What are the crisis, climax, and falling action of "Rules of the Game" by Amy Tan?

When you speak about “crisis, climax, and falling action,” you are speaking about the plot of Amy Tan’s The Rules of the Game. I find two things interesting about your question. First, it’s interesting that you only want three elements of plot (as opposed to the usual six: exposition, conflict, rising action, climax, falling action, resolution). Second, it’s interesting that you label one of the aspects of plot “crisis.” It is usually called the...

When you speak about “crisis, climax, and falling action,” you are speaking about the plot of Amy Tan’s The Rules of the Game. I find two things interesting about your question. First, it’s interesting that you only want three elements of plot (as opposed to the usual six: exposition, conflict, rising action, climax, falling action, resolution). Second, it’s interesting that you label one of the aspects of plot “crisis.” It is usually called the “conflict” in that it is simply the problem that begins after the exposition and must be solved in some way before the end of the story. The crisis/conflict, climax, and falling action, then, are three important elements of plot in Amy Tan’s story.

Although there can be different opinions about where these plot events occur (which I assume is the reasoning behind your question), the three plot elements you mention are fairly clear. The crisis/conflict for the character of Waverly is her “battle” with her mother that begins very early on in the story. After being exposed to Waverly’s Chinese-American family, we are almost immediately presented with the crisis/conflict through Waverly’s demeaning nickname “Meimei,” meaning “little sister” and with a scene with salted plums at the grocery store that proves that silence always wins. Waverly is rewarded for her silence. Further, this battle can be seen in some of Lindo’s small (yet poignant) comments:

We do torture. Best torture. … Strongest wind cannot be seen.

The climax of the story is not Waverly’s winning of the chess tournament, but the moment she runs away from home. The climax, of course, is the height of the tension. It is at this point that the reader asks himself or herself whether Waverly can survive without her family and, specifically, without her controlling mother: Lindo. The answer? No, Waverly cannot survive without them. She returns after only one day apart (which is a symbol of her defeat).

It is precisely Waverly’s return home that is the falling action. Basically, she returns home hanging her head, after running away and not succeeding in doing so. Waverly’s return home also includes Lindo’s reaction to Waverly: the silent treatment. This secures Lindo’s win. Waverly ends up retreating to her room where she contemplates her horrible mother.

In conclusion, it might be interesting to look at the other elements of plot: exposition, rising action, and resolution. The exposition of the story is when we learn about Waverly Place Jong, where she lives (in San Francisco’s Chinatown), and her relationship with her family. The rising action is Waverly’s progression of learning about the game of Chess and her success in that game, including the win at the tournament. The resolution is when Waverly realizes that her mother is the winning chess player and, further, that Waverly can’t be an “American” individual apart from her mom at this point in her life.