The Good Earth

Soon, no food is left to purchase. Wang Lung’s neighbor Ching tells him that people are resorting to cannibalism. In addition, Wang Lung learns that Uncle’s family is not starving.

Ching, who feels guilty about participating in the raid of Wang Lung’s house, agrees to give Wang Lung a small portion of red beans. Since O-lan is about to give birth, Wang Lung feeds her most of the beans. He chews up a few to place into the mouth of his baby daughter, whom he carries inside his garments.

Wang Lung hears the newborn cry only once. O-lan tells him to come into the bedroom, where he sees the body of the deceased infant. He wraps the body, observing bruises on its neck, and leaves it at the cemetery.

Sitting in his threshold, Wang Lung sees Uncle and two men walking toward him. They offer to buy his property for a pittance. Furious, Wang Lung replies that he’ll never sell his property. O-lan appears and sells their furniture to the men. As Wang Lung watches the men leave with it, he consoles himself with the thought that he still owns the land.

The next day, Wang Lung’s family shuts up the house and starts walking southward toward a large city. A cold winter wind blows against them. They must stop and rest often because they’re starving and thus have no strength. They cross an icy river. Wang Lung must carry his father across first and then come back for each of his two sons. They see many people moving in a southerly direction. A stranger explains that the people are going to a fire wagon, meaning a train. As they debate boarding the train, O-lan says that the little girl will die before the night is over and they’ll all be dead after another day of walking. A great roar heralds the appearance of a train engine, and the family is pushed into a car. The train heads south.

The next morning, the family finds the public rice distribution center, where a huge crowd waits for food. They fill their bowls and eat their first meal in weeks. Wang Lung decides to go look for work. O-lan says that she, the children, and the old man will beg. She admits that as a child, she did this to survive. When the boys treat begging as a game, she slaps them and tells them to be serious. Wang Lung rents a rickshaw to pull passengers through the streets. At the end of the day, he only earns enough to pay for the rickshaw rental; however, O-lan and their sons have made enough money to buy rice the next morning.

Over time, Wang Lung learns more about the city. He understands where men and women go throughout the day. He becomes adept at giving rides and learns the difference between foreigners and locals. He observes that even though they can eat every day, they’re just subsisting. The children, especially the younger boy, become adept at stealing rather than begging. Once, Wang Lung discovers a piece of pork shoulder in the food O-lan prepares. The younger brother says he stole it from the butcher. Outraged, Wang Lung pulls the meat from the pot and throws it on the ground. O-lan, however, washes it off and puts it back in the pot. After they eat, Wang Lung takes the younger boy out of their shelter and cuffs him for stealing. Wang Lung yearns to return to his land.

Wang Lung notes the great disparity between the wealthy and subsistence workers like himself. He worries that he’ll never be able to return to his land. O-lan says that if he wants to return to his land, they can sell their young girl. O-lan reminds him that her parents sold her so that they could return to their land. He finds this revolting and cries out for relief.

Another man who lives in the small village of shelters responds that an opportunity develops when the rich get too rich and the poor get too poor. He tells Wang Lung that he sold two daughters so that they could get by. He points to Wang Lung’s girl and says the time is coming when she’d be right to be sold. Although tempted, Wang Lung refuses to consider selling the girl. However, he reflects on the man’s description of life inside the houses of the wealthy, where even the servants live opulent lives.

Wang Lung recognizes the competing forces at work in the great city. On two occasions, people give him illustrated flyers he doesn’t understand because he can’t read. O-lan takes the paper and makes a shoe sole. A young Chinese man lectures a crowd about the inequity of the rich and the mistreatment of the poor. Wang Lung asks him if the rich have the power to make it rain so that he can grow crops. The young man mocks him, saying that everybody would have everything they needed if the rich just shared. Wang Lung rejects this, concerned only about going home to his farm.

Pulling his rickshaw, Wang Lung sees soldiers conscripting men off the street. A shopkeeper explains that these conscripts will carry military supplies for soldiers going into battle. Wang Lung tells O-lan about this. He says that he feels tempted to sell his daughter now so that they can go home. She tells him to wait because some unusual things are afoot. Afraid to go outside during the day, Wang Lung starts working at night, pulling heavy loads of merchandise over cobblestone streets. He earns about half what he did with the rickshaw. He feels a panic settling over the city. He sees soldiers about during the day, still looking for conscripts. Soon, he can’t pull the large boxes any longer because merchants have stopped buying altogether. Tempted again to sell his daughter, he asks O-lan if she received beatings as an enslaved woman. She replies that beatings with a leather harness occurred daily. She tells him that pretty girls like their daughter received beatings too but that all the lords and male servants used them sexually as well.

Wang Lung hears a sudden crashing sound and many voices. His neighbor pokes his head in the hut, saying that the doors to the rich man’s house are open. O-lan goes out immediately. Wang Lung follows her into the house with no intention of looting anything. Swept along by the crowd, he finds himself standing alone in a room. A fat man wearing only a purple robe comes out of hiding. Offering gold, he begs Wang Lung to spare his life. Wang Lung demands the money, even though he has no means or intent to injure the man. The man gives him a double handful of gold and then runs away.