Explaining the Mysteries in the Story “Lucky” by Viet Dinh Essay

Viet Dinh’s short story is about the change in relationship between a man and his Aunt and Uncle. Jae, the main character in the story used to like his Uncle Sung and Aunt Kwi better than his own parents but suddenly had a change of heart because of an incident he experienced. Jae had been working in his Uncle Sung’s store when it was robbed one day. The robber put a gun against Jae’s temple and demanded for cash. Although the robber had acquired the contents of the cash register, he also demanded Uncle Sung’s wallet, threatening to put a hole in Jae’s head. While Jae had been terrified with his current situation, fearing for his life, Uncle Sung acted as if his nephew were not in a life-threatening situation, refusing to surrender his wallet. In the end, Uncle Sung bribed Jae $20 for his silence. Despite of his Uncle Sung’s request for him to keep silent, Jae told his Aunt Kwi what really happened during the incident hoping to get the sympathy of his Aunt. To Jae’s dismay, Aunt Kwi also requested for his silence. Jae was only 12 years old during the incident. While Jae’s change of heart in his relationship with his Aunt and Uncle is understandable, there are some mysteries in the story. First, why would Uncle Sung and Aunt Kwi not want Jae to tell others what really happened during the robbery? What would Uncle Sung accomplish or get by not telling the truth or by reinventing the story? Certainly, Uncle Sung has nothing to do with the whole incident and he was a victim as much as Jae was. Second, why were Uncle Sung and Aunt Kwi still mad at Jae 16 years after the robbery incident when it did not really did them any harm whether Jae told the real story or not? As a matter of fact, they were the ones who should be sorry for what they did to their nephew. Third, Jae’s feelings towards his Aunt and Uncle were not really resolved. The answers to these questions were not very clear from the story but I will attempt to find the logic behind such actions by the characters. The answer to the first mystery may be found in Uncle Sung’s sense of adventure. At the beginning of the story, Jae, who was also the narrator, related how Uncle Sung died. Uncle Sung, with all his profit from his businesses, was able to buy different cars, all of them built for speed. Uncle Sung died while driving one of these sports cars, where he apparently lost control, probably racing on a freeway. Jae held that he always felt danger around Uncle Sung. Uncle Sung’s sense of adventure was apparent during the robbery by keeping his cool despite the presence of life-threatening danger that he bragged about it in a get-together after the robbery. He even rebuked Jae for acting cowardly during the whole incident while leaving out the important part that Jea had been held captive. The first mystery could also be solved by Uncle Sung’s greediness with money. It was apparent during the robbery incident that money was more important for Uncle Sung than the lives of his workers, especially of Jae who was held captive by the robber, imposing a real threat to his life. Although, the robber was demanding for his wallet, Uncle Sung acted as if he did not care about Jae’s life hanging in the balance. He told the robber that he did not have his wallet at the moment although he had it in his pocket all along. Although Jae ended up keeping his life, Uncle Sung refused to give the robber his wallet in exchange for Jae’s life. That Uncle Sung held his money more important than anything else is shown also by his attitude regarding money. By bribing Jae, he hoped to buy Jae’s silence, and by giving a large sum of money during Jae’s wedding, he hoped to appease Jae. Uncle Sung regarded money so much as to think he could buy people with it, as through the manifestation of their silence or approval. Note that this attitude of Uncle Sung works in tandem with his being adventurous to solve the first mystery. By asking Jae to be silent, Uncle Sung hoped the approval of those who heard his version of the incident, that he would gain their admiration by keeping his cool despite the terrifying incident. To fully accomplish this, however, it was important for him to leave out the part that he put Jae’s life on the line, which also saved him hard-earned money in his wallet. Having found the answer to the first mystery, the solution to the second becomes apparent. Uncle Sung and Aunt Kwi were still mad at Jae because they held honor an important aspect, even though this honor was not rightfully earned. Knowing the real story of what happened during the robbery and his apparent refusal to keep silent, Jae represented a threat to Uncle Sung’s honor. Although it was really not clear whether or not Jae told the story to others, he at least told it to his parents, as could be shown with their understanding why Jae would not want to see or be associated with his Uncle Sung. In fact, the whole incident was the reason why a strain in the extended family’s relationship developed. Uncle Sung and Aunt Kwi were still mad at Jae because, after all that they had done for their nephew, he still refused to keep silent threatening the reputation his uncle worked hard to achieve. They held that Jae’s refusal to keep silent is a sign of not only his disrespect for them but also of his ingratitude towards what they did for him and his family. Again, it displayed Uncle Sung’s attitude towards money, that he expected Jae and his family not to cross him by helping Jae’s family on their business. Unfortunately, the third mystery could not really be solved from the solutions to the first two mysteries. Although Jae agreed to come to his uncle’s wake, it is uncertain whether or not he had already forgiven his uncle for putting him in danger and asking him to keep silent. Maybe he agreed to come, just as he was urged to agree to invite Uncle Sung in his wedding, because of his parents’ urging that Uncle Sung is still a family member. However, in his uncle’s wake, Jae told his Aunt Kwi that his uncle looked so peaceful. It is unclear whether this was a sign of him making peace with his uncle or not and it does not help knowing the reaction of his aunt. Aunt Kwi, after hearing what Jae has to say, pushed him away saying that he was ungrateful. There are two plausible solutions why Aunt Kwi may have acted the way she did. First, she still may hold a grudge against Jae for being defiant towards Uncle Sung. There is however a flaw in this solution. It was apparent that Aunt Kwi was preventing for the relationship between her husband and Jae from getting any worse through her action during Jae’s wedding, wherein she tried to put her husband at ease while Uncle Sung was criticizing Jae in front of other people. By preventing her husband from saying any further that may ruin Jae’s reputation, despite of the fact that she disapproved of what Jae had decided to go against their wishes, then it is possible that Aunt Kwi no longer hold any grudge against Jae. The second plausible solution why Aunt Kwi acted towards Jae the way she did during the wake was that she may have found no sincerity in Jae. Remember that Jae was only urged by his parents to come to the funeral and it is all too possible that Jae went only because of this and not because of his wanting to pay respect and tribute for his uncle. Looking into his eyes, Aunt Kwi may have concluded of this fact and so pushed Jae away while stating her dismay towards him and his being ungrateful, that after all the years and after his uncle has already passed away, Jae was still unforgiving. Saying this, the solution to the third mystery may be that Jae still has not forgiven Uncle Sung. This could also be established by the fact that Jae does not approve of his uncle’s adventurism, as is apparent by stating that he always knew Uncle Sung would die in the freeway and that he always felt danger around him. Works Cited Dinh, Viet. â€Å"Lucky. † Zeotrope All-Story vol. 8, no 2, 2008.