Joy Luck Club: Symbols Beliefs, values and qualities people hope to possess can usually be determined by a person's past. The future is not determined by the past, but the future is influence by one's past experiences. In the book the Joy Luck Club, Amy Tan, uses symbols throughout the book to illustrate various qualities of human nature in several mother-daughter relationships. The swan's feather and the reference to the tiger are two symbols, one symbolizing hope, and the other protectiveness, which are reflected in each mother-daughter relationship. The hope displayed directly with the history of the swan's feather can be found in the relationship between Suyuan Woo and