Crow Flies in This Short Play, Chinese-American

¶ … Crow Flies

In this short play, Chinese-American author David Henry Hwang applies multi-cultural beliefs and observations to a simple setting, and in doing so ultimately brings forth a melding of worlds and dimensions. The title, "As the Crow Flies," indicates that a direct path is going to be used to arrive at a desired destination. Hwang uses humor as a tool to transcend the contrasting cultures and races, and to reveal universal similarities of people regardless of race or cultural stereotyping. His humor also keeps the audience completely unaware of all that is actually taking place in front of them until the final moment, and keeps them unprepared for the revelation of the inevitable destination symbolized by the crow.

As the play begins, Hannah, the black maid, tells her elderly Chinese employer, Mrs. Chan, about her unusual alter ego that sometimes surfaces. Hannah explains that her alter ego, Sandra Smith, is a younger black woman, but as she gives her explanation, Mrs. Chan, who comes from a culture that is acquainted with certain mysteries of supernatural realms, realizes right away that the alter ego is actually a "warning ghost," or a harbinger of death. Hannah, therefore, who has been working in the Chan's home, and in the homes of other elderly "clients" for a number of years is actually the angel of death, and has been patiently waiting for the right moment to show herself. She recently showed herself to a certain Mrs. Washburn, and "she just fell right over." Mrs. Chan, however, is not going to be as easy to claim as Mrs. Washburn. It is Hannah, the maid, therefore, who is used as the disguise for the angel of death, Sandra Smith. In masquerading as a maid, all of Hannah's various clients have not only unsuspectingly opened the door for her, but they have let her into their homes and paid her for being present.

Mrs. Chan expresses a reaction to the situation that is somewhat universal and not particular to any race or culture. Her reaction reveals another of the author's symbolical statements showing that humans have similar or familiar reactions in spite of their cultural, surface differences. Mrs. Chan is not going to go with Sandra Smith without putting up a battle and she announces her determination in winning this battle. The reason she gives for her noncompliance is one that is well-known. She feels she has far too many responsibilities to leave behind at this particular time. Hwang, whose parents were immigrants from China, refers to old traditional beliefs of his ancestors as Mrs. Chan prepares her battle plan. She will depend upon various Chinese ruses to defeat death, apparently not noticing that none of the ruses used by any culture thus far has worked with any degree of success.

Mrs. Chan's primary responsibility and concern is for her elderly husband, P.K., who is in an advanced state of senility or dementia. She feels that she cannot leave him without her care - and she also feels she must oversee her grandchildren as they grow into adulthood. She informs P.K. that although she has seen the angel of death, she is going to defeat it and keep it from its intended destination. P.K. is greatly relieved and reassured when his wife tells him that she intends to remain in charge of everything. He takes his golf clubs and leaves for another imaginary round of golf.

Even though Mrs. Chan is determined to battle Sandra Smith, no one realizes that the angel of death has already won the battle and is merely waiting like the "crow sitting on the window sill," for Mrs. Chan to come and follow it "home." Mrs. Chan cannot outsmart the ghost with Chinese ruses, she cannot use goldfish to keep the angel at bay, she cannot rely upon her front steps to keep the angel from entering the house, because the angel is already inside the house, and Mrs. Chan has already met her face-to-face.

In another instance of showing human similarities in spite of cultural difference, Mrs. Chan explains that she is not at all similar to foolish Americans who "Never think of death. Never prepare for anything. Always think, life goes on and on, forever." In claiming that she is dissimilar to people who think in this manner, she does not see that she is actually describing herself, another human oversight that is nearly universal.