I will first start by summarizing the plot of Family by Pa Chin and the plot of Some Prefer Nettles by Junichiro Tanizaki and summarizing the characters as I go along . I will then explain how both authors built their characters on modernity and tradition and conclude this article by explaining the themes of the novels and how I would compare the two novels. Family: The plot of this novel takes place in the city of Chengdu in the providence of Sichuan, located in central China. The book itself was written in 1931 and by that time the Chinese Communist Party was well established and was fighting battles with the Japanese and Chiang Kai-shek and expanding its influence in southern and central China. (Chin, 1931) This story is about the wealthy and aristocratic Kao family, who live in the city of Chengdu, Sichuan. The story has some very interesting characters but for the most part it mainly focuses on the three brothers and their very interesting and downright depressing lives. Chueh-hsin is the older brother and the more obedient and traditional sibling. He strongly believes in filial piety and even makes sacrifices to marry the woman he loves (his cousin Mei) and abandons his scientific studies to do what his grandfather wishes. His grandfather arranges the marriage of a young woman named Jui-cheuh and accepts a job his grandfather found for him in town in order to honor tradition. (Gale, www.bookrags.com/Family, 2014) (Chin, 1931) The next brother is Chueh-min who we could describe as a radical. He is the youngest brother of the three. He also falls in love with his cousin named Chin and runs away in order to challenge his grandfather because he doesn't want to be unhappy like his older brother and narrowly escapes an arranged marriage...... middle of paper.. ..morality and courage. (Gale, www.bookrags.com/Family, 2014) The reason I say courage is because the youngest sibling leaves his family to start a new life and that takes courage. He is also too rebellious to be like his older brother. Immorality is a given theme in this book. The mistreatment of servants and the overtly sexual 66th birthday party, the concubines claim that their society is full of obscenity and that they lack all morals. An interesting observation is that all the women they love are pure and virtuous and two of them die horribly, which shows how immoral the author viewed his society. Another point to make is that inequality is also a common theme in this novel. The author describes this by the treatment of young women and how they are treated and unable to have a normal education. (Gale, www.bookrags.com/Family, 2014)