Customer Reviews

The Chickencoop Chinaman / The Year of the Dragon: Two Plays

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

to challenge the stereotypes of Chinese. You need only read these famous lines in Chickencoop Chinaman: "Chinamen are made, not born, my dear. Out of junk-imports, lies, railraod scrap iron, dirty jokes, broken bottles, cigar smoke, Cosquilla Indian blood, wino spit, and lots of milk of amnesia." It's no wonder that this play is the first Asian American play produced off-Broadway. It is controversial (for good reason), angry, and thought-provoking. Did you know that George Takei played Fred Eng in The Year of the Dragon?

Although it's true that his plays can sometimes be crude and sophomoric, there are passages in "The Chickencoop Chinaman" that foretell Mr. Chin's eventual success as an essayist and novelist - particularly in wistful and mournful monologues from the protagonist, in direct address to the audience, about childhood heroes (believing, for example, that The Lone Ranger was certainly Chinese behind that mask), and other dynamic movements that capture, and inspire, a sense of the spirit and discovery that must have permeated the burgeoning Asian-American movement of the 1970s.

"The Year Of The Dragon", conversely, is more typically a real "play", structurally conforming with classic American modes of expression.

...in America! That alone should give you a reason to read these important plays. These plays caused an uproar of controversy and discussion. Why? Because many Westerners (and Westernized Asians) had no clue of what it really meant to be Asian. Do you? If not, you should start by reading Chickencoop Chinaman or Year of the Dragon. If you would like a more academic discussion on this controversy you should purchase THE BIG AIIIEEEEE!....

The thing with Frank Chin is that he really makes the reader work. You're going to read his fiction and think to yourself, "What in the world is he talking about?!"

The thing with Frank Chin's fiction is that his ideas are far more compelling than the stories themselves or his writing style:

-the idea that a "Chickencoop Chinaman" is farmed and created in isolation by a society built on internal colonialism
-the lack of role models for Chinese men in America, which leads the protagonist to desperately believe that the Lone Ranger is Asian


Like all of his works of fiction, The Chickencoop Chinaman and The Year of the Dragon are rough reads. This is not the type of stuff you read for pleasure, but you read with the assistance of a college course on Asian American lit.

I'll give Frank Chin this-- his two plays The Chickencoop Chinaman and The Year of the Dragon have some important ideas that deserve to be thought about and discussed. What does it mean to be an Asian American? How much is assimilation a part of Asian American culture, and is that good or bad? Where did Chinatowns come from? How do the races get along, and where are there misunderstandings that could be improved upon?

All of these are great questions, and they are all addressed in the plays, but two points really hamper the messages for readers now. First, the messages are dated. With the plays first being produced in the early 1970s, cultural relations and ideals have changed, and from the anger and vitriol that appear in these plays, this would appear to be a good thing. Second, it is very hard to care about the characters or what they do. Both plays have rude, obnoxious lead characters who shout a lot but accomplish little. By the time I finished reading the plays, I was exhausted and wishing for a normal conversation with a person who at least tried to understand others. This inability to communicate and feeling of being lost in America may be a main theme of the two plays, but it is not one that is handled in an engaging way.

All in all, while I didn't enjoy these plays, I give them three stars because they are thought-provoking and can lead to some insight into another culture, especially at the time period of the '70s, but even as they have changed over time.

A note on the plays: Of the two, The Year of the Dragon is more entertaining as it deals with a man's desire to make a better life for himself as long as he can go against his father's will. The plot is engaging, but the hard-to-read vernacular language, bloody-mindedness of the characters, and constant balmovements of the characters detract from the overall feel of the work. (I'm not kidding about the balmovements; a large portion of this play deals with characters going to the bathroom, lighting matches, and even the father "shoving out the world's longest turd.") Sophisticated stuff. The first play, The Chickencoop Chinaman, is a very difficult read with some blatant racism and sexism that is hard to stomach. I almost didn't make it through, and I am not 100% pleased that I did.

The bottom line is this: if you are looking for getting your ideas about Asian Americans and Chinese culture in a somewhat entertaining fashion, this is not the work for you. If you are just interested in the ideas and the literary importance of Frank Chin, however, go for it.