The Last Rose of Shanghai

Content Warning: This section of the guide discusses drug addiction, domestic violence, and misogyny as well as its graphic depictions of violence and death. It also discusses racism and antisemitism.

“Everyone knew the Chinese and foreigners were like salt and sugar that must not be mixed, since the foreigners in the Settlement viewed the locals as a nuisance and we shunned them as enemies.”

This quote establishes the theme of The Challenges and Rewards of Cross-Cultural Connection and is referenced throughout the book as a “rule,” though it is often broken. Though this metaphor is about separation, salt and sugar actually share many attributes—small, white, edible, granules—which hints at the book’s ultimate espousal of cross-cultural intimacy.

“There is a kind of love that strikes like a thunderbolt; it blinds you, yet opens your eyes to see the world anew.”

This is a lyric from “The Last Rose of Shanghai” song, which represents the lovers. The thunderbolt frames their love as natural and inevitable yet potentially destructive, while the oxymoronic nature of blinding and opening eyes foreshadows the couple’s path of pain and joy combined.

“The first thing you need to know, young lady, is the truth: in Shanghai, if you’re a woman and a business owner, you cannot climb through a tunnel of spiders without catching some cobwebs in your hair.”

Aiyi tells this to Scarlet Sorebi at the beginning of her story, cementing that a massive part of Aiyi’s identity is being a businesswoman. This quote highlights the gendered barriers to a woman seeking agency and material wealth.