Typical American

Typical American is a 1991 novel by Gish Jen that depicts the lives of three Chinese immigrants who move to America to escape political turmoil. The novel portrays their struggles with racism, American culture, and consumerism. Jen’s debut novel, Typical American was selected as a finalist for the 1991 National Book Critics Circle Award. Jen, herself a first-generation Chinese American, has since written several other novels, in addition to nonfiction books, short stories, and articles.

Content Warning: The source material and this guide contain instances and discussions of racism and suicidal ideation.

Plot Summary

Yifeng Chang is born in a small town outside of Shanghai, China, and grows up in his father’s shadow. He wins an engineering scholarship in America, and while onboard the ship to the United States, he resolves to work hard and study for a doctorate degree. Though he vows to abstain from women, he meets a secretary named Cammy at the Foreign Student Affairs office and falls in love. She gives him the American name Ralph. Ralph’s infatuation with Cammy impacts his schoolwork. She is fired, and he is ostracized from the school. Ralph frequently moves apartments to avoid the immigration police. When communist forces take control in China, Ralph loses all contact with his parents. Moving homes constantly separates him from his friends. One day he lays down on a park bench and is found by his sister Theresa, who is also studying in America with her friend from China, Helen. Ralph moves in with Helen and Theresa. Ralph proposes to Helen, and they are married in a simple ceremony.

Theresa and Helen were sent to America to stay safe from the communists. Helen, a sheltered child, is less keen to embrace her new home than Theresa. Ralph’s arrival in their lives changes this, and all three become more familiar with America. They live together in a rundown apartment and dream of a brighter future. When Theresa earns a scholarship to medical school, Ralph becomes jealous of her intelligence and success. Meanwhile, Helen develops domestic skills and is proud of her achievements. She becomes pregnant. Theresa lies to Ralph that her scholarship is canceled to ward off his jealousy and allow him to focus on his doctorate. Helen befriends Janis Chao, who is married to Henry Chao, one of Ralph’s colleagues. Janis and Helen organize a dinner party to try to set Theresa up with a Chinese American man named Grover Ding. The dinner party is a disaster and ends with Grover and Ralph taking Henry’s car out to a diner and staying away for hours. Ralph is impressed with Grover, who is rich and successful, but Theresa finds him reprehensible. Helen gives birth to a baby girl named Callie, Ralph completes his PhD, and Theresa works on her MD; Ralph and Helen later have another daughter named Mona.

Ralph, Helen, and Theresa slowly become more integrated into American society. They buy a house together in the Connecticut suburbs but can barely afford the mortgage. Ralph needs a tenured professorship at his college to afford the house, and the preparation for the decision makes him very nervous. Theresa begins an affair with Henry Chao. Ralph is given tenure. When Henry and his wife visit the family’s home to celebrate, Theresa hides herself away.

Ralph dislikes being a professor and grows closer to Grover Ding, who arranges for Ralph to buy a fried chicken store. The shop is successful at first, but Grover encourages Ralph to bend the rules and cheat on his taxes. Grover spends more time at the house, and Theresa cannot stand to be around him. Ralph becomes more like Grover. He drinks and teases his sister about her affair. Theresa moves into her own apartment. Helen and Grover flirt and become increasingly intimate while Ralph focuses on the business. Ralph has the idea to put an extra story on the chicken shop to drum up business. Grover advises against this, but Ralph pushes ahead. Helen becomes concerned with her affair and rejects Grover, who agrees to Ralph’s construction idea only to disappear soon afterward.

The extra story is added to the chicken shop. After some brief success, the building collapses. The shop must shut down, and Ralph learns that Grover scammed him into buying a dilapidated building. The store closes, and the family veers toward bankruptcy. Ralph buys a puppy, whom they name Grover. Ralph takes the puppy to dog school and trains it well. Helen and Ralph fight about their finances, and he accidently pushes her through a window. As she recovers in the hospital, he agrees to go back to teaching. Theresa moves back into the family home with her two cats, named after her two nieces. The children are delighted, but Ralph’s dog is forced to move outside. Theresa and Henry spend more time together, and Ralph grows bitter. He takes the dog on long walks and trains it to react aggressively to the smell of his sister’s cats. He meets Grover one day by chance, and Grover mocks Helen’s infidelity. Ralph kidnaps Helen, threatening to kill her if she does not confess about the affair. At home, Theresa is chased by Grover the dog. She tries to escape, but Ralph hits her with his car when he is returning home. Theresa falls into a coma for months, and Ralph prays for atonement. Eventually, Theresa wakes up.