sation with Young Carman and also the lecture that Mrs. Spring Fragrance attended in San Francisco. Young Carman voices the general ideal of America being a ‘high class’ country where everyone is treated equally important. He disregards Mr. Spring Fragrance’s inquiries about his brother in the detention pen and instead turns the tables on him, blaming the Chinese for compelling Americans to do what is against their principles. Ironically, Mr. Spring Fragrance offers apologies on behalf of the Chinese unaware that Young Carman’s argument does not make any logical sense. Similarly, Mrs. Spring Fragrance was also convinced that America was a wonderful country protecting her and the other Chinese immigrants. The lecture she attended was entitled “America, the Protector of China” and argued that the government was justified in taking more money from the Chinese than the Americans and in detaining those who try to immigrate into the country, for in return they were receiving shelter and protection. Once again, the argument seems absurd to the reader, yet to Mrs. Spring Fragrance it seems logical. The story of “Mrs. Spring Fragrance” depicts the struggle for the Chinese to live by the American standards while trying to preserve the Chinese culture. The reader understands that American society makes it impossible to realize that both cultures are valid, therefore, the Chinese, as a result of “Americanization” slowly begins to disregard their native heritage and culture....
