Lotus Among the Magnolias
Lotus Among the Magnolias: The Mississippi Chinese is a 1982 book by Robert Seto Quan, published by University Press of Mississippi, with Julian B. Roebuck contributing. It is about the Chinese Americans in the Mississippi Delta.
Background
Quan, a Chinese American, had sociology as his specialty.[1] He conducted interviews through using Cantonese.[2] Quan recalled several from memory, and he did not record them.[3] He had a total of about 1,400 subjects interviewed.[1] Quan's historical information came from James W. Loewen of the University of Vermont.[4]
Reception
Loewen wrote that the work is " an alluring and informative small book" due to the presence of photography and quotes,[5] and he praised how the book "makes a distinctive ethnographic contribution" with Quan having distance from his recordings while having them be accurate.[2] Loewen added that the photography items "are poorly reproduced".[5] Loewen criticized the lack of explanation of how extended families or other sociological dimensions and that the author "does not probe some issues deeply enough."[2]
Ronald Love of Mississippi Valley State University praised the study of the impact of particular generations, arguing that the book "takes Loewen's analysis to a new level of understanding."[6]
Gary B. Mills of the University of Alabama criticized the reliance on unrecorded and memorized interviews.[3] He stated "To the historian Lotus is disappointing."[3] He added that there was entertainment value in reading the book.[3]
Shih-shan H. Tsai of the University of Arkansas stated "As a whole, [the work] is a successful one" though he stated that because Quan he got his historical data from Loewen, which Tsai stated had been contradicted, "historians will find it disappointing."[4]
See also
References
- Loewen, James W. (November 1983). "Reviewed Work: Lotus Among the Magnolias: The Mississippi Chinese by Robert Seto Quan, Julian B. Roebuck". Contemporary Sociology. 12 (6). American Sociological Association: 711–712. doi:10.2307/2068095. JSTOR 2068095.
- Love, Ronald (1984-03-01). "Lotus Among the Magnolias: The Mississippi Chinese.By Robert S. Quan, in collaboration with Julian B. Roebuck. University Press of Mississippi, 162 pp. $15.00". Social Forces. 62 (3): 832–833. doi:10.1093/sf/62.3.832. JSTOR 2578727.
- Mills, Gary B. (August 1983). "Reviewed Work: Lotus Among the Magnolias: The Mississippi Chinese by Robert Seto Quan, Julian B. Roebuck, Stanford M. Lyman". The Journal of Southern History. 49 (2). Southern Historical Association: 468–469. doi:10.2307/2208130. JSTOR 2208130.
- Tsai, Shih-shan H. (1984-04-01). "Lotus among the Magnolias: The Mississippi Chinese Robert Seto Quan Julian B. Roebuck". Journal of American Ethnic History. 3 (2): 119–120. JSTOR 27500343.
Notes
- ^ a b Tsai, p. 119.
- ^ a b c Loewen, p. 711.
- ^ a b c d Mills, p. 469.
- ^ a b Tsai, p. 120.
- ^ a b Loewen, p. 712.
- ^ Love, p. 832.
External links
- Lotus Among the Magnolias: The Mississippi Chinese
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