willing to do anything to bring happiness and peace into his life. She even writes him a long letter, hoping that Jack would one day notice how much she loves him, though he treats him poorly.

If I were to get treated badly – by anyone – for multiple years I would feel discouraged to even put time and effort into the relationship. Parental love Jack’s mother shows in the short story strongly displays the unconditional love she holds for Jack; the resemblance of her culture in Jack’s many features bring her the connection within her and her son.

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bruh i got a 14/15 on this assignment okay my bad for expressing my thoughts jk
14/100 days