Youa’s husband dies before the story starts—although he’s dead, Youa often calls on his spirit to protect her family, emphasizing the significance of ancestors in Hmong spirituality. Toward the end of the book, Kao learns that Youa was forced into marrying her husband, an elderly widower, when she was 20 years old. Despite the forced marriage, he was a kind and generous man, and Youa grew to love him dearly. Yang leverages Youa and her husband’s marriage to argue that true love grows over the course of a lifetime and has little to do with romantic infatuation.
Youa’s Husband Quotes in The Latehomecomer
The The Latehomecomer quotes below are all either spoken by Youa’s Husband or refer to Youa’s Husband . 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:
).
Chapter 12
Quotes
My younger brother and sister could not take care of themselves. They were still just children, so I did not want to marry. Your grandfather was old. I cried at the ground when my cousin agreed to the marriage. There was nothing I could do. I had to marry him.
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My grandfather was not a bad man, as my grandmother grew to know and love him.
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Youa’s Husband Quotes in The Latehomecomer
The The Latehomecomer quotes below are all either spoken by Youa’s Husband or refer to Youa’s Husband . 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:
).
Chapter 12
Quotes
My younger brother and sister could not take care of themselves. They were still just children, so I did not want to marry. Your grandfather was old. I cried at the ground when my cousin agreed to the marriage. There was nothing I could do. I had to marry him.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
My grandfather was not a bad man, as my grandmother grew to know and love him.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
