Amy Tan Identity

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In the short story “Two Kinds” written by Amy Tan, the narrator tells her story when she was little and how she must face her mother’s standard on becoming a child prodigy and how she deals with her culture identity. The narrator helps the audience realizes that you don't have to follow standards, fight back on what you believe in, and if you must try and if you do not succeed, do not feel put down. The narrator also shares her perspective of America, her mother, and her cultural identity During the story, the narrator’s mother moved from China to San Francisco, in hope of a better life and more opportunities. Her mother is very excited because she wants her child to become famous, rich, and be someone who she is not. Her mother become influenced by news and television shows featuring famous …show more content…

Along the journey, she starts to feel miserable and worthless when she didn’t meet her mother’s expectations. For example, “And after seeing, once again, my mother’s disappointed face, something inside me began to die. I hated the tests, the raised hopes and failed expectations.” In this quote, you can feel the agonizing pain that the narrator felt when she couldn't accomplish her mother’s goals, in fact, she was so young and she felt like her world was falling apart. Later in the story after she performed in talent show with a horrible performance, she fought with her mother, trying to get her to understand that she can only be her, she’s unhappy, and that she’d rather die than try to meet another expectation. Before her mother died, she gave her the piano. After her mother died, she played her piano, hesitant that she wouldn’t remember any notes, but as she plays some music pieces, she realizes that these pieces were easy and had the same rhythm. At that moment, I believe the narrator thought if she would of tried hard enough at the time, she would of been successful that night and made her mother