Madame Wu’s Painting

An elegant, simple painting of a person climbing a mountain is one of the few personal possessions Madame Wu values enough to take with her as she moves from the living quarters she shares with Mr. Wu into the quarters she shares with no one. Ambiguous in terms of the gender of the climber and seemingly changeable in how high up the mountain the climber seems to be, the painting can be seen as metaphorically representative of several of the novel’s characters and of its various themes.

Flowers

Throughout the narrative, two different types of flowers (orchids and peonies) are presented as key visual metaphors for the experiences of Madame Wu and her husband. Initially, their shared living space is decorated by pale, delicate orchids, which go with Madame Wu when she moves into her own private living space. As he remains...