So at least there's that. “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. Fadiman relates a story told to her by a French professor who taught an intermediate class at Merced College. Foua Lee Character Analysis. The teacher's suggestion appears in the narrative as a contrast to the tragic events in May's life. Within moments following the door's closing, Lia's first seizure commenced. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down. When Lia was around three months old, her older sister Yer slammed a door and Lia had her first seizure. Neil is at home when Lia arrives at the hospital. Quag Dab Peg in Hmong culture is caused by a bad spirit (dab’s). In hindsight, Lionel Rosenblatt, the former United States Refugee. 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. Print Word PDF. They spoiled her and treated her like a princess, believing that her epilepsy marked her as special and that she might someday. At this point, [Lia’s sister], who was three at the time, ran over to Lia and started banging her on the chest. When she was forcibly taken into a foster home, word spread throughout the Hmong community, reinforcing the idea that American doctors are not to be trusted. Anne Fadiman wrote a nonfiction book entitled The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, which is the story of a young Hmong girl named Lia Lee who had epilepsy. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down (1997) is an ethnography written by Anne Faidman. 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. Need help on characters in Anne Fadiman's The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down? Check out our detailed character descriptions. S. She slept in her parents’ bed a slight, silent husk. S medical system battles with their traditional Hmong healing methods. A feast of traditional beef dishes followed the ceremony. Way to conquer, um, incorrect stereotypes about medicine. As an outsider, author Anne Fadiman is our gateway into these proceedings. Lia at the age of three months began to seize, the family had diagnosed her with qug dab peg which also means the spirit. “I have always felt that the action most worth watching is not at the center of things but where edges meet. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman. The narrative, told by Anne Fadiman, follows the trials and tribulations of the Lee family as the U. Book Details. Fadiman came to Merced in 1988 after hearing that the hospital was experiencing a swath of cultural misunderstandings and miscommunications with the Hmong community. The book contains many Hmong phrases and many medical phrases, both unfamiliar to most readers. Looking back, I feel regret all of the choices, acts and words didn’t get along from the start to minimized the brain damaged of Lia. The colored dots and icons indicate which. The Lee family was convinced that the door's slamming had been so frightening as to make Lia's soul fly away. Acclaimed by reviewers, “The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down” won a National Book Critics Circle Award. Examine and describe how these differences create disparities between U. Summary. On May 2, 1985, Child Protective Services (CPS) placed Lia in temporary foster care for two weeks, after which she returned home. 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. Analysis Of Midterm: The Spirit Catches You And You Fall Down 1960 Words | 8 Pages. 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. “ […. By 400 C. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down. 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. A little girl who is part of Merced, California’s population of Hmong immigrants. • Chapter 3 - The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down. The Spirit Catches You Exam. The Shared Qualities of Opposing Sides of a Border: How Cultural Relations can Merge Characteristics between. Analysis. As Lia is being prepared for release, the doctors tell Nao Kao that she will probably die within weeks. Summary. Nao Kao gained weight and had high blood pressure, while Foua. The Hmong New Year fell during Lia’s stay at MCMC, but Foua said that it was the only time. The Lee family arrives in America in 1980. Her parents assumed the noise of the door had caused her soul to flee. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance. ”. Chapter 15 - Gold and Dross. Lia was diagnosed with epilepsy at age 1. The complicated politics surrounding this war reach back to the Geneva Accords of 1954, when Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam were recognized as independent states in what had been French Indochina. explores and documents how cultural barriers between the Hmong parents of Lia Lee and. …. This section contains 495 words. Although Jeanine works for the government, she manages to establish a connection with Nao Kao. Chapter 13 represents the falling action of Lia's story as the family adjusts to the reality of her fate. Share to Pinterest. Chapter 2 introduces key facts about the Hmong, which place the Lees' behavior in a broader context. The Lees endured the trauma of migrating on foot from Laos to Thailand, but Lia 's mother Foua says Lia's illness is more painful. Nao Kao gained weight and had high blood pressure, while Foua. Yikes. Like Shee Yee, they are courageous and tenacious, and will fight or flee rather than surrender. The narrative, told by Anne Fadiman, follows the trials and tribulations of the Lee family as the U. “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. 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. This free study guide is stuffed with the juicy details and. 17). Dressing Fadiman up in traditional Hmong clothing, Foua presented her to her boyfriend, who thought she looked ridiculous. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down explores the clash between a small county hospital in California and a refugee family from Laos over the care of Lia Lee, a Hmong child diagnosed with severe epilepsy. The Spirit Catches You And You Fall Down tells the story of treating Lia’s epilepsy, examining her medical experience in Merced in order to consider divides between Hmong and American culture. Book Details. - both Foua and dad threaten to commit suicide in the period when Lia was in fostercare. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down The two cultures 1. She was in a "persistent vegetative state," able to breath, sleep, and cry, but showing no signs of self-aware. Culture, or the learned beliefs, values, and behaviors of social groups, leads to major misunderstandings in The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down. Nonetheless, she manages to remain reasonably neutral, not blaming any of Lia’s doctors personally nor Lia’s parents, but rather the aforementioned idea that the cultural “gulf” is “unbridgeable. 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. "TheBestNotes on The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down ". 1-2 Chapter 1: Birth Lia. This article addresses the relationship between theory, narrative form, and teaching through a close critical. Lia was the fourteenth child of Foua Yang and Nao Kao Lee and arguably their favorite. Chapter. Fadiman is also the author of two essay collections. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down offers an insight into the clash of modern western medicine with the traditional methods and people of another culture, in this case the Hmong. The Shared Qualities of Opposing Sides of a Border: How Cultural Relations can Merge Characteristics between. Her seizures normally lasted only a few minutes, but when she didn't get. Chapter Summaries with Notes / Analysis. 20). The family lived in a refugee camp in California, and Lia’s parents treated her with traditional Hmong remedies. When Lia joins the Korda family, they already have five biological children and six foster children, many of whom have cognitive disabilities or mental health issues. Unlike violence, death, and exile, Lia's medical catastrophe is not a tragedy the Lees expect. She had epilepsy and struggled with American medicine because she did not speak English. A young Hmong man gave a presentation about how to make fish soup. Neil's decision to send Lia into foster care throws a wrench into things, devastating Nao Kao and Foua and nearly breaking their family apart. The doctors believe epilepsy is a pathological process in the brain, while the family believe “the spirit catches you and you fall down”. • Chapter 6 - High-Velocity Transcortical Lead Therapy. " (3. Ge, one of Nao Kao and Foua's daughters, dies after they arrive at a refugee camp in Thailand. EDSE 460. They haven't been back since. Lia's doctors ascribed her seizures to the misfiring of her cerebral neurons; her parents called her illness qaug dab peg. 9-10 Ch. 31). 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. Lia Lee Character Analysis. The book is about a young Hmong child named Lia Lee. 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. That doesn't mean they love her any less, however—she's still their "anointed one" (15. She's rushed to the hospital, where the doctors learn that the Lees are finally giving Lia the right amount of medication. " The word dab refers to a soul-stealing spirit. ABOUT THE BOOK Anne Fadiman's seminal work of nonfiction, The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, examines the myriad difficulties and complications. She. Once gone, her soul was captured by a dab, or evil spirit. 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. The Hmong traditionally lived high in the mountains of Laos, where they practiced agriculture and. The first chapters introduce the Hmong: both the family who suffers the book's tragedy, and the people as a whole. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down (1997) is an ethnography written by Anne Faidman. The Spirt Catches You and You Fall Down follows the true story of a healthcare battle between a hospital in California and a Hmong refugee family from Laos escaping the Vietnam war over the care of their little girl in 1982. Anne Fadiman's The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures (Noonday Press, 1997) is widely used in "cultural competence" efforts within U. Lia neither died nor recovered. Fadiman is skeptical at first: the txiv neeb (shaman) is kinda goofy, and the whole solemnity of the thing is. 5-6 Ch. Free Summary of The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down. By ANNE FADIMAN. At the end of Chapter 12, Fadiman introduces the character of Shee Yee, the hero of the greatest Hmong folktales. The London Observer called "Ex Libris" "witty. However, the Lees become discouraged when they notice Lia's verbal skills have regressed. They recognized the symptoms as qaug dab peg, "the. When the Lees left Laos, Foua explains, at least they hoped for a better future. After working as a computer analyst in Paris, he relocated to Merced because he believed it was his “moral responsibility” to help his people in. 10). Born in New York, Fadiman grew up in southern California, the setting of The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, and in Connecticut. When he tosses two water buffalo horns on the floor and they land flat side down he knows the spirits have arrived. Vangay explains that for a Hmong, unlike an American, "it is never everyone for himself" (247). 4. She grew only a few inches, gained only a little weight, and always looked younger than her age. These questions are used to convey a patient. 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. Her older sister, Yer, slammed the front door of the Lees’ apartment. E. When the Lee's settled in the United States Foua gave birth to a baby girl named Lia. Though Lia's mother Foua Yang gives birth to Lia in the United States, she delivered 12 children in her native Laos. They're only accessible on tablets, laptops, or desktop computers, so check them out on a compatible device. The Lee Children. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down essays are academic essays for citation. Now, instead of living off the land, they're forced to rely on American food drops to survive. Learn how to create in-text citations and a full citation/reference/note for The s pirit catches you and you fall down by Anne Fadiman using the examples below. In contrast to the Western view, the condition is actually considered a blessing—many shamans, known as txiv neeb, use their seizures to take "journeys into the realm of the unseen" (3. Beginning in infancy,. The spirit catches you and you fall down: a Hmong child, her American doctors, and the collision of two cultures Acad Med. “Lia was almost seven. Chapter 5 Summary and Analysis. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down . A little girl who is part of Merced, California’s population of Hmong immigrants. She was interested in investigating the circumstances surrounding Lia's health care but was warned by fellow colleagues. She considers what she's learned while researching, writing, and hearing reader reactions. Chapter 19: The Sacrifice. com. The Lee Children. the Hmong have established their own. by Monica Chiu, Ph. Best summary PDF, themes, and quotes. 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: ). Nao Kao Lee Character Analysis. Unfortunately, she couldn’t save their only son or her husband. Two cultural assumptions rise to the surface of this section: the first is that the Hmong eat dogs and cats; the second assumption is that Americans only care about money and thus would be unperturbed by the sight of a severed cow’s head on a doorstep as long as the cow had been fairly purchased. Neil apologizes to Nao Kao and Foua with tears in his eyes—Foua thanks and hugs him, while Nao Kao remains cold. 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. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance. 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. Medical, Racist, and Colonial Constructions of Power: Creating the Asian American Patient and the Cultural Citizen in Anne Fadiman’s . As in the previous chapter, Chapter 18 examines the idea of Western biomedicine as a culture or a system of learned beliefs and habits. 24). ABOUT THE BOOK Anne Fadiman’s seminal work of nonfiction, The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, examines the myriad difficulties and complications that arise when two radically. Their selection of this town is largely because of the influence of Dang Moua, an energetic Hmong American businessman. Luckily, Lia ends up in the home of Dee Korda, a woman who fosters several children with special needs. Chapter 9 Summary and Analysis. The epileptic child whose tragic story illustrates the cultural divide between the Hmong and the American medical systems. In one story, he offers his home to two sisters, one good and one snotty. 5). Chapters 1-4: The book begins with background on Lia Lee and the Lee Family. He always called an ambulance when Lia had a seizure. Summary. 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 Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down essays are academic essays for citation. From the creators of SparkNotes. Qaug means to fall over, and peg means to catch. Sofia Mejia Chapter 11 Analysis In this chapter of “The Spirit Catches You and You Fall. Unlike violence, death, and exile, Lia's medical catastrophe is not a tragedy the Lees expect. 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. 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. Chapter. Fadiman continues to examine the arrival of the Hmong in California, rehashing some of her earlier ideas about xenophobia and welfare. Nonetheless, he asked her to marry him. Lia Lee was born in central California’s Merced Community Medical Center (MCMC) in July 1982. Downloadable / Printable Version. Get all the key plot points of Anne Fadiman's The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down on one page. 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. Chapter 5 - Take As Directed. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down (1997) is an ethnography written by Anne Faidman. 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. When Lia Lee's sister slammed the front door to their Merced, California, apartment, Lia experienced her first in several years of increasingly severe seizures. Shee Yee eventually transferred his powers to human tvix neebs, or shamans, who summon his spirit as they do his work. When a rabies scare cropped up, to get the Hmong to bring in their dogs for vaccines, he organized a Rabies Parade in which there were three characters - a tiger, a chicken, and a dab - which told the people by loudspeaker to bring in their dogs. We watch Lia, the little Hmong girl diagnosed with epilepsy, slowly fade from. 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. . Jonas attended the most elite secondary school in Laos before eventually earning a master’s degree from a French university. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures. This essay, "Cultural Conflicts in Fadiman’s “The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down”" is published exclusively on IvyPanda's free essay examples database. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down. 5). They both work exceptionally hard and continually go the extra mile for the Lee family. 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. Chapter 13 Summary and Analysis. 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. Pediatricians Neil Ernst and Peggy Philp—the doctors in charge of Lia's case—keep detailed notes on her condition over the years. Lia Lee was three months old when she suffered her first epileptic seizure. Summary. Summary. Plot summary. And it gets worse. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down explores the clash between a small county hospital in California and a refugee family from Laos over the care of Lia Lee, a Hmong child diagnosed with severe epilepsy. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. The best study guide to The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down on the planet, from the creators of SparkNotes. A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures. When he received the call, he "drove to MCMC as fast as he could" (11. When she learns that Anne's boyfriend is in town, she decides to "dress [Anne] as a Hmong bride" to entice her bae into popping the question (8. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman. She would have been live longer with little illness in her body, she would have lived a happier life if the communication barriers got fixed from the start. Ultimately, everything comes to a head when Lia's doctor, Neil Ernst, gets fed up with this lack of communication and sends Lia into a foster home. When Fadiman ’s boyfriend visited her in Merced, Foua decided that she would help get her married. Now we know where the overbearing-and-oppressive idea comes from. C. Afterwards, Foua maintained that Lia got more and more sick because the doctors. Nonetheless, he asked her to marry him. May Ying is a twenty year old clerk-typist at the Merced County Office of Refugee Services when Fadiman first meets her. She explains how, days after Lia came home. By suggesting that Hmong culture. The Spirit Catches You And You Fall Down Book Report. They also still celebrated only Hmong holidays, only practiced Hmong religion, and only ate Hmong food. This was regarded by American doctors as neglect, and Lia was taken. Lia neither died nor recovered. • Chapter 7 - Government Property. Confronting “culture” in medicine's “culture of no . Find out what happens in our Chapter 1 summary for The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down. After hearing more good things about Cali from his brother, Dang Moua buys a cheap car. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. The Lee's, a family that endured hardships, frustration, anger, confusion, and hope while living in the United State's of America. 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. Nao Kao and Foua were right! To make sense of all this, Anne turns to a series of eight questions coined by Harvard psychiatrist Arthur Kleinman. Unfortunately they might have arrived at the hospital more quickly on foot. 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’. (Fadiman, 2012. Her parents, Nao Kao and Foua, were Hmong refugees from Laos who. Seventeen years later Foua and Nao Kao have continued to resist. The Lees' story takes on a more reflective mood in Chapters 15 and 17–18. Share to Facebook. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: Chapter 3 Summary & Analysis Next Chapter 4 Themes and Colors Key Summary Analysis Three months after her healthy birth, Lia. Bill didn’t assign blame to Neil for not catching the sepsis. 1-2 Ch. Fadiman sensed something else amiss in the girl, too, admitting that perhaps her soul really was missing. This blog will be a long-term project lasting the duration of the novel, with students needing to make entries about each reading section. We're at the Lee's apartment and a txiv neeb has just arrived "to perform a healing ceremony for Lia" (19. Like. Dan is devoted to learning about the Hmong people, even inviting various Hmong. Lia's older sister, Mai, is born in Thailand during this exodus. Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, 154 (12), 1277. Many of Li’s healthcare providers, especially Neil Ernst and Peggy Philip, worked hard to help Lia. Fish Soup. On the other hand, Epilepsy is referred to as a neurological. The Spirit Catches You And You Fall Down Book Report. Anne Fadiman’s ethnography . Their character proceeded from that. Share to Twitter. 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. The first paragraph focuses on why Lia’s birth is so different than her siblings. Lia becomes a minor celebrity at MCMC. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures. 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. In response, Lia's eyes rolled up, her arms jerked over her head, and she fainted. She was the only one in her family to be born outside of Laos. 15-16 Ch. A young Hmong man gave a presentation about how to make fish soup. One of Lia ’s primary doctors, and Neil Ernst ’s wife. 2. 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. Lia’s parents cared for her deeply, yet this arguable preventable tragedy still occurred. Lia was born in 1982 in Merced, California. New York: Macmillan. Share to Tumblr. By Monica Chiu, PhD University of New Hampshire Hmong. Incredibly driven and willing to seek out the truth even if it unearths his own mistakes, Neil eventually comes to. 1 March 2018. 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. Chapter 7: Government Property. S medical system battles with their traditional Hmong healing methods. In response, Lia's eyes rolled up, her arms jerked over her head, and she fainted. At the age of three months, Lia Lee had an epileptic seizure. • Chapter 3 - The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down. Her seizures normally lasted only a few minutes, but when she didn't get better, Nao Kao's nephew, who spoke English, called an ambulance. CHAPTER ONE. ) Citation. Chapter 1; Chapter 2; Chapter 3; Chapter 4; Chapter 5; Chapter 6; Chapter 7; Chapter 8; Chapter 9; Chapter 10. Anyway, this sparks a rebellion that goes on for centuries, until the Hmong finally retreat into the mountains. . Summary. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down explores the clash between a small county hospital in California and a refugee family from Laos over the care of Lia Lee, a Hmong child diagnosed with severe epilepsy. Lannamann, Taylor. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman. Over two years after Lia's big seizure, she was still alive. The Spirit Catches You And You Fall Down tells the story of treating Lia’s epilepsy, examining her medical experience in Merced in order to consider divides between Hmong and American culture. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down is the story of a Hmong Family, the Lees, their journey to America, and their struggles following their immigration. Fadiman relates a story told to her by a French professor who taught an intermediate class at Merced College. For many American doctors and patients, Western biomedicine is accepted as the default setting. The Afterword was written in 2012, 15 years after the book was first published in 1997. Chapter 17: The Eight Questions. She remarks that, even though these recordings have already been transcribed. LitCharts LLC, 18 Sep 2017. Foua Yang is a Hmong American woman living in Merced, California, with her husband Nao Kao Lee and their family. Nao Kao can tell that this one is serious, so he calls an ambulance for the first time. Dee is a gentle, kind person who devotes herself to caring for children. 17). Summary. 352 pages; $15. 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. and Peggy even allowed her to pour some noxious green liquid down the child’s nasogastric tube on the belief that Lia was going to die. MonkeyNotes Study Guides Download Store-Downloadable Study Guides/Book Summary,Book Notes,Notes,Chapter Summary/Synopsis. Fadiman brings up a program of eight questions designed by. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down. Chapter 13 represents the falling action of Lia's story as the family adjusts to the reality of her fate. Best summary PDF, themes, and quotes. S. In the 1980s, Lia was part of the Hmong population in America who were refugees from Laos. Their journey in The Spirit Catches You reveals a great deal about the challenges they face—and they benefits they enjoy—as the younger generation of Hmong-American immigrants. While considered by some to be an illness, seizures are actually seen as a good thing. There was obviously a great difference between American doctors and Hmong shamans. Lia ’s mother and Nao Kao ’s wife. Basically, the main difference between Hmong and Western views of medicine is simple—Hmong treat the soul, Americans treat the body. ‘The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down’ is the literal translation of the Hmong terminology for an epileptic seizure. This book reveals the tragic struggles between a doctor and patient because of. Just after she finished eating, her face took on the strange, frightened expression that always preceded a seizure. 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. Lia's parents and her doctors both wanted what was best for Lia, but the lack of understanding between them led to tragedy. Jeanine Hilt Character Analysis. On November 25, 1986, the day before Thanksgiving, Lia was eating as normal when she began to seize. After spending eleven days at Valley Children's Hospital, Lia returned to MCMC on.