Why should you read “The Joy Luck Club” by Amy Tan? - Sheila Marie Orfano

Prevodilac: Milan Ležaja Lektor: Milenka Okuka

In her Auntie An-mei’s home,

U domu svoje tete An-mej,

Jing-Mei reluctantly takes her seat

Đing-mej nerado seda

at the eastern corner of the mahjong table.

za istočni ćošak stola za mađang.

At the north, south, and west corners are her aunties,

Na severnom, južnom i zapadnom ćošku sede njene tete,

long-time members of the Joy Luck Club.

dugogodišnje članice Kluba radosti i sreće.

This group of immigrant families comes together weekly to trade gossip,

Ova grupa imigrantskih porodica nedeljno se sastaje da razmenjuje tračeve,

feast on wonton and sweet chaswei, and play mahjong.

gozbe se vontonom i slatkim čašaom, i igraju mađang.

However, the club’s founder, Jing-Mei’s mother Suyuan, has recently passed away.

Međutim, osnivačica kluba, Đing-mejina majka Sujuen, nedavno je preminula.

At first, Jing-Mei struggles to fill her place at the table.

U početku, Đing-mej ima poteškoće da zameni svoju majku za stolom.

But when her aunties reveal a deeply buried secret about Suyuan’s life,

Ali kada joj njene tete otkriju duboko zakopanu tajnu o Sujueninom životu,

Jing-Mei realizes she still has a lot to learn about her mother, and herself.

Đing-mej shvata da ima još mnogo toga da nauči o svojoj majci, kao i o sebi.

In Amy Tan’s 1989 debut novel, "The Joy Luck Club,"

U romanu prvencu Ejmi Tan iz 1989. godine, “Klubu radosti i sreće”,

this gathering at the mahjong table is the point of departure

ovo okupljanje za stalom za mađang služi kao polazna tačka

for a series of interconnected vignettes.

za niz međusobno povezanih vinjeta.

The book itself is loosely structured to imitate the format of the Chinese game.

Sama knjiga je okvirno struktuirana na način koji oponaša format kineske igre.

Just as mahjong is played over four rounds with at least four hands each,

Kao što se mađang igra u četiri runde sa po barem četiri deljenja u svakoj,

the book is divided into four parts, each with four chapters.

knjiga je podeljena na četiri dela, svaki sa po četiri poglavlja.

Alternately set in China or San Francisco,

Naizmenično smešteno u Kini ili San Francisku,

each chapter narrates a single story from one of the four matriarchs

svako poglavlje predstavlja jednu priču jedne od četvoro matrijarha

of the Joy Luck Club or their American-born daughters.

Kluba radosti i sreće ili njihovih ćerki rođenih u Americi.

These stories take the reader through war zones

Ove priče vode čitaoca kroz ratišta

and villages of rural China, and into modern marriages

i sela ruralne Kine, u moderne brakove

and tense gatherings around the dinner table.

i napeta okupljanja za stolom uz večeru.

They touch upon themes of survival and loss, love and the lack of it,

Dotiču se tema preživljavanja i gubitka, ljubavi i manjka iste,

ambitions and their unsatisfied reality.

ambicija i njihove nezadovoljene stvarnosti.

In one, Auntie Lin plots an escape from the hostile family

U jednoj, teta Lin kuje plan da napusti nezdravo porodično okruženje

of her promised husband,

svog ugovorenog muža,

ultimately leading to her arrival in America.

što na kraju dovodi do njenog dolaska u Ameriku.

In another, the Hsu family’s all-American day at the beach turns dire

U drugoj, pravi američki dan porodice Su na plaži dobija strašan preokret

when Rose is overwhelmed by the responsibility her mother assigns to her.

kada Rouz biva preopterećena odgovornostima koje joj majka dodeljuje.

The resulting tragedy traumatizes the family for years to come.

To rezultira u tragediju koja će porodici doneti dugogodišnje traume.

These tales illustrate the common divides that can form

Te priče oslikavaju uobičajene podele koje se mogu stvoriti

between generations and cultures, especially in immigrant families.

među generacijama i kulturama, posebno kod imigrantskih porodica.

The mothers have all experienced great hardships during their lives in China,

Sve ove majke su iskusile velike teškoće tokom svojih života u Kini,

and they’ve worked tirelessly to give their children

i neumorno su radile ne bi li svojoj deci

better opportunities in America.

obezbedile bolje prilike u Americi.

But their daughters feel weighed down by their parent’s unfulfilled hopes

Ali njihove ćerke osećaju breme neispunjenih nada svojih roditelja

and high expectations.

i visokih očekivanja.

Jing-Mei feels this pressure as she plays mahjong with her mother’s friends.

Đing-mej oseća ovaj pritisak dok igra mađang sa majčinim prijateljicama.

She worries, “In me, they see their own daughters, just as ignorant,

Brine se da: “U meni, one vide svoje ćerke, isto tako neuku,

just as unmindful of all the truths and hopes they have brought to America.”

isto tako nemarnu za sve istine i nade koje su donele u Ameriku”.

Time and again,

Iznova i iznova, majke su stremile da podsete ćerke na svoju istoriju i poreklo.

the mothers strive to remind their daughters of their history and heritage.

Meanwhile, their daughters struggle to reconcile

Sa druge strane, njihove ćerke trudile su se da usklade

their mothers’ perception of them with who they really are.

to kako majke gledaju na njih sa tim kakve su one zapravo.

"Does my daughter know me?" some of the stories ask.

“Da li me moja ćerka poznaje?“, pitaju neke od priča.

"Why doesn’t my mother understand?" others respond.

“Zašto me moja majka ne razume?“, odgovaraju druge.

In her interrogation of these questions,

Istražujući ova pitanja,

Tan speaks to anxieties that plague many immigrants,

Tan se obraća strepnjama koje muče mnoge imigrante,

who often feel both alienated from their homeland

koji se istovremeno osećaju i otuđeno od svoje rodne zemlje

and disconnected from their adopted country.

i isključeno od nove zemlje koju su usvojili.

But by weaving the tales of these four mothers and daughters together,

Međutim, time što zajedno prepliće ove priče o četiri majke i ćerke,

Tan makes it clear that Jing-Mei

Tan jasno daje do znanja da Đing-mej

and her peers find strength to tackle their present-day problems

i ostale ćerke pronalaze snagu da se bore sa sadašnjim problemima

through the values their mothers passed on to them.

kroz vrednosti koje su im prenele njihove majke.

When "The Joy Luck Club" was first published,

Kada je “Klub radosti i sreće” tek objavljen,

Tan expected minimal success.

Tan je očekivala minimalni uspeh.

But against her predictions, the book was a massive critical

Ali uprkos njenim predviđanjima, knjiga je odlično prihvaćena,

and commercial achievement.

kako među kritičarima, tako i komercijalno.

Today, these characters still captivate readers worldwide.

Danas, njeni likovi još uvek očaravaju čitaoce širom sveta.

Not only for the way they speak to Chinese American

Ne samo zbog načina na koji se obraća Kinezima iz Amerike

and immigrant experiences,

i iskustvima imigranata,

but also for uncovering a deeper truth:

već i jer otkrivaju dublju istinu:

the need to be seen and understood by the ones you love.

potrebu da budete viđeni i shvaćeni od strane onih koje volite.