Eat a Bowl of Tea

The movie Eat a Bowl of Tea illustrated several conflicts Chinese Americans faced, but mainly focused on the close relationship within the Chinese American community and the large cultural gap between the Chinese immigrants and their children. Takaki mentions the "fongs" and the"huiguan" which were main components of the Chinese Six Companies and Tongs. While the Six Companies were largely perceived as benevolent associations, the Tongs were more violent. However, in some aspect, the Tongs provided a way for the Chinese Americans to maintain their Chinese culture and recreate the sense of family they had felt in China. In the film, this recreation of "family" is seen when Wah Gay, Lee Gong, and the other men would play mahjong, gambling, or exchanging gossip. 

This intricate relationship between the Chinese Americans in the New York Chinatown can be seen in how they share joy, anger, and conflict. The movie's depictions of the Chinese men's obsession over Ben Lo's family life are all built around the idea of cultural nationalism. After Ben Lo comes back with his wife, the entire town attends his wedding ceremony, wanting to celebrate this "historical event" as a whole, even if they were not related to the family. They treated Ben and Mei Oi's marriage as a trophy, the first step forward for Chinese American's in America. When Ben announced Mei Oi's pregnancy, it became the pride and joy of the entire community and not just Ben and Mei Oi. However, when it was discovered that Mei Oi had an affair, Ben was seen as a traitor and disgrace to the community, a violator of their cultural ideology, and cast out from the family's protection and care. 

Wah Gay, Ben's father, like most of the other Chinese Americans, values having a wife and children and a reliable job. Mei Oi, Ben's wife, also values the interaction and relationships formed between family members. However, Ben Lo does not see the value of spending time with family. Although all three characters are Chinese American, the environments in which they were raised had molded them into different identities. Ben Lo, having probably spent most of his childhood in America, is depicted as having a more Western attitude towards work and family. This is shown in the scene where Ben buys a television for Mei Oi to "keep her company" when he is at work. He has a more materialistic Western perspective, preferring to watch television than to converse with his wife. Mei Oi, who was born in China, had a more traditional Chinese perspective on family. Even though she had displayed excitement in learning about American culture, she still displays nostalgia for the constant company of her family members in China. In the scene where Ben is watching television, Mei Oi is seen holding a Chinese tea cup, which can represent her culture and identity.

The differences illustrated in Ben and his father's relationship is similar to the metaphoric relationship portrayed in the short story "In the Land of the Free" by Sui Sin Far. Ben had grown accustomed to America and had begun assimilating into the white culture. He no longer shares the same values as his father, just like how at the end of the short story, the child can no longer recognize his mother.