27 pages • 54 minutes read
Jean Davies OkimotoMy Favorite Chaperone
Fiction | Short Story | Adult | Published in 2004A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Character Analysis
Maya
Maya Alazova, the protagonist and first-person narrator, is a round and dynamic character. Hailing from Kazakhstan, she is a student at Beacon Junior High and on the gymnastics team. With strict parents who limit her non-school activities, gymnastics enriches her life, giving her a sense of physical freedom and an opportunity to socialize with her friends. While Maya struggles with the culture clash, she is well-liked by her peers—she has a close friend in Shannon Lui, and her crush, Daniel, likes her back.
While her school life gives her a sense of ease—showing her assimilation into American culture—her home life is characterized by tension. She is in constant fear of her father, often blamed for her brother’s actions, and is overburdened with household chores—her parents’ treatment of her is often dictated by traditional gender roles, and conflict rises when Maya defies their expectations.
As the eldest daughter, Maya is also made to be a caregiver. She is her family’s translator, protecting her parents from a world that is often unkind to immigrants. She shields Nurzhan from her father’s wrath. She puts her duty to her family above all else; when her mother is injured, she sacrifices her gymnastics training to do her mother’s cleaning jobs and household labor. Maya is aware of this gender bias—she reflects on the Luis, who run a household where everyone shares chores—but she does not speak out.
Her father’s anger keeps her quiet, and she longs for a relationship where she can speak her mind—her crush on Daniel is motivated primarily by the fact that he listens to her. While Maya works to meet her parents’ expectations, she is also a dynamic character who pushes boundaries when she can, like when she mistranslates the principal’s words about Nurzhan. She never loses hope that she can live the life she wants, and when Nurzhan collaborates with her to make that happen, she is happy and grateful. She also becomes more understanding of her parents’ position, bonding with her mother over the gold bracelet, signifying a bridge between their two cultures.
Mr. Alazova
Mr. Aibek Alazova is an antagonist and static character, though Okimoto reveals he is also a complex man. He is in conflict with American culture and, as the family’s patriarch, is a torchbearer of Kazakh heritage in the story. Formerly a respected schoolteacher, he is now a taxi driver and works hard to provide for his family, though he does not find his work dignified. In general, he finds it difficult to adjust to life in America. Mr. Alazova is characterized through dialogue and language, particularly his use of Russian, which creates division between him, his children, and his society. He embodies the strict father archetype; he is authoritative, emotionally unavailable, aggressive, punitive, and rigid. Alongside direct descriptions of him, his personality is characterized through his children’s fearfulness.
Mr. Alazova is his daughter’s main obstacle to feeling happy and fulfilled, in part through his constant negative attitude. When he finds her in the arms of a boy, he creates a public spectacle of it, yelling and pointing at her “the way one might identify a criminal” (16). This extreme reaction indicates his lack of tolerance for his daughter’s nonconformity to traditional gender roles. While it is not explicitly on the page, he shows a change of heart and signs Maya’s permission slip to attend the Spring Fling. While he does not have a moment of resolution with Maya like she has with her mother, this does signify a softening, at least in this one instance.
Nurzhan Alazova
Nurzhan Alazova is a deuteragonist and confidant for his sister, Maya. Though he is in elementary school, he shows a great deal of wisdom and maturity. He successfully negotiates with their parents to sign Maya’s permission slip, convincing them to let him be her chaperone even though he is younger than her. While this is ironic and reinforces traditional gender roles—elevating a young boy over his older sister—Nurzhan subverts his parents' expectations by being a poor chaperone. To respect his sister’s privacy and joy, he goes to the bathroom when she dances with Daniel. This shows how perceptive, considerate, and thoughtful he is and earns him the titular role of her “favorite chaperone.”
As the youngest of the Alazovas, his transition to American culture is less difficult. He understands American culture pretty well; when he is faced with bullying, he is aware that if Maya intervenes, it will only aggravate the bullying. He comprehends American values like liberty and individuality, and he advocates for his sister, explaining that American dating culture is different than Kazakhstan’s. There are, of course, things about America that he does not like or agree with, like anti-immigrant bias. When he is bullied for being an immigrant, he physically defends himself, adapting to American masculinity in his own way.
Mrs. Alazova
Gulnara Alazova, like her husband, was a teacher in Kazakhstan. When she lost her job, she followed her sister and migrated to America. Maya’s mother comes from a very strict background, and she adheres to traditional gender roles, though as a working mother, she performs twice as much labor. The strain of this dual role is made clear when Maya is forced to take on her mother’s work as well as her schoolwork and becomes utterly exhausted. While Maya yearns for a more equal household like the Luis, Mrs. Alazova does not express any such wish, though she does become more understanding during the story. Toward the end, she defends Maya to her father by saying that she is working hard to do everything, which Maya notes is a first.
Mrs. Alazova also perpetuates gender stereotypes between her children. While she pushes Maya into an adult role and admonishes her for not adequately protecting her brother, she babies Nurzhan, barely chastising him when he gets suspended. She does not believe Maya should be allowed to stay out after school, even for sports, or that she should be allowed to go to the school dance. When Maya is caught by her father, she does not attempt to protect Maya from his wrath. Rather, she tells her, “You have brought shame to your father and to this family” (18), showing her adherence to traditional gender roles, even when they harm her daughter.
Nevertheless, she is a dynamic character who changes and grows as the story unfolds. She becomes more flexible and open to new ideas, stands up for Maya, and agrees to let Maya attend the dance, provided Nurzhan chaperones. Moreover, she acknowledges that it is normal for girls in the US to mature sooner than in Kazakhstan. As a sign of her acceptance and support, she gives Maya a coming-of-age gift, a bracelet that she received from her own mother to initiate her into womanhood.
