Mammon Inc.

by Hwee Hwee Tan

Mammon Inc., the largest company in the world, is looking for a new Adapter: someone who can teach their executives how to cross cultures. Born in Singapore and educated in Oxford, Chiah Deng thinks she is the ideal candidate. But before they make her a globo-boss, Mammon demands that she passes three tests... Caught between her Christian guru and Taoist parents, Chiah Deng struggles to straddle the gap between East and West, chopsticks and credit cards.

Genres: Fiction, Asian Literature

Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

Hwee Hwee Tan grew up in Singapore and the Netherlands. She studied creative writing at the University of East Anglia. She published her first novel, Foreign Bodies (Penguin), at age twenty-two, while still a graduate student at the University of Oxford. She received her MFA in Creative Writing at New York University, where she won the New York Times Fellowship for Fiction. She now lives in Singapore.

Reviews

[Ben · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book deals with the same issue as Orwell's 1930s classic, Keep the Aspidistra flying: whether a person of aristic and moral integrity should 'relent' and sell their soul for money, glamour and social status. In Orwell it's a desperately poor and unsuccessful poet fighting the temptation to become an advertising copywriter. In Mammon Inc its an infuriatingly bright Chinese Oxbridge graduate fighting the temptation of a hugely enviable positition in the world's largest company.

The elitist role is that of an 'adapter' - someone who helps people ('global nomands') born in one country and educated in another adapt to life in a third (though why somebody would need more help adapting to life in a third country than someone adpating to life in a second county eludes me).

Yes, in Mammon Inc, unlike in Orwell, there is a (seemingly important) cross-cultural element thrown in. This cross-cultural element, though, is quite superfical - just Tan chasing in on her remarkably international background.

The narrator's cleverness and smugness grows more and more irritaing and I was happy when it was all over. I read this book about 2 years ago but thought I'd write a review before I got rid of it.

[Lovey Lotts · Rating 5 out of 5]

The writer shows her colossal trove of knowledge, a larger on than many western writers. Very, very different from other Singaporean writers. It's a good book, relevant to many of those who have traveled abroad to study, and lost that single placing on earth good and comfortable enough to be called home.

[Melos Han-Tani · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty funny at times, with an interesting plot setup about growing and living in between cultures (as the result of occupying a sort of transient middle/upper-class status.) I lost interest partway through (though I did read the last few chapters) but I like the themes and ideas behind the book. It got me thinking about how maybe the 'global generation/class' sometimes feels they can't fit in because they're hesitant to commit to something that doesn't have as much economic power. A reminder that some of the best things in life are when you decide to commit to something that has no chance of world domination or influence.

[starduest · Rating 3 out of 5]

Slightly mixed feelings about this, after revisiting it many years after the first reading. The book was written more than 19 years ago but some of it is still so current, eg brand hegemony, the fakeness of the Gen Vexers. I appreciate the commentary on class and social markers in Britain so much more, now that I'm here, and the differences between English vs Chinese Singaporean culture laid bare in the page truly hit home. However, some aspects of Singapore (culture) in the book are inaccurate, perhaps a failing on the part of the author or her editor. The book is clever, but is occasionally too clever that I never quite resonated with it as much as I wanted to.

[Clare Low · Rating 3 out of 5]

As much as I hate to admit it, the themes in this novel struck very close to home. I could relate to every sentiment of Chiah Deng and found myself getting increasingly exasperated as the plot unravelled. This was probably what contributed to my frustration in reading the book. I had never encountered a book that spoke to and about myself so clearly before. That being said, there were several things mentioned that I wished never were. But they were necessary acknowledgements and it takes a writer to bring them to bear for someone who likes to avoid issues. The writing was too crisp and concise for my liking, but it was a text that shed some light on the things that, in my opinion, are lacking in society. It reflected the futility of resistance to the 'higher powers' and desire, thus painting a bleak picture of the cold hard truth.

[Sally · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this for my lit elective module and I loved it! It was a great reading experience getting to be in the shoes of someone so stretched apart between two cultures, stuck in a limbo. At times I even felt like I could totally relate to Chiah Deng's inner struggles even though I've never quite faced a conflict as such. Many Laugh-out loud moments, especially at the very 'Singaporeanized' references. Though I felt that she had sometimes exaggerated the vulgarness and ignorance of our nationality.

[Doreen · Rating 4 out of 5]

read it when i was in college. after some years, i now found it at a book sale. had good impression on this book so i am re-reading it now...
i can relate with this story. it really reflects how the world works. the stugggle between choosing Good vs Evil.
i was tickled with the Singlish which is quite similar with Manglish.

[Hao Guang Tse · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this long ago but a recent exploration into Sing lit reminded me of it. What I remember from it is its prescience - that cultural adaptability Chiah Deng is supposed to embody is practically today's equivalent of a life skill. I guess the same questions remain - adaptability for what, or whose ends?