40 pages • 1 hour read
Thi BuiThe Best We Could Do
Nonfiction | Graphic Novel/Book | Adult | Published in 2017A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Summary
Chapter Summaries & Analyses
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Themes
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BetaEssay Topics
What is Bui’s position on her gendered identity in The Best We Could Do? How does Bui’s identity as a girl and then a woman, as well as her understandings and interactions with her mother, exercise strong influence upon her overall identity formation? Use analysis of direct quotations, characters, and/or plot to answer these questions.
How does the notion of gender concretize itself in the lives of Bui’s parents, as well as the life of her family at large? Throughout the narrative, we see Thi’s parents hew closely to gendered norms, with Hắng providing nurturing, comfort, and stability for the family, while Nam is much more emotionally remote and more prone to open anger. There are also recurring narratives of unfaithful men who mistreat women. Perform a textual analysis to arrive at an articulation of Bui’s specific theme regarding gender in this work.
What does The Best We Could Do assert about the life of a family? What, essentially, composes the life of a family, and how is a family’s collective life distinct from the lives of the individuals which comprise it?
Isolate at least three distinct elements of Thi’s identity as a character. Then choose direct quotes that demonstrate each of these elements and explain how Bui uses these elements to construct Thi as a full character.
Parse the power and impact of American war propaganda on Thi’s development of a sense of self. How does she subvert dominant American narratives about Vietnam and Vietnamese people, and how do these subversions shape her exploration and assertion of her own identity?
Choose one repeating visual element in the graphic novel and trace its development throughout the narrative. How does this recurring visual element forward a theme, or allow Bui to enrich her narrative?
Write an essay that analyzes the notion of birth within The Best We Could Do. What thematic messaging does this repeating motif accomplish?
Write an essay that analyzes the notion of freedom within The Best We Could Do. You may choose three characters and compare/contrast their notions of or relative experiences of (or a lack thereof) of freedom. What is Bui ultimately asserting about the idea of freedom?
How are the personal and political intertwined within The Best We Could Do? How do both the personal and political coalesce in Thi’s exploration of her personal identity and history? Use analysis of direct quotes to support your perspective.
War often creates absolute and polarized points of view. Bui/Thi’s perspective within the novel, however, is nuanced and subtle. Write an essay that demonstrates the complexities of Bui’s perspective on the Vietnam War, in relation to the oversimplifications of the dominant American narrative about the War.
