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The Monkey King/Chin-Kee
A Taiwanese boy who moves to Jin’s neighborhood when they’re in fifth grade. He wears sweatpants, a collared robot shirt, and large, thick glasses when he’s in elementary school. Though Jin is initially cold and cruel to Wei-Chen because he represents the Asian identity that makes Jin a target for bullying, the two boys soon become best friends due to their shared love of Transformers. Wei-Chen is an extremely kind, generous, and giving individual. Though Jin accuses Wei-Chen at several points of acting like a F.O.B. (“fresh off the boat,” or a new immigrant), Wei-Chen gradually embraces California and even starts dating a Japanese American classmate named Suzy. He often encourages Jin to do and be his best, which includes encouraging Jin to speak to Amelia. In a conversation with Amelia, Wei-Chen insists that Jin is one of the kindest people he knows, as Jin’s embarrassment over Wei-Chen’s accent doesn’t hinder their friendship. He does this both because he believes what he says about Jin to be true, and because he knows that speaking about Jin in this complimentary way will pique Amelia’s interest. However, Wei-Chen and Jin’s friendship dissolves when, enraged by Greg’s racist treatment, Jin kisses Suzy. He then tells a distraught Wei-Chen that Suzy deserves someone better, and specifically, someone who isn’t a F.O.B. Later, the Monkey King reveals that Wei-Chen is actually his son and a monkey, sent to Earth by Tze-Yo-Tzuh to live without vice for 40 years. Wei-Chen’s time went well until Jin’s insults, at which point Wei-Chen told the Monkey King that he’s going to use his time on Earth to experience all the earthly delights it has to offer. He also implies that Jin’s behavior showed him that humans are all selfish and vain, and therefore he has no interest in serving them and thinks that Tze-Yo-Tzuh is foolish for holding humans in high regard. When Jin reconnects with Wei-Chen in high school, Wei-Chen drives a cool car, blasts bass-heavy music, and smokes cigarettes. He seems to accept Jin’s apology, and the novel leaves open the possibility that Wei-Chen will recommit to his quest as an emissary.
Wei-Chen Sun Quotes in American Born Chinese
The American Born Chinese quotes below are all either spoken by Wei-Chen Sun or refer to Wei-Chen Sun. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 2
Quotes
“Class, I’d like us all to give a big Mayflower Elementary welcome to your new friend and classmate Chei-Chen Chun!”
“Wei-Chen Sun.”
“Wei-Chen Sun! He and his family recently moved to our neighborhood all the way from China!”
“Taiwan.”
“Taiwan!”
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Something made me want to beat him up.
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Chapter 5
Quotes
“When I move here to America, I was afraid nobody wants to be my friend. I come from a different place. Much, much different. But my first day in school here I meet Jin. From then I know everything’s okay. He treat me like a little brother, show me how things work in America. He help me with my English [...] I think sometimes my accent embarrass him, but Jin still willing to be my friend.”
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Chapter 8
Quotes
I replayed the day’s events over and over again in my mind. Each time I reached the same conclusion: Wei-Chen needed to hear what I had to say. It was, after all, the truth. And at around three in the morning, I finally believed myself.
I dreamt of the herbalist’s wife.
“So, little friend. You’ve done it. Now what would you like to become?”
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Chapter 9
Quotes
“Take this with you. It’s a human child’s toy that transforms from monkey to humanoid form. Let it remind you of who you are.”
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“You misunderstand my intentions, Jin. I did not come to punish you. I came to serve as your conscience—as a signpost to your soul.”
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Get the entire American Born Chinese LitChart as a printable PDF.
Wei-Chen Sun Quotes in American Born Chinese
The American Born Chinese quotes below are all either spoken by Wei-Chen Sun or refer to Wei-Chen Sun. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 2
Quotes
“Class, I’d like us all to give a big Mayflower Elementary welcome to your new friend and classmate Chei-Chen Chun!”
“Wei-Chen Sun.”
“Wei-Chen Sun! He and his family recently moved to our neighborhood all the way from China!”
“Taiwan.”
“Taiwan!”
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Something made me want to beat him up.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 5
Quotes
“When I move here to America, I was afraid nobody wants to be my friend. I come from a different place. Much, much different. But my first day in school here I meet Jin. From then I know everything’s okay. He treat me like a little brother, show me how things work in America. He help me with my English [...] I think sometimes my accent embarrass him, but Jin still willing to be my friend.”
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Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 8
Quotes
I replayed the day’s events over and over again in my mind. Each time I reached the same conclusion: Wei-Chen needed to hear what I had to say. It was, after all, the truth. And at around three in the morning, I finally believed myself.
I dreamt of the herbalist’s wife.
“So, little friend. You’ve done it. Now what would you like to become?”
Related Characters:
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Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 9
Quotes
“Take this with you. It’s a human child’s toy that transforms from monkey to humanoid form. Let it remind you of who you are.”
Related Characters:
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Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
“You misunderstand my intentions, Jin. I did not come to punish you. I came to serve as your conscience—as a signpost to your soul.”
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
