Red Scarf Girl Study Guide Questions Prologue – pg. 100

1. Red Scarf Girl Study Guide QuestionsPrologue – pg. 100

2. 1. Who does Ji-li live with? Describe each person in her household; make sure you include her parent’s occupation?

3. Dad – pg. 13 • Works as a stage actor. • He is 6 feet tall, slightly stoop shouldered, and has a serious face. • He is kind, humorous, wise and loves reading.

4. Mom – pg.13 • She was an actress and later worked in a sports equipment store. Grandma– pg.13 • Graduated from a modern high school 1914 • Help to found the XinEr Primary School and became Vice Principal • Retired from teaching to help take care of kids while Ji-li’s mom worked

5. Brother and Sister- pg. 14 Brother – Ji-yong Sister – Ji-yun 10 years old Shorter and plumper, like mom Has dimples and a sweet smile Easygoing, does not strive to be the best Stubborn • 11 years old • Shorter and plumper, like mom • Nicknamed, Ironball, because he was dark and sturdy • Liked to play, not a serious student

6. Song PoPo – pg 14-15 • Originally the nanny, but now works as the family’s housekeeper. • Lives in the small room downstairs • She is like another grandmother to the children

7. Other Family – downstairs, pg 15 4th Aunt You-mei, cousin Has a baby daughter named Hua-hua Her husband works in another city and visits them 2 times per year. • Married to Dad’s brother • Daughter is You-mei • Husband died in Hong Kong

8. 2. Describe Ji-li’s home. What class do you think Ji-li belongs to? (upper, middle, lower) • Ji-li’s family has one large room on the top floor of one building. • Huge French windows with high ceilings • Kitchen on outside landing was small • Family room 10 times bigger than classmates • Private bathroom with sink and flushing toilet • Mahogany furniture • Ji-li’s family seems wealthy and must be in the upper class.

9. 3. What is Ji-li’s life at school like? Is she a good student, does she have friends, does she seem happy? • Pg. 1 –She was happy because she felt loved and respected. • Pg.9 – She was an “outstanding student and student chairman of her whole school.” She must have had many friends and respected to be elected to this position. • Pg.17- “Until the audition, I felt like the luckiest girl in the world.”

10. 4. What special honor is Ji-li picked for at school? • Pg. 6- She was chosen to try out for the Liberation Army performing troupe. 5. Why didn’t Ji-li’s parents want her to accept the honor of entering the audition? • Pg. 9 – He father did not want a political background check of the family status. He knew they would not pass.

11. 7. In which revolutionary act does Ji-li take part in her neighborhood? Describe it. • Pg. 23 –The people in the market were destroying shop signs with Four Old names. She and her friends helped to jump on and break a shop sign.

12. 8. What are the “Four Olds?” Provide some examples and explain why they need to be destroyed. • Glossary: “old ideas, old culture, old customs, and old habits.” According to the propaganda, these remnants of the old society interfered with the creation of modern, socialist society. However, people in power randomly decided whether or not something was “fourolds,” and used this as an excuse to attack people and destroy property.

13. Old Culture: • Old Ideas: • Old Customs: • Old Habits

14. 9. What does prosperity mean? Why is it considered and old thought? • Pg. 26 – Prosperity means “to make a great fortune”. Dictionary: to achieve economic success • It is an old thought because the communist party believes in having an equal share, so that no one should be more well off than the another person.

15. 12. What is a xenophile? Why was it bad to be a xenophile in Revolutionary China? • Pg. 34 – A xenophile is someone who worships anything foreign. This was bad because foreign things were from a rightist or capitalist government and not part of communism.

16. 13. What are DaZiBao? • Pg. 38, glossary – DaZiBao are large handwritten posters presenting an important issue. They were used to attack and humiliate people during the Cultural Revolution.

17. 14. Who is Jiang Xi-wen? Why does Ji-li hang a dazibao on her (Xi-wen’s) house? • Pg 44-45 –Jiang Xi-wen is Ji-li’s father’s cousin. She calls her Aunt Xi-wen. She is described as an unpleasant women. Students hang the dazibao on her house because she wouldn’t let students pick mulberry leaves from her yard and because of her American clothing and makeup. Ji-li stays with the group because she doesn’t want to be targeted for letting her family interfere with her political principles.

18. 15. Why does Ji-li stop going to school for a while? (What is she accused of?) • She initially didn’t want to go to school anymore because she was accused of having a relationship with a male teacher in a dazibao. • She became sick however and stayed home from school for 10 days.

19. 16. What did Ji-li’s grandfather do for a living? How does this effect Ji-li’s life? Do you agree that Ji-li’s grandfather’s decisions should be used to pass judgment on Ji-li? • Ji-li’s grandfather was a landlord. The family owned vast amounts of land, many businesses and other properties. • This affects Ji-li’s life because she is being criticized for her grandfather’s actions long ago. • I do not agree that she should be held accountable for his actions. Especially since, currently, her family’s position is different from that of her grandfather.

20. 17. What is a rightist? • Glossary: A rightist is a member of a conservative party who disagrees with or is opposed to the communist party.

21. 18. Use your own words to briefly explain the process of remolding one’s ideology? • Glossary: remolding one’s ideology – to improve or correct one’s beliefs to match those of the Central Committee. • Getting rid of things considered four olds and even changing the way one dresses or speaks are examples of things the people were doing to remold themselves. Ji-li was doing a lot of manual labor to make up for having a housekeeper which was considered exploitation.

22. 19. What does the sound of drums and gongs mean in Ji-li’s life? • Pg. 80-81 The sound of drums and gongs meant the Red Guards were ransacking houses of class enemies to find and confiscate any hoarded possessions or belongings acquired from a wealthy background.

23. 20. Use your own words to summarize the events surrounding Old Lady Rong on pages 81-85.

24. 21. Who is Song PoPo? How does her leaving Ji-li’s home affect Ji-li’s life. • Song PoPo was the family’s nanny and housekeeper. She was like a family member. • Since she is no longer working for the family, there was a lot more work to do. Ji-li was now responsible for going to the market and helping with the cooking.

25. 22. What is a dowry? What items does Grandmother have left from her dowry? • Dictionary: A dowry is money, goods or estate a woman brings to her husband when they are married. Often a gift from the bride’s parents. • Pg. 94 The four red leather trunks were all Grandmother had left from her dowry. They were given to her by her mother.

26. 23. What does Ji-li’s mother do with their ancestor’s clothes? Why does she do this? • Pg. 96-97 – She decided to make comforter covers out of the gowns and mops out of the silk ties because they are considered four olds. • They can’t sell them or even give them away now because the Red Guards would accuse them of hiding them. If they turned them in, the Red Guards would just burn them.