Gertrude's character

Note: All of the views and opinions below are taken from the perspective of the society in  the novel; they may not reflect the author's own ideas.

When Gertrude was first introduced to the reader, she is did not respect herself which she showed when wailing at Kumalo's feet and she could not take of her child.  She had depended on Kumalo to help her and lead into making the right choices, but before he came, she had the resources to and opted not to act with a moral compass or with any consideration of her family or her own respectability.  One example of this was that she did not send Kumalo any letters.
As the novel progresses, Gertrude finds herself in Mrs. Lithebe's house and on her way to Kumalo's home where she has resources to be healthy, well-taken care of, and she has the resources and new knowledge on how to become a respectable woman.  in this part of her life, she still flirts, otherwise known as "laughing carelessly" but she considers and might have even chosen by the end of book II, to become a nun, a highly mature and respectable woman.  This consideration is very mature and shows her growth because she now is considering and/or chosen on her own to become the most respectable woman that she can become.  Her choice to leave her son with Kumalo's new daughter, is wise and respectable because she thought about it using logical reasons that considered the child and the other people involved.

Why is everyone so willing to help Kumalo?

Without his own position in the church, Kumalo is not a person who many would want to help.  He is a poor man in the lowest social class in Africa with only his life savings to spend.  To my understanding, even though many people are trying to help the people in the lowest class, here are still many who do not want to help them at all.  Not only is he low in society, but he also needs a lot of guidance to find some of his family members, which takes time, from someone who knows their way around Johannesburg.  Then, after finding some of his family members, he learns that one of them is a prostitute and another is a murderer.  Even in today's time, most people would not help someone whose goal is to protect a prostitute and a murderer.  Kumalo even asks someone who house the prostitute and her son and the murderer's wife.  
One reason that I believe to be why Kumalo is being helped is because the people who he is trying to help is family to him.  Another reason is his connection to the church.  Kumalo is a refer and which gives him connections to other people in the church.  The people in the church are trying to help those in need.  Kumalo is someone in need.  One of the people who is loyal to the church is Mrs. Lithebe.  She has enough money to support herself, but is willing to take a few shillings from Kumalo for him to rent the rooms.  The main reason behind Kumalo getting help is because his connection to the church.

The importance of intercalary chapters

The novel Cry the Beloved Country includes a chapter of side stories which are not part of the narrative called intercalary chapters. These stories are important because they help the reader have perspective from people in different social groups on the events that are taking place during the time of the story.  This perspective is background information.  Having it broadens the reader's knowledge of the choices made by the main characters in the narrative.  The choices of a character tells who the character is which leads into foreshadowing future decisions and what one can take away from the book.  One example of of how background information adds to the readers understanding of a character's choices relates to Gertrude's choice of income before Kumalo rescues her.  Gertrude was a prostitute which is horrible, but she did have a small source of income to pay for food for her son and herself.  Another woman did not choose to be a prostitute and her son died.  Please don't misunderstand; Gertrude's source of income was horrible but with knowledge from the intercalary chapters someone can understand why she did it.  The reasoning behind her choice adds to Gertrude's character in the narrative.

Filled With Joy

When I consider myself to be filled with joy, the occasion is not always a huge extravaganza and it doesn't always require a large amount of work.  Sometimes, I'm filled with joy over simple things like doing something I love to do.  One of those simple times that I was filled with joy was last night.  I walked down the stairs and around the corner to a room which everyone calls the art room.  Of course, the room, being the art room in he house, is filled to the top with random "art supplies that my brother and I could use for school projects" (my dad) despite my parents efforts; I love it anyways.  My favorite "art supplies" in the room is actual art supplies in the shelves where the paints and canvases are.  Last night, I borrowed a few paints and took a canvas, opened up my sketchbook to plan what to paint, and then started to smear colors onto what was going to be a piece of "art."  This kind of joy is like butter that is left on a warm piece of toast, spreading quietly, smoothly, and without anyone noticing until someone bites the side of the toast and tastes it.  Another way to say this, is that I was filled with joy without needing to specifically identify it.

My Reaction to Maya Angelou Saying That I Must Not BeDefeated

"You can encounter many defeats, but you must not be defeated." -- Maya Angelou

My first reaction after I read the quote is to simply interpret it.  To me, the above quote means that people make mistakes in life but they should improve and continue to reach for their goals.  This brings me to making a connection or relating tone quote.  If I relate to the quote, there is a more likely chance of me remembering it.  One part of my past that relates to this quote happened when I used to figure skate.  A few years ago, I tried mastering a jump called an single axel.  A single axel is one and a half rotations in the air that happens when a skater jumps from a forward position.  The first time I tried to jump and land an axel, I almost had it.  For the next year after that attempt, I went through phases of jumping and landing it, and completely wiping out.  Once, I had to go to the emergency room to get stitches because I split my chin open.  In the end, I landed the jump and mastered it because I was not defeated.

Why do Winnie and Hulan still put up with each other?

To answer the question of why Winnie and Hulan put up with each other, a simple answer is that they are family.  There is more than one definition for family.  Family can mean that people are related by blood or all have the same ancestor.  Family can also mean people who related to each by loyalty and intimacy.  Hulan and Winnie are family by using the second definition above.  This kind of feeling of family grows over time and what the people in the family have been through together.  The two woman have spent a large portion of their lives together because of their husbands' work.  They have also been through many events together.  They have even been through war together.  Going back to the main question, Hulan and Winnie do not agree on everything but they are family.

Stories About Stars

"Her [Hulan's] always ended with some sort of hero popping up and marrying an ugly animal who then turned out to be a kind and beautiful prince.  I think mine had to do with lessons learned too late- not to eat too much, not to talk to loud, not to wander out at night late by yourself- in any case, always people who fell off the earth and into the sky because of their willful ways."
- The Kitchen God's Wife by Amy Tan on page 230

The quote above is Winnie looking back on the stories that she and Hulan made up about the different patterns of stars that they saw in the sky.  The stories they make up encompass their hopes, dreams, and even parts of their realities at the time.
Hulan's story encompasses her reality because she married the man who originally would not help her sister, the girl who he had gotten pregnant.  An ugly animal compares Hulan's first impression of her husband to an animal in a fairy tale.  Then, she ends up marrying this man who redirects her poor life style to a wealthier one he pays for.  Later in the novel, the reader learns how much Hulan despises the thought of herself being poor.  Since her husband took Hulan away from her despised life of being poor and made her rich, she probably believed this to be an act of kindness so this man can be compared to a prince.
Winnie's stories were about lessons that she didn't learn on time.  This reflects her relationship with Wen Fu.  The other examples she lists are probably stories she read or heard when she was little.  One of the lines that stands out to me is the last one.  This line states her fears.  In other words, Winnie is scared that if she is willful or stubborn, she will end up in an unknown and mysterious place which scares her.  This might be a reason for why she did not stand up to Wen Fu until much later in her life.
Keeping this section in the novel was clever of Amy Tan because it reminds the audience of the lives that the two characters have lived so far.  How much of our own creativities reflect our hopes, dreams, and lives?