Image & Image TIEA
During this unit, we read a novel called “The Taste of Apples” containing a collection of short stories about tension between generations, urban and rural, modern and traditional and foreign and local. With each short story, we practice writing TIEAs and group discussions.

In “The Drowning of an old cat”, Huang Chun-ming uses the activity of choice to show tension between generations. In the train ride, both generations were given time to do anything they wanted and the younger generation chose to play with his phone. In “The Drowning of an old cat” the generations had the choice to keep the Dragon Eye Well or build a pool. “‘I’d like you to go back and tell the people in town that Uncle Ah-sheng of Clear Springs says, if they want to go swimming they can stay home and take a dip in their bathtubs!’” (23) In the story and in the image both generations clearly have different interests and support different choices. The image shows that the younger man was using his phone as entertainment and in the story, the people in town wanted to build a swimming pool, also for entertainment. Younger generations seem to only be interested in entertainment and having fun. In the image the older man sits on the train patiently waiting to arrive to his destination and in the story Uncle Ah-sheng goes against the swimming pool. The older generations are more traditional and patient. The tension in the image is between generations, since both sides show difference in interest and support different things.

Evelyn Chao, 2018. Tension between generations. (Evelyn Chao’s own private collection)

TTOA Reflection