She went to Merced after hearing reports of misunderstandings between medical staff and Hmong patients at the county hospital—the Merced Community Medical Center (MCMC). For their part, the Lees respond by doing something even more powerful—making Jeanine a part of the family. When Lia came home in 1986, Nao Kao and Foua held a sacrificial ceremony in which they killed a cow. They feared that the communists were more apt to threaten their autonomy. The The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down Theme Wheel is a beautiful super helpful visualization of where the themes occur throughout the text. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down explores issues of culture, immigration, medicine, and the war in [Laos] with such skill that it's nearly impossible to put down. Summary. A Hmong community leader in Merced. Anne Fadiman celebrates the complexity and the individuality of the human interactions that make up the practice of medicine while simultaneously pointing out directions for change and breaking. A young Hmong man gave a presentation about how to make fish soup. Many shamans—known as txiv neeb—use seizures to commune with the spirit realm. Exactly what every hospital needs. She was interested in investigating the circumstances surrounding Lia's health care but was warned by fellow colleagues. 7-8 Ch. The Lee Children. Chapter 17 - The Eight Questions (Cont. Neil apologizes to Nao Kao and Foua with tears in his eyes—Foua thanks and hugs him, while Nao Kao remains cold. Chapter 5 Summary and Analysis. The Shared Qualities of Opposing Sides of a Border: How Cultural Relations can Merge Characteristics between Different Groups. C. Nuland, The New Republic “ The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down changed how doctors see themselves and how they see their patients. Her parents were newly arrived Hmong immigrants from Laos. We're at the Lee's apartment and a txiv neeb has just arrived "to perform a healing ceremony for Lia" (19. The epileptic child whose tragic story illustrates the cultural divide between the Hmong and the American medical systems. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down Summary and Analysis of Ch. Summary. Many of Li’s healthcare providers, especially Neil Ernst and Peggy Philip, worked hard to help Lia. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down Introduction. 2) Title alert! Again, it's important to remember that epilepsy isn't necessarily a bad thing in Hmong culture. Need help on characters in Anne Fadiman's The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down? Check out our detailed character descriptions. The spirit catches you and you fall down: a Hmong child, her American doctors, and the collision of two cultures. Answering a question posed to her by a bigoted gas station clerk, she determines (in retrospect) that the reason the Hmong chose to settle in Merced has to do with Dang Moua, a local Hmong entrepreneur and businessman who. The Spirit Catches You And You Fall Down Book Report. Lia's parents and her doctors both wanted what was best for Lia, but the lack of understanding between them led to tragedy. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down essays are academic essays for citation. The Sacrifice. It's a bad scene. She grew only a few inches, gained only a little weight, and always looked younger than her age. Midterm: The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down It is a story about a family who shows so much loyalty to their traditions and cultures, but it clashes with the strict American “norm” and creates conflict for their most prized possession, their daughter. Downloadable / Printable Version. Summary. Foua carried her in a large, embroidered nyias, or baby carrier, preferring it to the wheelchair provided by the Merced County Health Department. Lia was the fourteenth child of Foua Yang and Nao Kao Lee and arguably their favorite. Lia has another, even worse seizure three days before Thanksgiving, 1986. Summary. Chapter Summaries Chart. Nao Kao is preparing "spirit money"—pieces of paper. Winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award for Nonfiction . Three months after her healthy birth, Lia went into a seizure after her older sister Yer loudly slammed the apartment door. Chapter 11: The Big One. Animal sacrifice, a reverent occasion for the Hmong, is more difficult in America but still part of Hmong American life. A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. Illness had come when the wife of a wicked god named Nyong laid an egg full of dabs. However, I have come to believe that her life was ruined not by septic shock or noncompliant parents but by cross. qaug dab peg--the spirit catches you and you fall down--and ascribed it to the wandering of her soul. The narrator—Anne—reflects on her time with the Lees, a Hmong American family living in Merced, California. As a philosopher, Renan contributes to the social work profession and this perspective by helping make sense of the world regarding race and ethnicity and how dominance negatively impacts disadvantaged populations This theory focuses on the. On November 25, 1986, Lia has a severe seizure at home. The family would have called in a txiv neeb, a Hmong shaman or traditional healer, if any difficulties arose. Lia's parents and her doctors both wanted what was best for Lia, but the lack of understanding between them led to tragedy. Fadiman presents Shee Yee as a symbol of the Hmong people. The Spirit Catches You And You Fall Down Book Report. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down study guide contains a biography of Anne Fadiman, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. Between the ages of 8 months and four and a half years, the Lees brought Lia to the hospital dozens of times. 1-2 Ch. Writing both a literary profile and an in-depth ethnography, Fadiman devotes whole chapters to the history and context of the Hmong ethnic identity, which she characterizes as “independent, insular, antiauthoritarian, suspicious, stubborn, proud, choleric. Examine and describe how these differences create disparities between U. 11-12 Ch. Who now lives in America, but still manages to head a rebel group. Plot Summary & Analysis Themes Quotes Characters Symbols Theme Viz Teachers and parents! Our Teacher Edition on The Spirit Catches You makes teaching easy. On June 26, 1986, Lia—now considered a Dependent Child of the Juvenile Court—is removed from her home and placed in foster care for six months. Anyway, this sparks a rebellion that goes on for centuries, until the Hmong finally retreat into the mountains. Fadiman sensed something else amiss in the girl, too, admitting that perhaps her soul really was missing. A little girl who is part of Merced, California’s population of Hmong immigrants. 47352453. Chapter 7: Government Property. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down essays are. Downloadable / Printable Version. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down tells the story of Lia Lee, a Hmong child with epilepsy, whose tragic demise reveals the dangers of a lack of cross-cultural communication in the medical profession. Fadiman brings up a program of eight questions designed by. 24 Nov 2023. A conversation and reading with Anne Fadiman, author of The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors and The Collision of Tw. Lia ’s father and Foua ’s husband. The story of Lia Lee in The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, by Anne Fadiman, explores many struggles people experience when faced with a life-threatening medical conditions. Chapters 1-4: The book begins with background on Lia Lee and the Lee Family. Talking to Fadiman later, she and her husband tried to describe what it was like to see Lia in such a terrible state. Dee is a gentle, kind person who devotes herself to caring for children. Taylor, J. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: A Hmong Child, Her American doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures. . Nao Kao Lee Character Analysis. Yet again,. Previous. However, the Lees become discouraged when they notice Lia's verbal skills have regressed. The second student was a Hmong, who proceeded to speak about a recipe for fish soup. Writing both a literary profile and an in-depth ethnography, Fadiman devotes whole chapters to the history and context of the Hmong ethnic identity, which she characterizes as “independent, insular, antiauthoritarian,. Though they eventually figure that stuff out, they never make too big. 540 Words3 Pages. In retrospect, Fadiman writes, he questioned this decision, but at the time he was steadfast in his belief that he was doing the right thing. The Hmong traditionally lived high in the mountains of Laos, where they practiced agriculture and. . This book reveals the tragic struggles between a doctor and patient because of. Fadiman’s plot revolves around Lia, a Hmong girl born with severe epilepsy, and the. Free, fun, and packed with easy-to-understand explanations! The store will not work correctly in the case when cookies are disabled. "TheBestNotes on The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down ". "--Linnea Lannon, The Detroit. Lia was the fourteenth child of Foua Yang and Nao Kao Lee and arguably their favorite. When Fadiman ’s boyfriend visited her in Merced, Foua decided that she would help get her married. Nothing like medical problems and totally opposite cultures to show you how messed up things. “The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down” began by setting the tone of the baffling multifaceted clashes that occurred in Merced, in Central California. In Hmong culture, epilepsy is known as "quag dab peg," which means "the spirit catches you and you fall down" (3. Basically, the main difference between Hmong and Western views of medicine is simple—Hmong treat the soul, Americans treat the body. When Lia was around three months old, her older sister Yer slammed a door and Lia had her first seizure. 5-6 Ch. She lay suspended in time, growing only a few inches, gaining little weight, always looking far younger than her age, while her six siblings grew up around her. If Lia had been born in Laos, her mother would have squatted on the floor and pulled the baby out of her womb with her own hands. Lia's parents and her doctors both wanted what was best for Lia, but the lack of understanding between them. Illness had come when the wife of a wicked. In Fadiman’s unbiased book I learned that there are many cultural differences betweenThe Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down has been shown to facilitate important discussions about health disparities as well as serve as a teaching tool to better engage a broader dialogue (Fadiman, 1997; Lie et al. S medical system battles with their traditional Hmong healing methods. Now we know where the overbearing-and-oppressive idea comes from. Jeanine Hilt. Although Dee follows "the anticonvulsant prescriptions to the letter," Lia continues to have seizures—more frequently than she did at home, in fact. [5] ): a Hmong child born in Merced, California, in 1982. 5 out of 5. Recorded on these tapes are the many conversations she had with American doctors and the Lee family, who came to the United States from Laos as refugees in 1980. The first chapters introduce the Hmong: both the family who suffers the book's tragedy, and the people as a whole. The narrator—Anne—reflects on her time with the Lees, a Hmong American family living in Merced, California. Chapter 2 - Fish Soup. 2 pages at 400 words per page) It is no surprise that Fadiman obsessed over the idea that the gulf between Hmong culture and Western medicine might be “unbridgeable,” since the very aim of The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down is to examine the missed avenues of communication in a disastrous instance of cross-cultural misunderstanding. . The narrative, told by Anne Fadiman, follows the trials and tribulations of the Lee family as the U. Her parents, Nao Kao and Foua, were Hmong refugees from Laos who. Lia's older sister, Mai, is born in Thailand during this exodus. Lia was diagnosed with epilepsy at age 1. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures. Although Lee and her family live in the United States, and thus receive medical care from Westerners, her family believes that Lee’s condition. The Spirit Catches You And You Fall Down frequently evokes Hmong history to illuminate the circumstances of Lia Lee ’s medical crisis. Get the summaries, analysis, and quotes you need. This Study Guide consists of approximately 38 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more - everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down. " The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures Nonfiction | Book | Adult | Published in 1997 A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. If Lia Lee had been born in the highlands of northwest Laos, where her parents and twelve of her brothers and sisters were born, her mother. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down essays are academic essays for citation. . Summary. 1. The Shared Qualities of Opposing Sides of a Border: How Cultural Relations can Merge Characteristics between Different. Get the summaries, analysis, and quotes you need. They also still celebrated only Hmong holidays, only practiced Hmong religion, and only ate Hmong food. A feast of traditional beef dishes followed the ceremony. In the Lees' view, Lia's soul had fled her body and become lost. Foua and Nao Kao learned to recognize the signs signaling the onset of Lia's seizures, such as twitching. This section contains 495 words. Neil and Peggy 's son receives a cancer diagnosis, and Peggy and Foua mourn together, bonding over the pain of having a sick child. • Chapter 6 - High-Velocity Transcortical Lead Therapy. Two men slaughter the pig, and the txiv neeb marks Lia with the pig's blood to protect her from dabs, or evil spirits. Despite the careful installation of her soul during the hu plig ceremony, the noise of the door had frightened out of Lia’s body, and it became lost. The Spirit Catches You And You Fall Down By Anne Fadiman Summary. Dee falls in love with Lia and cares for her like her own. S. By the time Fadiman meets her. In the presentation, he spent forty-five minutes painstakingly detailing the entire process, from choosing the right kind of hook to go fishing to preparing. When Lia returns home the family is overjoyed to have her in their beds once again. As Lia is being prepared for release, the doctors tell Nao Kao that she will probably die within weeks. A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures. Best summary PDF, themes, and quotes. At the age of three months, Lia Lee had an epileptic seizure. When Fadiman ’s boyfriend visited her in Merced, Foua decided that she would help get her married. The phrase indicates the way the Lees, a deeply spiritual Hmong American family, think of. 31). The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman Buy Study Guide The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down Quotes and Analysis Dan had no way of knowing that. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down study guide contains a biography of Anne Fadiman, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. taboo: against blood tests, spinal taps, surgery, anesthesia, and autopsies— the basic tools of modern medicine— seemed like self-defeating ignorance. Lia's story becomes the story of the Hmong people, the doctor-patient connection in Western medicine, and the immigrant experience in the United States. Print Word PDF. The The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down quotes below are all either spoken by Sukey Waller or refer to Sukey Waller. The Hmong had always been Montagnards, mountain people. • Chapter 3 - The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down. Bill is a veteran of the Peace Corps with a passion for learning about other cultures, and he was once the chief resident at MCMC. Fish Soup. The Shared Qualities of Opposing Sides of a Border: How Cultural Relations can Merge Characteristics between. There is a moment of final suspense when Nao Kao tries to take Lia from the hospital before she is discharged. ABOUT THE BOOK Anne Fadiman's seminal work of nonfiction, The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, examines the myriad difficulties and complications. 10). At age three months Lia had had her first epileptic seizure—as the Lees put it, ``the spirit catches. In an intermediate French class at Merced College, the students were asked to give a five-minute oral report in French. Chapter Summary for Anne Fadiman's The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, chapter 10 summary. Thanks for exploring this SuperSummary Study Guide of “The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down” by Anne Fadiman. Plot Summary & Analysis Themes Quotes Characters Symbols Theme Viz Teachers and parents! Our Teacher Edition on The Spirit Catches You makes teaching easy. Members of 14 Hmong clans live in Merced. Chapter 15: Gold and Dross. “ […. In The Spirit Catches You, we witness a bona fide communication breakdown after Nao Kao and Foua Lee—two Hmong refugees who can't speak English—bring their daughter Lia to a hospital to treat her epilepsy. On November 25, 1986, the day before Thanksgiving, Lia was eating as normal when she began to seize. For those who did leave, the toughest part of. The Lee family's journey was indeed terrible, but they and their fellow travelers hoped for a better life in the future. In the Hmong language the term for epilepsy is qaug dab peg. He always called an ambulance when Lia had a seizure. 368 pp. While commonplace in Hmong culture, Americans are uncomfortable with the idea of ritual sacrifice, especially when it is in the public domain. Culture plays a major role in The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down. Chapter 17: The Eight Questions. Lia's doctors ascribed her seizures to the misfiring of her cerebral neurons; her parents called her illness, qaug dab peg--the spirit catches you and you fall down--and ascribed it to the wandering of her soul. The Lee family arrives in America in 1980. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down. At the age of three months, Lia Lee had an epileptic seizure. It tells the story of Lia Lee, a Hmong girl with severe epilepsy, and her family’s journey with managing the condition and the cultural barriers that posed great challenges in Lia’s care. This book reveals the tragic struggles between a doctor and patient because of. The little girl’s name is Lia Lee and she suffers from severe epilepsy at the very young age of 3 months. Bill didn’t assign blame to Neil for not catching the sepsis. Like many shamanic cultures, the Hmong believe that the condition serves as the gateway between our world and the. Chapter 3: The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down. Fadiman continues to examine the arrival of the Hmong in California, rehashing some of her earlier ideas about xenophobia and welfare. "Sooo much more helpful than SparkNotes. They also knew, in the midst of their grief for their infant daughter, that people. NY: Farrar, Straus and Giroux; 1997. Lia Lee. Answering a question posed to her by a bigoted gas station clerk, she determines (in retrospect) that the reason the Hmong chose to settle in Merced has to do with Dang Moua, a local Hmong entrepreneur and businessman who was at one time a clerk-typist at the. Unlike her fellow Americans (Dee not included, obvs), this social worker falls in love with Lia and her family, making their plight her personal crusade. Next. The Lees placed her on the mat on the floor where they always placed her at these times. Lia was diagnosed with epilepsy at age 1. The book suggests no doctor can be completely impartial. Shee Yee eventually transferred his powers to human tvix neebs, or shamans, who summon his spirit as they do his work. In 2700 B. Fadiman is accurate and detailed in her digressions about the Hmong people and their history in China and Laos. Lia’s parents cared for her deeply, yet this arguable preventable tragedy still occurred. Foua Yang is a Hmong American woman living in Merced, California, with her husband Nao Kao Lee and their family. When the Lees left Laos, Foua explains, at least they hoped for a better future. This blog will be a long-term project lasting the duration of the novel, with students needing to make entries about each reading section. Chapter 3: The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down The important aspect of this chapter is the two-sided nature of epilepsy among the Hmong. Neil admitted that, after all of his efforts and the building of tension before her cataclysmic seizure, he. Analysis. The Big One. Purpose In this small-scale study, we pre-supposed that The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down wouldThe Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down tells the story of Lia Lee, a Hmong child with epilepsy, whose tragic demise reveals the dangers of a lack of cross-cultural communication in the medical profession. Her siblings grew up around her, part of a close-knit family, some excelling in sports and others going to university. The Lee family was convinced that the door's slamming had been so frightening as to make Lia's soul fly away. Fadiman relates a story told to her by a French professor who taught an intermediate class at Merced College. For more than two years, her doctors had been. …. When the Lee's settled in the United States Foua gave birth to a baby girl named Lia. Fadiman turns her attention to Hmong history, surveying the origins of their time in Laos, where they dwelt in the mountains at high altitudes in which few other populations cared to live. Get all the key plot points of Anne Fadiman's The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down on one page. But the families—who don't trust hospitals or medical staff—are skeptical of her. 5). 2001 Jun;76(6):620-1. Lia 's family celebrates her permanent return home in April 1986 by sacrificing a cow. By studying miscommunication between Hmong patients and their American doctors, Fadiman demonstrates that many cross-cultural misunderstandings hinge on a disconnect between the two parties’. Chapter 7: Government Property. of 150 and a full-body tan from taking vacations at a nudist camp. It never occurred to Foua and Nao Kao that their children would be in danger once they arrived in America. Qaug means to fall over, and peg means to catch. When Fadiman told Foua that she’d gotten engaged, Foua was not surprised at all. Dan Murphy Character Analysis. Thanks for exploring this SuperSummary Study Guide of “The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down” by Anne Fadiman. Way to conquer, um, incorrect stereotypes about medicine. The Spirit Catches You And You Fall Down examines the ways in which people cling to various strongly-held tenets set forth by their cultures. The story told in ''The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down,'' by Anne Fadiman, a freelance journalist and the newly named editor of The American Scholar, is that of Lia Lee, born on July 19, 1982, in the Merced Community Medical Center. "The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down. The Shared Qualities of Opposing Sides of a Border: How Cultural Relations can Merge Characteristics between Different. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down study guide contains a biography of Anne Fadiman, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance. At this point, [Lia’s sister], who was three at the time, ran over to Lia and started banging her on the chest. In 1973, 150,000 members of the Hmong ethnicity—the Lees included—were forced from their homes after "their country fell to communist forces" (1. At the end of Chapter 12, Fadiman introduces the character of Shee Yee, the hero of the greatest Hmong folktales. Anne Fadiman’s ethnography . The Lees knew immediately what had happened. Chapter 10 describes a defining moment in Hmong history, working together with the defining crisis in Lia 's life that dominates Chapter 11 . The spirit catches you and you fall down by Annie Fadiman is a story about Hmong girl named Lia Lee, who is epileptic. Neil and Peggy are great doctors, but Nao Kao and Foua are not big fans of their seemingly cold and uncaring demeanor. Explanation and Analysis: Unlock with LitCharts A +. In her case, only Western medicine could've saved her father from colon cancer. " In Hmong folklore a dab is an evil spirit that steals souls. E. While working at a Hmong refugee camp in Thailand, Conquergood hosted a parade "led by three important characters from Hmong folktales" that also conveyed some very useful medical information (4. Her full name is used only five times in the narrative. Shee Yee escaped nine evil dab brothers by shapeshifting into various forms and eventually biting a in the testicles. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman. A family practice resident at Merced Community Medical Center who is interested in Hmong culture. ” In the culture of Western medicine, this is epilepsy. Lia can sense when her seizures are coming. Fadiman begins the chapter with an autobiography that May, one of Lia’s sisters, writes for a school assignment about her family’s experience fleeing Laos in 1979. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman. Thing weren't quite so rosy when he "used to live in Richmond, Virginia" (16. Analysis. Nao Kao, Blia. Fadiman focuses on the influence the Vietnam War had on the Hmong community in the 1960s and ’70s. It’s no surprise, then, that things have changed in the fifteen years that have elapsed between the book’s last chapter and this afterword. He is interested in Hmong culture, though his attempts to connect with the. Chapter 1. By Monica Chiu, PhD University of New Hampshire Hmong. • Chapter 2 - Fish Soup. Having given birth to twelve children in her native Laos, Foua and her family fled to a refugee camp in Thailand to escape the dangerous communist forces that had won control of her country in 1975. . 5 Running Head: The Spirit Catches You and you Fall Down contributied to the developed of postcolonial theory. The Spirit Catches You And You Fall Down frequently evokes Hmong history to illuminate the circumstances of Lia Lee ’s medical crisis. This question calls for your opinion, there is no right or worng answer. In the 1980s, Lia was part of the Hmong population in America who were refugees from Laos. Jonas Vangay Character Analysis. Although this book has been incorporated into standard curriculum in the university and medical school training settings, consideration of how The Spirit. 14). In 1993 social worker Jeanine Hilt dies unexpectedly. Write a 350-word summary of the chapter that includes the following: Identify the historical events or cultural practices in your selected chapter. Between the ages of eight months and four and a half years, Lia was admitted to MCMC seventeen times and made more than one hundred out patient visits to the ER and the Family Practice Center. Makenzie Griffith EDSE 460 Denise Hitchcock 1 March 2018 Midterm: The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down It is a story about a family who shows so much loyalty to their traditions and cultures, but it clashes with the strict American “norm” and creates conflict. The Lees' story takes on a more reflective mood in Chapters 15 and 17–18. Incredibly driven and willing to seek out the truth even if it unearths his own mistakes, Neil eventually comes to. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down (1997) is an ethnography written by Anne Faidman. Fadiman considers the fact that the Hmong view health concerns as not only relating to the body, but also relating to everything else in their lives. Anne Fadiman’s book The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, tells the story of the clashing of cultures between the Hmong culture and Western culture through the lens of medicine. A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. Hmong Studies Journal, 2004-05, 5: 1-36. “The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down” by Anna Fadiman tells the story of Lia Lee, a Hmong child with epilepsy, whose life could have been different if only her family was caught up in western medicine. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down essays are academic essays for citation. Misunderstandings and disagreements manifested in day-to-day interactions reveal. Lia was diagnosed with epilepsy at age 1. Summary. Sofia Mejia Chapter 11 Analysis In this chapter of “The Spirit Catches You and You Fall. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down. The Orphan is one of the recurring characters in Hmong folktales. Chapter 9 continues Lia's story, sharing events from both Lia's parents' and doctors' points of view. Birth. Fadiman begins by calling attention to a carton of cassette tapes she keeps beneath her desk. This chapter jumps forward in time three years since the end of Chapter 13. Quag Dab Peg in Hmong culture is caused by a bad spirit (dab’s). But for Lia and her family, they had added barriers of being immigrants who speak no English, who cannot find jobs, and were exiled from their own country. Hmong’s believe dab’s steal souls and cause sick illnesses. ) Citation. A Review By Will Connolly. In this miniscule event, two cultures with completely conflicting ideas came together to form a union. Her American doctors had a strict and rigorous. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. Lia Lee was born in central California’s Merced Community Medical Center (MCMC) in July 1982. ] as threats," Nao Kao grabs Lia and attempts to flee the hospital (13. One of Lia ’s primary doctors, and Neil Ernst ’s wife. ) When the author took Selvidge’s information to Neil Ernst, he said that if he’d thought that Lia was septic, he would have done a lumbar puncture. Throughout The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, Fadiman often references the Hmong’s maximalist worldview, which takes into account all aspects of life and seeks to acknowledge the interconnectedness of all things. Downloadable / Printable Version. When he received the call, he "drove to MCMC as fast as he could" (11. Chapter 2 introduces key facts about the Hmong, which place the Lees' behavior in a broader context. She explains how, days after Lia came home. This question calls for your opinion, there is no right or worng answer. Foua's husband Nao Kao attended each birth. In the presentation, he spent forty-five minutes painstakingly detailing the entire process, from choosing the right kind of hook to go fishing to preparing. Explain the meaning of the book's title. While their children take their father's clan name, Foua follows Hmong tradition and retains Yang—her original clan name—after marriage. There is a moment of final suspense when Nao Kao tries to take Lia from the hospital before she is discharged. Fadiman rounds out the Lees ’ family story by detailing their escape from Laos. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down Quiz 3. 1617 Words | 7 Pages. Nao Kao, Blia. Summary. The author of The Spirit Catches You And You Fall Down. • Chapter 4 - Do Doctors Eat Brains? • Chapter 5 - Take As Directed. Lia Lee began suffering seizures at a young age and was diagnosed with epilepsy by American doctors. We learn that the Hmong have very different birthing traditions; that they believe in evil spirits called ‘dabs’; and these spirits can steal that they believe a baby’s soul. Peggy Philp. Chapter 19: The Sacrifice. When Lia first returned home from her time in foster care, everyone was elated. LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down study guide contains a biography of Anne Fadiman, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. They're disoriented and confused by new appliances like refrigerators, toilets, and electrical devices. Her siblings grew up around her, part of a close-knit family, some excelling in sports and others going to university. S medical system battles with their traditional Hmong healing methods. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. OCLC. When Peggy first saw Lia after the girl’s return from Fresno, she was heartbroken: Lia was hardly alive. Anne updates readers on the book's key figures. Analysis Of Midterm: The Spirit Catches You And You Fall Down 1960 Words | 8 Pages. ''. Published in 1997, The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures is a remarkable masterpiece that feels just as significant today, more than 20 years after being published, for its commentary on cultural differences, social construction of illness, and most important of all. Buy Study Guide About The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down Summary Character List Glossary Themes Quotes and Analysis Ch. Share to Facebook. Recorded on these tapes are the many conversations she had with American doctors and the Lee family, who came to the United States from Laos as refugees in 1980. He wondered which would have been more discriminatory - to deprive Lia of optimal care that any other child would have received or fail to tailor her treatment in such a way that the. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down (1997) is an ethnography written by Anne Faidman. “ […. A public health nurse who makes house calls to provide Lia with medical checkups after her final neurological crisis.