Adornment and Cultural Identity Construction in The Joy Luck Club: A Comparative Analysis of Mother-Daughter Relationships

Adornment plays a critical role in developing cultural identity, particularly among immigrant groups. In The Joy Luck Club, Amy Tan investigates the generational and cultural clashes between Chinese immigrant moms and their American-born daughters.However, as a visual sign that conveys social and cultural meanings, adornment serves as both a marker of cultural difference and a medium of identity construction. Based on cultural identity theories and semiotics, this study analyzes how adornment reflects the characters cultural identities and generational tensions. Through textual analysis, it compares the adornment choices of Lindo and Waverly, as well as Suyuan and Jing-mei, to explore how different characters construct their identities. The analysis reveals that first-generation immigrants use adornment to reinforce their heritage, while their daughters initially reject these traditions in favor of Western aesthetics. Over time, however, Waverly fully embraces Americanization through fashion, whereas Jing-mei undergoes a transformation, ultimately reconstructing her Chinese identity. This paper highlights the complexities of identity construction within immigrant families and suggests that adornment is a key, yet often overlooked, semiotic tool in shaping cultural identity.