Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Bonesetter’s Daughter, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Secrecy and Misunderstanding
Memory, Culture, and the Past
Storytelling
Women’s Solidarity
Summary
Analysis
Ruth has been losing her voice on August 12 for the past eight years. Her partner, Art, jokes that her laryngitis is psychological. She thinks back to their second anniversary when they visited the Grand Tetons. She’d read a pamphlet that described the shooting stars visible in the park around August 12. Ruth recalls something her mother, LuLing, told her about shooting stars being a sign that a ghost is trying to contact you, though she doesn’t think much of it since LuLing believes everything is a sign.
Part One picks up around the same time “Truth” leaves off: LuLing is an elderly woman who has an adult daughter, Ruth. Ruth’s recurrent laryngitis parallels Precious Auntie’s muteness. Their similar condition symbolizes how families pass down afflictions, trauma, and behaviors from one generation to the next. That LuLing connects shooting stars to ghosts shows how haunted she is by Precious Auntie, since the shooting stars connect back to Precious Auntie’s story about a falling star having caused her facial scarring.
Themes
Next August, Ruth plans ahead and tells her friends and clients she’s taking a retreat into silence to better understand the significance and necessity of words. One of her clients is a New Age therapist and thinks Ruth’s retreat is a great idea. From then on, Ruth’s silence becomes an annual tradition—something she almost chooses for herself—and Ruth even begins to enjoy it.
Ruth takes advantage of her silence to appreciate the critical role writing and language play in self-expression and the transmission of ideas. This scene also paints Ruth as an introspective, resilient person who weathers her hardships without complaint and tries to make the best of her situation.
Themes
This year marks the ninth year Ruth, Art, and the girls, Dory and Fia, have driven to Lake Tahoe for the “Days of No Talk.” Unfortunately, however, this year’s trip doesn’t go exactly as planned: the mosquitos are overpowering, and they spend most of their time watching rented horror movies in their motel room.
Ruth, Art, Dory, and Fia’s annual trip to Lake Tahoe reaffirms the importance of family traditions.
Themes
When they return home to San Francisco, they discover their hot water has broken. Ruth doesn’t offer to pay to fix it and feels bad for being petty. When Art tries to initiate sex with her later that night, she rejects him. Ruth wants to explain what’s bothering her but realizes she doesn’t know herself. Ruth stays awake late into the night. She realizes her voice will return soon. She walks into her home office gazes out the window at fog surrounding the Golden Gate Bridge. It’s too misty to see “ghost bodies.” Ruth remembers LuLing telling her the mist comes from fighting dragons.
Ruth and Art’s failure to be intimate with each other suggests that the couple has grown apart. Perhaps Ruth is withdrawn in ways that extend beyond her annual, temporary period of muteness. LuLing’s talk of “ghost bodies” reaffirms how tied to the past LuLing is. She seems to be haunted by demons and ghosts from her past.
Themes
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Ruth walks to her desk and instantly feels like there’s something she’s supposed to remember but can’t figure out what. She finds a stack of papers LuLing gave her years ago, which her mother explained told the story of upbringing in China. The papers are written in Chinese, which Ruth can’t read very well. She remembers when she first set about the arduous task of translating the important file. The first line of LuLing’s story reads, “These are the things I know are true.” Back when she started to interpret the story, Ruth had been shocked to learn that her mother had been married to a man before her father.
Like LuLing, Ruth has trouble remembering things. This scene further develops memory as a central theme. That forgetting becomes a shared trait between Ruth and LuLing also suggests that families—specifically mothers and daughters—pass down certain behaviors or afflictions. The opening line of LuLing’s story comes from the novel’s opening section, “Truth,” which is told from LuLing’s perspective. This detail supports the theory that the story LuLing describes in that opening section and the papers Ruth has in her desk perhaps come from the same manuscript. Ruth’s inability to read Chinese symbolizes how generational differences and an abandonment of cultural traditions prevent future generations from sufficiently honoring and understanding the past.
Themes
Ruth wishes LuLing would translate the story for her, but her mother had scolded her for not knowing Chinese well enough the last time she asked her for help. She’d also gone on long tangents about the Chinese language itself. For example, the word “secret” can refer to something one hides from others or something that can curse or harm the beholder of that secret if they tell anyone. Furthermore, LuLing would get mad at Ruth if she showed any sign of impatience or frustration with LuLing’s stories. Finally, LuLing always ended the argument by claiming that none of it mattered because she’d be dead soon, anyway. Ruth promises her mother she’ll translate the story soon, but something with work or her family always comes up, and LuLing accuses Ruth of not having time for her mother. She urges Ruth not to wait too long to translate the story.
Ruth wants to connect with her mother, but her ignorance about written Chinese and her cultural background more broadly prevent her from doing so. LuLing’s lack of sympathy and understanding of her daughter’s struggles leave her unwilling to meet Ruth halfway. LuLing’s combative, unsympathizing personality drives a wedge between mother and daughter as much as Ruth’s ignorance. LuLing’s tangent about the many meanings of the word “secret” further emphasizes the theme of secrets and deceptions. There are many things LuLing is willfully keeping from her daughter, or that their language barrier keeps Ruth from knowing.
Themes
The following day, Ruth’s voice returns. Dory and Fia are fighting over the TV. Art and his ex-wife share custody of the girls. On the weeks Art has the girls, the apartment feels cramped. Ruth can barely lock herself in the bathroom before someone starts pounding on the door. It’s Dory, who tells Ruth she has a phone call. Ruth picks up the phone and hears the voice of her best friend, Wendy, who is crying. Ruth initially fears the worst—that Wendy is getting a divorce or dying. But Wendy’s real news is that her 64-year-old mother has married her 38-year-old personal trainer. Ruth recalls her own mother’s old boyfriend, T.C. She’d hoped they would marry, but T.C. had been 80 and died of a heart attack. Ruth comforts her friend and tells her she’ll call her back after finishing her day’s work.
Wendy’s exasperation with her mother’s love life emphasizes the central role mother-daughter relationships play in The Bonesetter’s Daughter. But, of course, Wendy’s gripe with her mother is considerably more harmless and comical than Ruth’s situation. Ruth might feel isolated because her experiences prevent her from relating to her friends, who haven’t had to deal with the experiences Ruth and LuLing have had as first and second-generation immigrants.
Themes
Ruth hangs up with Wendy and runs through the list of 10 things she has to do today, such as dropping the girls off at skating school and buying groceries. But she can’t recall number nine on the list, which troubles her, especially because LuLing has always said nine is a significant number. Art appears in the doorway and asks Ruth to call about the broken water heater. Ruth tells Art she’s busy, and they argue a bit, but Ruth ultimately gives in and agrees to call about the repair after Art accuses her of being difficult. He tells her he loves her before he heads out, but Ruth says nothing in response.
Ruth uses lists to remember her many daily responsibilities. Again, memory and forgetting figure prominently even in small, inconsequential situations, such as running through everyday tasks. Even though Ruth and LuLing seem to have a tense relationship, Ruth still references LuLing’s wisdom—such as the symbolic significance of the number nine—in her observations about daily life. Lastly, this brief interaction between Ruth and Art provides further evidence of their unhealthy relationship. It’s unreasonable of Art to call Ruth difficult here, yet she almost immediately gives in and submits to his request. She’s overly accommodating, and he seems to take advantage of that part of her personality.
Themes
Ruth drives Dory and Fia to skating school and continues to worry about Nine. Ruth drops off the girls at skating school and watches as they exit the car. They both have long hair, which is in style. Ruth had wanted to grow out her hair when she was a little girl, but LuLing had forbidden it, arguing that long hair reminded her of the “suicide maiden,” LuLing’s nursemaid who had killed herself when LuLing was young.
Ruth looks at Dory and Fia and sees all the relative freedom they have compared to her experience growing up under LuLing’s care. Precious Auntie’s suicide explains why LuLing feels so haunted by ghosts and so guilty about forgetting Precious Auntie’s real name. Interestingly, LuLing calls Precious Auntie the “suicide maiden” to LuLing, effectively obscuring the reality that Precious Auntie was actually LuLing’s mother. She is actively choosing to hide this detail from Ruth for unknown reasons.
Themes
Alone in the car, Ruth thinks about her relationship with Art and wonders if they’ve grown apart. Ruth recalls how they’d met 10 years ago in a yoga class Ruth had attended with Wendy. In a flashback, Ruth notices a ring on Art’s right hand and assumes he is gay, since wearing a ring on the right hand is common in the gay community.
Ruth worries about her relationship with Art. So far, however, she remains incapable of voicing these concerns to Art and keeps them to herself. In so doing, Ruth allows the problems in their relationship to persist and grow. She remembers the origins of their meeting as a way of reflecting on happier times and reminding herself that she is with Art because she loves him—or, at least, she used to love him.
Themes
Wendy eventually ditches the class, but Ruth remains enrolled, and she and Art start hanging out at a coffee shop after class. Art tells her he has a doctorate in linguistics from Berkeley. His focus had been American Sign Language (ASL), and he now works at the Center on Deafness at UCSF. Ruth asks Art what his favorite word is, and he replies, “vapors,” noting the sensory depth and shifting quality of the word and what it represents. When he asks her the same question, she can’t think of anything serious and interesting to say.
Art’s mention of “vapors” indirectly references the ghost or spirit motif that has appeared multiple times thus far, mainly concerning LuLing’s preoccupation with ghosts and the past. Ruth’s instinct to doubt herself further develops her as an insecure woman whose self-doubt holds her back.
Themes
Ruth tells Art she works as a ghostwriter, helping authors put their ideas into writing for publication. Art calls Ruth a “book doctor,” which she likes, since nobody else really understands how difficult and meaningful her work is. Art asks Ruth if she’s ever wanted to write her own book. Inwardly, she rejects that she has wanted to write a book but is afraid of making her thoughts and desires so vulnerable. Ruth reflects on how meaningful her conversations with Art are. When she talks with Wendy, they mostly talk about what annoys them. But with Art, she talks about her hopes and dreams and learns more about him and herself.
Ruth’s occupation as a ghostwriter points to the novel’s themes of secrets and the importance of storytelling. A ghostwriter works behind the scenes, helping to develop and refine the author’s ideas. In this way, ghostwriters are a secretive, undercover force that does the invisible grunt work necessary to turn the author’s ideas into a compelling, comprehensible story. Ruth’s initially happy, rewarding relationship with Art shows how unjustified her self-doubt is: although she’s clearly an intelligent woman who can operate on his level, she refuses to see herself as capable and equal.
Themes
Eventually, Ruth’s conversations with Art become more personal, and they talk about living with partners. She confides in him about her failed relationship with Paul, whom she’d been with for many years and almost married. However, they eventually grew apart and separated when he accepted a job in Manhattan. When Ruth asks about Art’s love life, he reveals that he’s single and takes care of his two daughters. Ruth fumbles, and Art realizes she’d mistakenly thought he was gay, which amuses him. He reveals the gold ring he wears on his right hand was made for him by his friend Ernesto who died of cancer. As Ruth investigates the ring, she thinks about Art’s gentleness and realizes she loves him.
Ruth’s recollection of her relationship with Paul shows that growing apart is a recurring theme in her love life. One has to wonder if Ruth’s propensity to self-doubt causes this, or if she’s inherited her mother’s tendency to keep secrets—perhaps this introverted, deceptive character trait pushes her partners away. That Ruth is drawn to Art’s gentleness suggests an unfulfilled need for tenderness and compassion in her life. It seems possible that Ruth hasn’t quite received this from LuLing, who is needlessly critical and harsh.
Themes
Back in the present, Ruth picks up Art’s dry cleaning. She remembers she has to call Wendy back and reflects on her friendship: they’ve known each other since they were six. Though they are opposite each other (Wendy is extroverted and optimistic, and Ruth worries nonstop), Ruth is glad to have her as a friend. She calls Wendy back and commiserates about Wendy’s mother’s new husband. Worrying about mothers makes Ruth remember what Nine is: she’s supposed to take LuLing to a doctor’s appointment at 4:00. LuLing had been acting confused and out of sorts lately, which has concerned Ruth, who immediately suspects the worst: Alzheimer’s, a tumor, a stroke.
Ruth has inherited LuLing’s propensity toward anxiety and worrying. This new detail about LuLing experiencing heightened confusion helps explain the urgency to remember her past and her family name that LuLing conveyed in the novel’s opening chapter. Perhaps LuLing’s failure to remember her past is caused by something more severe than old age—maybe she is suffering from something more serious, such as Alzheimer’s.
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