Tony

Tony is one of the main characters of the novel. In 1991, Tony moves from Dalian, China, to New York City. Intrigued and inspired by the American dream, Tony decides to relocate his wife Kim and daughter Tammy to the States. Although hardworking and determined, Tony soon realizes that he is “trading his successful life in China for [an] immigrant struggle” (16). In spite of the numerous degrees and awards he earned in China, upon arriving in the States, Tony is forced to find work as a doorman at “an Upper West Side co-op building called The Rosewood” (16). Although he is taking “computer science classes at Queens College” in the meantime, Tony often feels discouraged and disillusioned (16). He not only does not have the respect he once had in China, but is perceived as ignorant and even invisible. Although he constantly struggles to prove himself, people continue condescending to or...