Pearl S. Buck’s story The Good Earth raised several significant problems in China. Exploitation, a desire for riches, family troubles, and contempt for elder Chinese culture are among the conflicts that the protagonists confront throughout the novel (Gupta 90). Wang Lung faces several challenges as he attempts to escape poverty. His success in life eventually becomes his demise as he grows greedy and his family begins to drag him down. Everyone requires wealth, whether to feed their families or fulfill their wants. People will do everything to make a livelihood if they do not have enough money, even if it means breaking the law or violating moral norms. Bucks places a high value on riches in his narrative.
Although it has limitations, The Good Earth employs an infallible third-person narrative approach. The plot revolves mainly around Wang Lung, where everything that happens revolves around Wang’s personal experience. Except for his feelings or emotions, readers rarely witness those from other protagonists. Bucks establishes a highly objective narration manner and a practical form of narrating since readers recall what Wang remembers and forgets what he forgets, with no subjective judgment added. Using this viewpoint, Buck effectively conveys the subverting essence of wealth, which annihilates traditional, decent principles. Like any excellent writer, Buck skillfully exploits literary tropes such as symbolism, personification, and anticipation to her audience.
Firstly, Buck uses imagery to better convey his point of view to the audience via the third person narrative through concentrating on Hwang’s family. Thus, the narrative serves as a prompt to individuals about the corrosive effect of money. As the novel progresses, viewers experience the mansion of Hwang’s wealth and collapse clearly via the narrator’s eyes. As a result, her readers received a relatively impartial account of Hwang’s residence. Readers observe the opium of Old Mistress, harems of Old Master, the young nobles, and slave mistreatment from Wang’s perspective.
The Hwang household exemplifies how a large family may be corrupted by money. Readers have a better understanding of the symbolic significance of the Hwang house from this perspective. The credibility may readily persuade readers of the first-hand information since Wang Lung is a witness to such events. In this story, the writer wants the readers to understand that it is good to be wealthy. However, riches will ruin families on many occasions, as it did in Hwang’s case. Buck mentions Wang Lung purchasing Hwang’s house and explains that this deal is a critical symbol and the turning point that foreshadows Wang’s family’s demise.
Buck creates this image by focusing on how Wang Lung’s family matches the Hwang family. Wang Lung bought the house, but he also kicked homeless people out of his courtyard. Buck describes this in the third person, emphasizing the characters’ actions. “The regular people were forced to relocate, and they moved moaning and cursing since a rich person could do anything they pleased” (Buck 5). Wang’s family, who are now living in luxury, has forgotten how they came to be wealthy after leading an impoverished life for many years; they have now abandoned traditional values. Furthermore, Buck’s imagery regarding Hwang’s house symbolizes the demise of Wang’s household. This is because Wang’s family would probably meet the same fate as Hwang’s family through replicating the same sins.
On the other extreme, Buck creates realistic categorizations to express her ideas on wealth by comparing the actions of individuals with various wealth circumstances. When Wang was still not wealthy, he developed a peculiar obsession and desire to hold on to the land. He considers that with the aid of the land, he would be able to amass some wealth, even though the means of getting it may be complicated. Buck used the third person to demonstrate Wang’s early attachment to the property. “If at all I had purchased with the gold so as to keep it, then they could have grabbed the whole of it,” Wang explained, “I do still own the land, and so it is still mine” (Buck 6). Through Wang’s words, readers can understand his great desire for the countryside. Nevertheless, once Wang Lung had collected a considerable fortune, he began to change both attitude and behavior.
At this moment, Wang Lung’s bond with the land has been severed. This is because after becoming wealthy, he leased out his farm to other people. He can be heard saying, “’Silver, then!’ Both the silver and the gold! Bring anything that matches the cost of my parcel of land!” (Buck 7). The above suggests that Wang has decided to surrender his lifeblood again, which signifies his bleak future, although he does not realize it because he thinks he will be rich forever. He has altered his viewpoint, and now he considers money more valuable than the land. The narrative from this discourse closes the existing gap between those reading this story and the characters, thus making the participants appear as if they were real. Therefore, Buck reminds his audience in this manner that riches do transform individuals.
On the one hand, Buck believes that prosperity lowers people’s ethical code. For instance, Wang’s kids were nurtured in a luxurious lifestyle, weakening their customary beliefs. Like the other young lords in the family of Hwang, his son desired to have sex with an enslaved person. As a result, the writer created the above scenario through dialogue in the third-person aspect. “If I did care—of which I do not—there should be no beauty in these courts save for that small and pale woman who attends on those innermost courts” (Buck 10). Readers may perceive the author’s uneasiness over possessing this enslaved person by his own words. On the other hand, at least in the readers’ opinion, a respectable youngster is expected to focus on education and perhaps other beneficial activities such as business. Buck had ensured that the audience was aware that when Wang Lung used to be poor, the youngest of his sons engrossed himself in supporting the family rather than sleeping with women. Thus, the third-person narrative truly helps those reading the story grasp all facets of the characters, which supports the writer’s perspective on the consequences of riches.
Foreshadowing is yet another essential fictional work in the story. Buck structures his plot by projecting upcoming occurrences. Readers could perceive Wang Lung’s displeasure in seeing the unshackled feet of O-lan as well as her awful-looking face explicitly via Wang’s innermost thought. “It could be preferable being the first man with an ugly lady than to be the hundredth one with a gorgeous woman” (Sherly and Fatima 14). Thus, the above indicates Wang’s relationship with Lotus, who has few attractive feet despite having money. The deepest thoughts give those reading the story a direct admission to their genuine feelings, making this narrative incredibly interesting for the audience. Therefore, foretelling builds an exciting tension for readers, which increases their attention in understanding.
The reader needs to be curious about what Wang will do in the face of unhappiness. For instance, once, he did say, “Tiny feet pushed into the pink satin,” as well as the shoes scarcely bigger than a person’s middle finger, dangling immaturely over the edge of the bed.” Thus, by uttering those words, he ultimately betrayed O-lan (Thomas 92). Even though the readers’ minds instantly create an image of a gorgeous woman, Buck claims Wang Lung’s heart is no longer with O-lan, based on Wang’s observations about the woman. He was never happy with O-lan, where Wang Lung’s ignorance is demonstrated through his sinister behavior or foreboding. In the meantime, the literary element works as an excellent tool in making Buck’s narrative more sensible and rational. For instance, after becoming wealthy, Wang Lung forgot O-lan assisted him in establishing the basis of his family. This was through farming, where Wang became monetarily capable of purchasing the bride with a gorgeous face as well as tiny feet. Hence, O-lan and Wang Lung’s love is tainted by wealth.
Pearl S. Buck identifies fundamental phenomena and cautions that the power of wealth may easily mislead people. The restricted third-person narrative helps the reader to comprehend Buck’s perspective about riches in a non-biased and straightforward manner. Readers know plenty about the personalities and other information; thus, they are more inclined to share the author’s viewpoints. Furthermore, Buck skillfully portrays his notion through symbolism, character, and foreshadowing. For example, Hwang’s home is a unique emblem of greed and corruption. The development of distinct and substantial protagonists allows readers to glimpse ordinary individuals twisted by the power of riches methodically. Buck’s logicality is enhanced by foreshadowing, demonstrating Wang Lung’s corruption more acceptably. In Buck’s perspective, prosperity is a gradual poison that slowly corrupts people and finally kills them. Even though everyone needs money, Buck wants to highlight the money’s hidden negative side (Thomas 91). Buck successfully and skillfully conveys his beliefs to readers by demonstrating in the first person and connecting with many delicate literary strategies.
To summarize, the story is centered on Wang Lung, a poor farmer who worked hard on his property to recapitulate. He would spend the entire day working on farms and savoring the soil. The ground was essential to him; he had a unique connection to it, and it was this link that made him the diligent laborer he was. But everything transformed when he became affluent, and the money began to mold him like his uncle, who is nothing like him. The riches caused him numerous problems and significantly contributed to the cultural conflict. There was some crisis, such as oppression against women, financial troubles, and cultural dishonor.
All of the above issues prompted Wang to alter from the individual he was taught to be, and all his reverence for God and the world shifted. Now, the worship of God to him is a symbol of his old life when he is poor, and to him, that is probably the old ways. He no longer needs anything or even God in his life since he is now wealthy. He goes about things his way, and no one would be able to advise him differently. Because he transitioned from the person he used to be, his thoughts get filled with falsehoods. The farmland used to be a powerful link for him, with significance behind it, but women, materialism, and money substituted it. Nonetheless, the source of all issues was wealth because having a lot of money led to the demise of Chinese culture, allowing women to be victimized and cultural history to be overlooked.
Works Cited
Buck, Pearl S. The Good Earth. Lund University, 2018, pp. 1-16.
Gupta, Dr. Dipti. “Pearl S. Buck and Her Association with the East”. International Journal of English Literature and Social Sciences, vol 3, no. 1, 2018, pp. 88-96.
Thomas, Greenu Ans. “Reinvigorating Exploration Nature: An of Ecopoetics in Pearl S. Buck’S The Good Earth”. Smart Moves Journal Ijellh, vol 9, no. 5, 2021, pp. 81-94.
Sherly. H, Ms. Monica, and Aseda Fatima. R. “Patriarchal Oppression in Pearl S Buck’S Novel the Good Earth”. Smart Moves Journal Ijellh, vol 8, no. 2, 2020, p. 5.