The Prototype of the Woman Warrior in White Tigers

For the ones who are familiar with Chinese culture, Kingston’s White Tigers will remind them of the Chinese ‘Ballad of Mulan’. In the legendary story, Mulan is a heroine of Han Dynasty who takes her father’s place during the conscription and disguises herself as a male soldier in the war of countering Hu’s invasion. In 1998, Mulan’s story had been edited as an American animated musical film and was known for more people from other countries.

 

However, Mulan is not the only prototype of the woman warrior. Kingston adds other Chinese legendary elements, such as the back-carving story of Yue Fei, to enrich the character of the woman warrior. Yue Fei is a male heroic figure who has four Chinese characters (精忠报国: To dedicate oneself to the service of one’s country) carved on his back by his mother. His mother carves the words to inspire him to defeat the enemies and protect his own country. While in White Tigers, the woman warrior’s mother carves revenge on her back, also using it to encourage her to defeat their enemies.    

Some sinologists have criticized Kingston for the distorted Chinese myths and folk stories in her White Tigers. However, Kingston responded to these criticizes that she took the power she needs from whatever myth. The reason she put the male hero Yue Fei’s story on the heroine is because she means to take man’s power for woman.