The gateman controls the gate at the House of Hwang. When Wang Lung first visits the house to fetch O-lan for their marriage, the gateman intimidates him and laughs at him for his farmer’s ignorance. When Wang Lung returns with O-lan so that she can show their baby to the Old Mistress, their clothes make the gateman show Wang Lung more respect. The gateman’s reactions to Wang Lung show how the general public regards him as his wealth and social status grows.
The gateman Quotes in The Good Earth
The The Good Earth quotes below are all either spoken by The gateman or refer to The gateman. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Note: all page numbers and citation info for the quotes below refer to the Washington Square Press edition of The Good Earth published in 2004.
Chapter 1
Quotes
“Raise him,” said the old lady gravely to the gateman, “these obeisances are not necessary. Has he come for the woman?”
“Yes, Ancient One,” replied the gateman.
“Why does he not speak for himself?” asked the old lady.
“Because he is a fool, Ancient One,” said the gateman...
This roused Wang Lung and he looked with indignation at the gateman.
“I am only a coarse person, Great and Ancient Lady,” he said. “I do not know what words to use in such a presence.”
Related Characters:
Wang Lung (speaker), The Old Mistress (speaker), The gateman (speaker), O-lan
Related Symbols:
The House of Hwang
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire The Good Earth LitChart as a printable PDF.
The gateman Character Timeline in The Good Earth
The timeline below shows where the character The gateman appears in The Good Earth. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 5
...also dress well. They go to the House of Hwang. Wang Lung is gratified by the gateman ’s amazement at the sight of his family. The gateman can tell that Wang Lung...
(full context)
When the gateman brings O-lan back, Wang Lung examines her face and can tell that all has gone...
(full context)
Chapter 6
...imagined. When he got to the great house, the Old Lord was still asleep, and the gateman refused to wake him, because he was with a new concubine. Wang Lung had to...
(full context)
Chapter 16
...left even before this, when the food and money ran out. Some of them, including the gateman , were among the robbers. She admits that the wealth has been poorly managed for...
(full context)