The Education of Ah San: Contexts Behind Stereotypes Between the Cultures of East and West

This is the story about a fictional character named Ah San. He was born in the Chinese southern city of Canton one year after the communist revolution in 1949. Ah San's family fled communism and settled in Cholon, the sprawling Chinatown adjacent to the capital city of Saigon in South Vietnam. Ah San grew up in Cholon. He left in 1964 for high school in Hong Kong. In 1968, he left for college in America and graduated from the University of California in 1971. Ah San returned to Hong Kong and worked for eight years until 1979 when he and his family emigrated to the United States. Ah San has been living and working in California since then. This book contrasts the cultures of East and West, particularly between that of China and America. It tries to bring out the stereotypes that each culture perceives about the other. It also discusses the historical contexts in an attempt to explain why people feel and act the way they do.