Themes

The main theme that ran through all the stories was the differing beliefs between generations. In "The Life You Save May Be Your Own," the difference is between the trusting nature of the old woman's generation and the coniving of Mr. Shiftlet. The old woman tries to adapt to the game of the new culture, but she just gets burned. In "Rules of the Game," the conflict is between traditional Chinese culture and American culture. Waverly grows up embracing American culture while her mother tries to raise her according to Chinese ideals. Annie and her father have their differences in "The Book of the Dead." Annie feels betrayed by her father for not telling her the truth, but he was trying to protect her from knowing what her father had done. The present conflict between generations was displayed in "Teenage Wasteland." Cal and Donny represented a culture where self-esteem was king to all other things while Daisy and Miss Evans represented a more traditional view of discipline.