The Ghost Bride

The Ghost Bride is narrated from the perspective of a young woman, and in this way, the position and experience of women become an essential lens through which to read the novel. In many ways, the novel highlights the way that women in colonial Malacca are regularly overlooked and disempowered. Li Lan, for example, finds herself in a difficult position in her traditional Chinese society because her father has neglected to cultivate any suitable marriage prospects for her. She depends on the men in her life to facilitate the connections she needs to survive and flourish. In spite of her own intelligence and independent attitude, she too recognizes that marriage, family, and the protections of the domestic sphere are a necessary part of her life. When she visits the Lim household for the Double Seventh Festival, she wins the needle-threading competition, showing that she exemplifies admirable domestic traits that would make her a good wife. She aspires to these ideals even more as she becomes more enamored with Tian Bai and learns that a marriage promise once existed between them.

At the same time, Li Lan also begins to resist the traditional women’s role that is expected of her. Most notably, she rejects Lim Tian Ching’s continual advances and marriage proposals, both because she does not want to marry a ghost, but also because of the way he attempts to claim her like a prize. She is also equally horrified by the actions of the Second Wife in the Plains of the Dead and of Fan, both of whom she sees as women using their femininity for their own gain while still remaining bound by the desires of men. Finally, she witnesses firsthand how horribly Yan Hong is treated by her family for marrying a man of whom her family does not approve.

By the end of the novel, Li Lan has observed varying examples of womanhood, ranging from the machinations of Fan to her own mother’s sacrifice to save her, and uses them to decide what kind of role she wants for herself. This choice is symbolized in her choice between her two suitors: Tian Bai and Er Lang. She recognizes that “[i]f I stayed with Tian Bai, I would gain the security of a good marriage and the familiar comfort of my family” (349). At the same time, she also knows that being his wife would also mean managing the Lim household, with all of its drama and familial difficulties, for being a wife in Li Lan’s society requires much more work and responsibility than simply having a loving husband. Ultimately, Li Lan decides to reject familial responsibility and the expectations of womanhood for an “uncertain future” with Er Lang, for their relationship is one that is founded on mutual affection and understanding. It also signifies a kind of personal independence that Li Lan has always sought and of which other young women may only dream.