The Painted Veil tells the story of a woman seeking pleasure and spiritual enlightenment on her own terms in a patriarchal society that has prescribed roles for women. How does Kitty negotiate her desires within societal expectations of her, both in Hong Kong and Meitan-fu? To what extent do personal desires (as opposed to a sense of universal morality) drive her behavior?

Teaching Suggestion: This prompt asks students to track how Kitty’s behavior and attitude change both as she leaves the pleasure-haunt of Hong Kong for spartan Meitan-fu and when she returns to Hong Kong in the final part of the novel. You may want to draw students’ attention to both Kitty’s inner monologue and the influence of people around her. The discussion may naturally segue into the extent to which students think Kitty has really changed as a result of her adventures. This prompt links to the themes of The Subjugated Other and The Tension Between Character and Personality.

Differentiation Suggestion: Instead of addressing the prompt with the questions above, ask students to write about and/or illustrate Kitty’s daily routine in Hong Kong and Meitan-fu in a creative way like a first-person diary entry or sketchbook. Students might consider what time she wakes up, what she eats and wears, people she meets, and other details based on text details.