In Maxine Hong Kingston's semi-autobiographical memoir Woman Warrior and Alice Walker's short essay “Finding Our Mother's Gardens” mothers,” the maternal figure, the “Warrior Woman” in each tale, plays an important role in shaping the author's understanding of personal or racial identity. However, although Kingston and Walker's mothers do not behave similarly, in the short story "Shaman" in Woman Warrior, Kingston's mother, Brave Orchid, displays a visibly proud personality that contrasts with the quieter character of Kingston's unnamed mother. Walker, the matriarchs in both cases. Shaman” and “In Search of Our Mothers’ Gardens” are truly the epitome of the “Warrior Woman” because they find positive means through which to express themselves. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay In their respective environments, both Brave Orchid and Walker's mother wisely use their abilities, not their voices, to demonstrate independence. At medical school in China, Brave Orchid, who “quickly built a reputation for being brilliant, a natural scholar who could take one look at a book and understand it” (Kingston 62), took pride in the fact that her fellow students they had never seen her cram as she “studied a lot in advance” (Kingston 64). Brave Orchid realizes the power and respect she is capable of gaining from her peers and teachers if she gracefully outdoes others without elaborate displays of intelligence, and therefore chooses to live that way. Although Walker's mother could not choose to use her physical voice or actions to display her self-determination since she had no legal right to do so, she, like other Black women, used what little she had to express herself: her creativity. Walker writes, “even though [our grandmothers and mothers] did not recognize [their creativity] beyond what happened in singing in church… they never had any intention of giving it up” (637). Black women warriors, including Walker's mother, found their identities through other non-confrontational media such as singing, quilting, or, in Walker's mother's case, gardening. Furthermore, Brave Orchid and Walker's mother used education and gardening as a way to have absolute freedom of expression in a world typically dominated by men or whites, respectively. For Brave Orchid, returning home after attending medical school in Canton allowed her to return “to her home village as a doctor. She was welcomed with garlands and cymbals in the same way people today welcome 'barefoot doctors'” (Kingston 76). Kingston's mother challenges social norms by not submitting to the dominant male figure by being a housewife, and instead attends school, becoming a heroine again. For Walker's mother, gardening offered a respite from the racist white world because in her gardens, where "whatever she planted grew as if by magic," she was able to express her private emotions. Therefore, “her fame as a flower grower spread to three counties” (Walker 639). It didn't matter that she was black and a woman: the only label that defined her was "a flower grower." In fact, Walker's mother and Brave Orchid were praised because they found positive ways to demonstrate their meaning of being a warrior. As for the former, Walker recalls, “And I remember people coming to my mother's yard to get clippings from her flowers; I still hear the praise showered on her because whatever rocky ground she landed on, she turned into a garden” (Walker 639). Brave Orchid was also praised by her peers for being brave.