Everything Lady Arabella does is a calculated move. Do you think she’s motivated by an understandable quest to survive and look out for her children, or are her motivations evil? Why is she unable to have a truly loving parent-child relationship like the one Thomas created with Eden? By the same turn, what is at the root of Luis Felipe’s destructive bent—including the destruction of any emotional connection to his father? What does the novel say about creating loving bonds within a family?
Lady Arabella is motivated by power and appearances. She cares more about status than real connection, which is why she can’t have a close relationship with her kids—she sees them as part of her image, not as people.
Luis Felipe acts out because he’s angry and insecure. He grew up without real love, so he looks for attention in destructive ways.
The book shows that love in families can’t grow when people care more about image and control. Real bonds come from honesty and being accepted for who you are.
Initially, Lady Arabella’s manipulations and conniving seemed motivated solely from a place of narcissism, greed, and improving her own social status. However, towards the end of the book there was a telling memory where Arabella recalled a memory of a British woman cutting in front of the local Hong Kongers including herself in a cab line and yet, no one said anything about it. The British carried themselves with an air of superiority. The experience lead Arabella to hate the locals who allowed themselves to be walked on (as much as she hated the British). I believe overcoming this feeling of inferiority lead Arabella to obsessively strive to make herself and her family “someones.”
Her children were a means to an end - objects to facilitate her gains.
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Having grown up without much of a present father figure, I feel Luis Felipe acted out as a means to seek his father’s attention, rather than an act of rebellion. He was insecure, over-indulged (to offset his father’s absence and lack of affection), angry, and entitled. In the end Luis Felipe’s defiance and behavior were likely defense mechanisms to protect him from the relationship (or lack of) with his father as well as the lack of any another meaningful relationships in his life.
Lady Arabella is afraid of losing her money and status. She married in order to achieve this and to escape being looked down upon for being Chinese and having no power. I think she does love her children, but she worries that without money they will be relegated to a difficult life full of discrimination for being mixed race. She wants to avoid that for them and will do whatever she thinks is necessary to protect their - and her - position.
Lady Arabella is motivated by appearances and wealth. She says she wants the best for her children but only on her terms. Her love is given when children do what she wants. She is selfish and expects her children’s compliance. Thomas and Eden are in a loving relationship where each wants the best for the other. Thomas has always been supportive of Eden and provided her a loving, safe home life. A home life that encouraged Eden to follow her dreams to become a doctor like her father. Luis Felipe, on the other hand, has not felt he had a loving father since he was shoved from nanny to nanny in his life. To make matters worse his father was not positive role model. Loving family bonds are created every day in action and words. Eden had this while the others did not.
Lady Arabella is a survivor. She was born in a time when marrying into a mixed marraige was rare and frowned upon, yet she knew even though she’d have to deal with living in a basically white world it was the best thing for her. When we get that snippet at the end, of her being treated like trash by the white woman, I think we are better able to understand her seething anger and a bit of self hatred. I also feel Kwan goes super “tiger mom” with her character. I felt so badly for her children and I blame not just her but Francis, for this. How Rufus turned out to be so sweet is hard to figure..As for Luis Felipe he never stood a chance, did he? Raised by an angry violent man, no mother, no cuddling or love he was spoiled beyond belief and left to his own devices. Not sure who the worse parent was…
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I so agree Monica. Arabella was driven by power and was more concerned about her connections than having a relationship with her three children. If life among the affluent is as this family shows between the pages of this book, no wonder the world is the condition it is!
I really, really, really did not like either of these characters. I realize that we were not supposed to like them, but usually with unlikable characters, there is at least something redeemable. I could not find anything redeemable with either one. Arabella bothered me from the beginning of the book to the end. She was vain and so worried with her public image and loosing her fortune, that she was willing to ruin lives. She could not bond with her children and only viewed them as pawns in her goal to keep up the generational wealth that she married into. Luis Felipe’s end is because he did not receive any nurturing as a child. You would think this would make me feel more sympathy for him, but it did not. I am not really sure why. He had a difficult time bonding with others because he was never taught how. Because he could not bond with others, he did not care what happened to himself and gave into his addiction.
Arabella is only concerned with appearance. She wants to be the best at everything and be regarded as someone people want to be. A true family is made up of flawed individuals that love each other. There was no room for a flaw in her world.
Lady Arabella is not evil. The only reason she has any agency in England is the extreme wealth. It is or was part of the culture in Singapore & Hong Kong. She also wants her children to project wealth & success because it reflects positively on her.
Lady Arabella is motivated by having a good image. All she cares about is herself. She is just out for making herself look good. She will do whatever is needed to make herself look good in the eyes of her friends.
I absolutely detested Arabella. The people in her life were merely pawns she used to achieve and enhance social status. It was all about the money and her image.
Lady Arabella wielded wealth as power, status, and control. She showcased her homes, art, clothing, jewelry and demonstrated her status via photographs for the world to see. I was hoping to see more change in her at the end when the truth of her financial situation was revealed. She was so manipulative. Even the reveal of something that happened to her as a child didn’t excuse her adult behavior. Francis just seemed oblivious and indulged her every whim.
Luis Felipe felt rejected and ignored and substituted developing meaningful relationships with alcohol, drugs and a lavish lifestyle that was self-destructive and shallow.
On the surface Lady Arabella seems to be motivated by power, money and prestige. At her core, I believe she is motivated by self-loathing due to her Chinese heritage. She has internalized the British prejudice against her own people and will always see herself as “less than,” no matter how wealthy or powerful she is. She even hates the Chinese blood in her own children and will never love them completely.
She and Luis have this self hatred in common. Luis feels rejected by his father and tries to fill the void with expensive things, drugs, gambling and power over others.
The author’s message is that material possessions cannot be substitutes for the love and security of a healthy family relationship.