Conclusion
Stuart Hall wrote in his influential essay, "Encoding/decoding," that "The codes of encoding and decoding may not be perfectly symmetrical." … "…evidence remains that even apparently ‘natural’ visual codes are culture-specific." He writes that there are three types of positions, the dominant, the negotiated, and the oppositional. I ask myself, is my reading of All-American Girl the dominant reading, negotiated, or oppositional? I think I have a negotiated reading.
In Lynn Lu’s essay, "Critical Visions: The Representation and Resistance of Asian Women," she argues that Asian women "are forced to wear our race as a mask to put on or remove only when the mainstream deems it acceptable or necessary." Lu continues, "A close examination of other new, hip incarnations of Asian women that have recently surfaced reveals the conventional messages they continue to communicate, even as they entertain and thrill in their novelty, even as we welcome their challenge to outdated options." By this, I understand that Lu is saying that women like Margaret Cho are still wearing a mask. She is only Asian American when it is acceptable or necessary. Even though Cho is "new" and "hip," is she really that new? It seems that she still craves acceptance by the white male patriarchy.
In conclusion, I have tried to contextualize the show All-American Girl, and have grappled with understanding its textual meaning. The show is a text, and so is Margaret Cho herself. She is a controversial text to be read and understood. My reading is a negotiated one. On the one hand, I do argue for authenticity and the representation of lived experience of Korean Americans. In particular, I think that the show could have been a cultural forum for the discussion of more serious issues, such as African American and Korean American relations. I believe that Cho herself is still struggling with understanding her history and her identity. On the other hand, I believe that the fans have taken this show and Cho’s identity and made them their own. Fans have made new meanings out of these texts. I recently attended a book signing of Cho’s autobiography, I’m the One that I Want. Her fans included whites, blacks, Korean Americans, Filipino Americans, women, men, gays, lesbians, and straights. She is phenomenally popular. Her appearance at the book festival session was sold out. The line for her book signing was long. There is definitely a market for Margaret Cho and Asian American representations. The 1995 cancellation of her show has not diminished the growing Asian American market. I thought to myself, how can non-Koreans relate to her? Apparently, Cho appeals to a broad audience. Her identity is multiple. She is both Korean American and unruly woman. She remains an alternative role model, especially for Generation X ethnic women, a woman refusing to be contained, repressed, or silenced.