Introduction
The given literary analysis will primarily focus on The Leavers by Lisa Ko, which narrates the story of an abandoned child and his search for belonging. The main character is Daniel or Deming, whose mother is Polly Guo. The narrative focuses on the continuous abandonment of the protagonist, which manifests itself in the lack of overall understanding of his place in the world. Therefore, Daniel feels a lack of identity and belonging throughout his life due to being abandoned multiple times from a young age.
Main body
One of the first indications that the mother was not highly attached to her child can be observed from Daniels’ very early years of life. Although the boy was born in New York City, after a short period of time, Polly makes a decision to send him to China to live with his grandfather (Ko 21). This can be considered as one of the instances of abandonment by the mother, where she perceives the boy as a hindrance. The death of Daniels’ grandfather is a manifestation of second abandonment, where the child is sent back to his mother.
Although it is evident that Polly’s father loved his grandson, and the incident was not intentional, from a little child’s perspective, it can be considered as someone abandoning him. One of the most striking and controversial moments takes place when Polly leaves home for work and never returns. This is the moment when Daniels experiences the truest and the most direct form of abandonment by his own mother. The last and most expected instance of abandonment comes from Leon’s sister (Ko 43). Vivian makes a decision to put Deming in foster care in order, where he is adopted by a white family of Kay and Peter Wilkinson.
The series of abandonments, in conjunction with a predominantly white environment, put substantial pressure on Daniels. As an Asian person, he continuously struggles to find his place in the form of identity and belongingness. Although he successfully befriends some peers, he fails to maintain the relationships, which leads to further isolation. In addition, foster parents’ expectations from Daniels also make the situation more challenging and complex. It is stated that parental pressure can lead to the development of elevated anxiety among children (Deb et al. 29). Another research suggests that such an attitude for caregivers can lead to negative psychological and behavioral outcomes among adolescents (Randall et al. 61). In other words, the Wilkinson family did not contribute towards the gradual improvement of the problem but rather facilitated its further manifestation.
Parents and their guidance play an essential role in the general development of identity among children. In the process of the development of ethnic identity, the identification mechanism is activated in a more complex, non-linear way since the degree of independence of the subject in ethnic relations increases with maturation. By comparing in-group to outgroups, Daniel chooses whether to accept or reject the patterns that his or her own group offers. If an in-group loses its status and is disadvantaged in its dignity, its members resort to social mobility and leave the group. They also use specific social creativity strategies to maintain a positive self-image. As for the ethnic component in the character of the child, as he grows up, it nevertheless persists but manifests itself somewhat differently than in the early stages of ontogenesis. In ethnic development, vertical idealization means that the traits of an ethnic character remain stable in the process of personality formation. Although they appear in a new form, they allow one to maintain the integrity and uniqueness of the personality throughout the life path.
It is necessary to differentiate the effective and procedural aspects of Daniel’s personality self-determination. As a result of assimilation, consolidation, and manifestation of personal semantic formations, self-determination is reflected in the change and development of the personality. If self-determination is understood not only as a result but also as a process, it appears as an independent form of activity. This is aimed at determining and forming the life-meaning orientations of the individual. On the one hand, culture in the way of collective norms is created by individuals, but, on the other hand, it creates its own identity. Individuals make up a group, and a group forms people who acquire their identity in response to collective criteria. Membership in one group can complicate or even prevent access to others. The individual is free to decide within his or her socialized framework conditions, among existing groups and communities, to act at his own discretion.
Daniel had to master the complex social world into which they gradually enter. At the same time, he is deprived of reliance on parental experience but has more freedom than previous generations in choosing the future. Socialization of modern youth is carried out on the basis of such a mechanism of socio-cultural adaptation, the cause of which is the risk as a social necessity. This is not only a danger but also an expansion of the possibilities of new, creative behavior in comparison with the old conditions of development. Daniel’s path to self-identification follows the mainstream of modernity, without relying on tradition. The forming values of this child lie in the plane of the present since the past is not actualized, and the future in their answers does not have clear outlines.
One of the less evident but important issues faced by Daniels is his cultural identity. This is necessary precisely in the opportunity to speak out for membership in the group and its conditions or against them. One should note that this applies to communication, thoughts, feelings, behavior, and actions. In addition to the family community, in which membership is established by birth, there are many other groups in most countries where membership and identification, in particular from a certain age onwards, are voluntary and optional. In connection with the concept of identity in cultures, there can be any number of groups or collectives, while it is constantly changing. In contrast to social framework conditions, the choice of available interpretations of actions and meaning offers some freedom in decision making.
Conclusion
In conclusion, one can easily observe that Daniels undergoes a series of abandonments by the caregivers throughout the story. Polly sends his boy to the grandfather as soon as he becomes less dependent on her. The second unintentional instance comes when Polly’s father passes away, which forces the protagonists to move in with Polly. The third and most striking abandonment occurs when Polly disappears without any form of warning. This is followed by Vivian putting the boy in foster care, which leads to major life challenges. Therefore, these multiple occurrences of abandonment result in the fact that he lacks a solid identity and a sense of belongingness.
Works Cited
Deb, Sibnath, et al. “Academic Stress, Parental Pressure, Anxiety and Mental Health Among Indian High School Students.” International Journal of Psychology and Behavioral Science, vol. 5, no. 1, 2015, pp. 26-34.
Ko, Lisa. The Leavers. Algonquin Books, 2017.
Randall, Edin, et al. “Understanding Affluent Adolescent Adjustment: The Interplay of Parental Perfectionism, Perceived Parental Pressure, And Organized Activity Involvement.” Journal of Adolescence, vol. 41, 2015, pp. 56- 66.