Customer Reviews

Pearl Buck's the Good Earth (Barron's Book Notes)

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From the moment you open this book and begin chapter one you are hooked. The way Pearl Buck describes the characters and setting you can perfectly picture them in your mind. When meeting the farmer Wang Lung, you see his love for the land from the beginning of the book. When Wang Lung goes to meet his chosen bride O-lan, Pearl Buck shows the thought process of men and what they feel is beautiful in a woman. From describing the binding of the feet and how Wang Lung is greatly disopointed with O-lan and her seemingly large feet. Pearl Buck shows how faithful O-lan is, being alone during birth and getting back in the feilds the same day to help Wang, even on her death bed O-lan is faithful to Wang. Pearl aslo disscusses the value of men and women children and how Wang took pride in his boys and shame in his girls.When there is a great famine in the village, you can feel how poor these people were and how they struggled to survive, even leaving thier land to go find food. The protagonist and antagonist are clearly dipicted, with Wang Lung struggling with himself and society. The most disturbing part of the book is when Wang Lung meets Lotus Blossm and she becomes his mistress. The luxeries he gives her over O-lan because she has small feet and hands is discusting. The way Pearl Buck shows how men felt about women and how they were just property and nothing else, and the way he breaks O-lan down and treats her like trash because of her feet. The way Pearl shows how he comes and fluants the affair in O-lan's face is absolutly heart wrenching. The way Wang Lung climbs the social ladder and eventually moves away from his land, shows how money changes everything but can never change the persons soul. Throughout the book Wang always returns to his land, even on his death bed he returns to the Good Earth, the land where he built his foundation, the land where he built himself. The ending isn't as satisfying as the rest of the book but, it gives good meaning to the title of the book. This is a extrodianary book, that dipicts social status in China, a woman's value in life, beauty and ugliness, money, religion, love and friendship. I don't know what more you could ask from a book.

Chief is gay. Oh yea horrible book notes because it did not mention details in the plot of the good earth.