In the story Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress, Dai Sijie has use “Luo's Story” to outline the main events in the story through symbolism. When the little Chinese seamstress (LCS) learned how to swim from doggy-paddle to breaststroke and butterfly, it strongly symbolizes her quick development through education. This is further supported through the words “Her tiny figure is like a fruit growing at the top of a tree”. It proves that she might be leaving once she is fully developed when Dai Sijie wrote “Suddenly, the fruit falls.” This briefly outlines the LCS' sudden departure at the end of the story.
The “key ring” and the “keys” symbolize a way of escape. By throwing away the keys, it shows that he is abandoning his hopes of being one of the “three in a million” to leave from re-education. The LCS however retrieved it several times for Luo. This once again also signifies her interest to eventually leave the Phoenix Mountain. The comparison made by Luo of the “Stones” and “falling fruit” shows that he has interest in her and thinks that she stands out. This may express his interest in her. It could also be shown as a comparison between himself and the LCS since he doesn't dare to even try jumping from that height.
The throwing keys into water for the LCS to fetch are all based on Luo's interest in the LCS' body shape and his lust for her. This is shown in the description: “I loved it, not because I had any illusions about my future but simply because it gave me an opportunity to admire her sensual body gliding through the water naked…” The LCS however views this as a totally different aspect, a way to escape and therefore tries to retrieve the keys. This shows that the LCS is still hoping to leave the mountains.
