Typical American

Ralph learns to drive. He recounts his lessons to his family each day ahead of the test he must pass. The first attempt at the test results in failure. The second test is the same, as is the third. Ralph’s instructor labels him a “losing proposition” (86) because he does not project confidence. The instructor suggests bribing the test inspectors. Ralph fires him on the spot.

Ralph takes the test again and passes. He takes the family out for a celebratory drive around the city. They pass meat stores and Pinkus’s house. Ralph is reminded of his first years in the city. They stop in front of their old family apartment, which has crumbled just as Ralph predicted it would. Then they speed along the highway with the convertible roof down. They drive to Connecticut, near to the place where Grover Ding lives. The name brings an awkward silence to the car. They explore a neighborhood in Connecticut and feel as though it is their destiny to live in a nice small town such as this.

Helen and Ralph search for houses in Connecticut every weekend. They have no down payment, and a real estate agent suggests that they wait until Ralph has tenure. The constant search improves Helen’s English, and she wonders whether she should get a job to help pay for a home. Ralph wonders whether they should ask Grover Ding for help. Helen is annoyed but wonders what Grover does for a living.

Ralph searches for Grover’s card; while he does so, he notices how worn down and tired Theresa has become. He talks to her about the possibility of moving to a new house and hopes she will join them. Theresa hopes to live with them and wants to help with the mortgage payments. Ralph refuses, insisting that he is the “father of the family” (93). Secretly, he wonders what will happen if Theresa gets married or if she will ever get married.

Theresa undresses for bed and thinks about her brother’s strange behavior. Her work is exhausting but she is closer than ever to completing her training and becoming a fully-fledged doctor. One day at the hospital, Henry Chao is her patient. He is admitted with a case of bleeding hemorrhoids, but when he sees Theresa he claims to have foot corns. He blushes and they make small talk. Theresa examines his corn-less foot as Henry mentions that Ralph “may be climbing a tree to catch a fish” (95). Henry explains that Ralph might not get tenure because he is focusing on the wrong engineering disciplines. Henry leaves without a prescription.

Ralph explains his job to his daughters and mentions that he will be a tenured professor very soon. When he admits that it is not entirely a sure thing, Theresa remains silent. Ralph believes that the government’s space program will require plenty of mechanical engineers focused on such enterprises, unlike the plasma and fluid mechanics that Henry said were the future. Ralph believes himself a mechanical engineer and does not want to change course.

Theresa treats the victims of a car crash. She can deal with the long hours, the gruesome medical issues, and the difficult studying, but she resents having to share the small interns’ sleeping quarters with her male colleagues. She constantly feels as though she must guard against their presence. She receives a phone call from Henry Chao just as she is about to use the sleeping facilities. He tells her that he left his briefcase in the exam room. When he comes the next day, however, Theresa has not been able to find it. They talk about Ralph and Henry mentions a space engineering conference Ralph should attend. They do not find the briefcase so Henry intends to return the next day.

At home, Theresa tries to convince Ralph to attend the conference. He would rather finish a paper. Theresa tells Henry this the next day when they find his briefcase in the lost and found. Henry treats her to lunch in the cafeteria. Later, Theresa worries that her brother is “headed for disaster” (98). She watches the young girls and Ralph as they play together. While trying to figure out how to help her brother, she receives another phone call from Henry. He left his briefcase in the cafeteria.

Helen studies real estate deals aiming to become an agent. Theresa meets Henry for the fourth time and returns home to find Helen “aglow with dismay” (100). Helen has fallen in love with a house and worries that they will never find as perfect a home. Theresa sighs and struggles with what she knows about Ralph’s career.

A patient grabs hold of Theresa’s waist and puts his mouth to her ear. She screams loudly. The other staff are shocked as Theresa is normally incredibly quiet. She is embarrassed to have attracted so much attention. She flirts harmlessly with the married men on the staff who tease her for her scream and, in time, she comes to appreciate the help this casual flirting provides in making her more assertive and confident. She worries that Henry Chao is in love with her.

She asks Henry whether he has told his wife about their occasional meetings. He has not, so they become conspirators. She gets to know Henry and finds herself interested in him. Helen is despondent that she might miss out on the house but then is excited to discover a special type of mortgage that will allow them to buy her dream home. Janis arranges this special mortgage while Henry worries that Ralph will not get tenure. Theresa and Henry eat lunch together and discuss how they can convince Ralph to make the right decisions for his career while allowing him to save face. Theresa does not realize that she is holding Henry’s hand. Henry pays the check while Theresa considers working extra hours to help with the mortgage payments.

The house is bought. Ralph, Helen, Theresa, and the girls move in and consider themselves incredibly lucky. They have more space than ever before, and Mona and Callie love to play in the vast home. The house is so new that it does not feature on maps and the grass in the lawn is still growing in. They meet the neighbors and bond over gardening tips and tools. The experience shows them a different side of American life.

Birds descend on the lawn and peck at the grass seedlings. Helen chats about the problem with a neighbor named Mr. Smith one day, and he jokes that Chinese people “don’t know dirt from dirt” (104) and mentions that he has seen her struggle through his window. Helen becomes self-conscious, particularly when she sees him cleaning a long gun while watching television. Their grass finally begins to grow and Helen has hope once again.

The family spreads out to fill the available space. Helen cooks more and is more willing to smell the aromas of the air outside the city. She and Ralph grow closer physically and flirt more often. They decide to have more children. Callie starts kindergarten, and Helen dresses her especially for the occasion. Mona becomes jealous of Callie’s new shoes and hides one. She refuses to reveal its location. The girls fight until Callie departs for kindergarten. Mona sulks, so Ralph allows her to play in his office.

Callie’s shoe is found the next day in the washing machine. Helen begins to play bridge with the neighbors. They throw a special Chinese New Year celebration. The months pass by and Callie learns to read, Theresa begins training in obstetrics, and Ralph continues to work toward tenure. As the deadline for the decision approaches, he begins to feel less confident. He obsesses over every detail of his work while projecting an image of calmness. His nerves cause him to tremble.

The deadline day looms, and Ralph veers between terror and confidence. He refuses to believe that he might fail, that he might lose his job, that he might not be able to afford his home. At the school, he sees Henry Chao and follows him across the campus in hope of a quick conversation. Later, he tells Helen that he saw Henry with a woman other than Janis, though he could not quite make out her identity. Helen refuses to believe him as “Chinese people don’t do such things” (110) like having affairs. Ralph begins to think about how the affair might affect his tenure.

Ralph convinces himself that he would rather be a fireman or a funeral director than a professor. He is shocked when Henry tells him that he has been awarded tenure. Helen buys champagne to celebrate and invites Henry and Janis to the family home. Theresa has a prior engagement but struggles to hide her frustration.

Theresa arrives home late on a gloomy night to find the party still in full swing. She hears the noise and waits outside for the party to end. Theresa becomes bored and so tries to sneak into the house. She sees the two couples through the window and wonders whether she will ever sit at a table in such a manner. Henry is audibly repeating a joke she told him that same afternoon.

Henry and Theresa have lunch together. She tells him that her family thinks she and Henry are having an affair. Theresa has tried to tell them the truth but has not done so. She says that other people’s perceptions of her are irrelevant. After three weeks of the family being wary of her, however, Theresa relents and allows Henry to kiss her. At first it seems pleasurable but then she is filled with regret. She does not know whether she loves him but believes that he loves her. Their kissing intensifies and he rubs himself up against her. At last, Theresa relents and closes her eyes.