Thieving Daughter - Chua Kok Yee

1. If you are Aisya's friend, what advice would you give her to help her resolve her conflict and mend her relationship with her mother?
Discuss with close reference to the story. (12m)

First advice:

• Aisya should tackle the problem of her mother's self-loathing about her advancing age and her physical decline
• Her mother is jealous of her daughter's beauty
• She is extremely critical of her own appearance in the mirror
• Her imagintation of her husband tells us of her subconscious insecurities ("You're still beautiful and desirable, my husband says")
• Aisya should constantly remind her mother that she will always be beautiful to help her self-esteem
• She should also be more willing to compromise with her mother's wishes about borrowing clothes or accessories
• Furthermore, she could bring her mother out shopping together to spend time with her as well as address her mother's need for beautifying herself

Second advice:

• Aisya should tackle the problem of her mother's lonliness
• Her husband died prematurely in a motor accident
• She appears to be unemployed and mostly stays at home
• Her desperation for company is shown when she resorts to lying to Kamal to get him to have dinner with her secretly
• Her lonliness may explain her desire to be beautiful--she believes that she can only attract company if she is beautiful
• Aisya should show more affection and attention to her mother to keep her from being lonely
• Instead of reading the papers over breakfast, Aisya should talk to her mother
• Moreoever, she can help her mother reconnect with her old friends

Third advice:

• Aisya should tackle the problem of her mother's tendency to be possessive
• She feels insecure when contrasted to her daughter who is young, beautiful and successsful
• Aisya's mother constantly feels that she is being stolen from and resorts to "stealing" back to feel better
• Aisya should remind her mother of what she has previously achieved and more importantly, what she can further achieve
• This would harness her mother's negative energy and convert it into positive energy she can use to fulfill her life
• Her bitterness will be forgotten in the pursuit of self-fulfillment
• Additionally, she may finally move on in life after her husband's untimely death