ipl-logo

Amy Tan Two Kinds Cultural Analysis

571 Words3 Pages

Everyone has their own unique cultural identity. Individuality is the genetic code for differences and individuality, and it allows people to perceive certain aspects of the world through a different lens. Everyone has different tastes in music, different behavioral attributes, and different facial features that set others apart. To a great extent, one’s culture informs the way they view others and the world. One example of how culture influences the perspectives of others is in the novel excerpt, “Two Kinds” by Amy Tan. On Page 23, Jing Mei’s mom becomes entranced by a young Chinese pianist on The Ed Sullivan Show, and immediately signs up Jing Mei for weekly piano classes. When Jing Mei finds out about these classes, her perspective on …show more content…

Jing Mei is signed up to perform at a local talent show in front of her family, despite having no interest in playing the piano. Her performance of a piece ironically titled “Pleading Child”, as expected, doesn’t go well, which only makes Jing Mei and her mom’s perspectives of each other more negative. Ultimately fueled with hatred on Page 27-28, Jing Mei has a meltdown, thinking to herself, “My true self had finally emerged. So this was what had been inside of me all along.” Feeling both pressured and embarrassed by her family, especially her mom, Jing Mei, musically, feels powerless, and all of her might to be a prodigy disappears after her performance. Regardless, her mother still is persistent on Jing Mei becoming a prodigy, despite her passionless performance and her family’s negative reaction. In return, Jing Mei becomes angry at her mother, and will do anything to change her mind. Screaming, “I wish I were dead! Like them.”, her mother freezes, disappointed in her daughter, and quits Jing Mei’s piano classes. On Page 28-29, Jing Mei’s perspective on the world becomes more apparent: “For unlike my mother, I didn’t believe I could be anything I wanted to be, I could only be me.” After Jing Mei’s cultural experiences, and her mother’s contrasted beliefs of Jing Mei’s musical power, Jing Mei feels more culturally and musically independent, as well as

Show More
Related
453 Words | 2 Pages

Throughout her childhood life her mother, Suyuan, was continuously pushing her to be her best. Jing-Mei purposely tried to fail at everything to prover to her mother that she could never become a great and famous person. Then after a piano recital that went horridly wrong, her and her mother had an argument and their relationship was never the same. Many years later Suyuan tried to give Jing-mei the piano that she had as a child. She refused the offer, but than a year later her mother died and Jing-Mei was cleaning out her mother’s house and decided to play the piano and she was surprised that she still knew how.

Read More
1615 Words | 7 Pages

One day, Jing-Mei’s family and Waverly’s family meet and both mothers brag about how their daughters are very successful. After seeing her mom brag about her non-existent talents, Jing-Mei is determined to stand in the way of her mother's ambitions. A few weeks later, Jing-Mei participates in a talent show at a church hall, although she hasn't practiced and does not know any of the music. Halfway through the song, she realizes how badly she’s playing. The weak applause and her parents’ look of disappointment revealed the indisputable truth: Jing-Mei is not a musical prodigy.

Read More
657 Words | 3 Pages

With the mother pushing her this much it makes her very strict. She doesn’t really give Jing a choice. This also made Jing feel like her mother didn’t like her the way she was. “’Why don’t you like me the way I am?’ I cried.

Read More
645 Words | 3 Pages

Although June never was as successful as her mother had hoped she’d be, her mother was very proud and believed that she had a good heart. June finally understood her mother’s intentions in her parenting. Suyuan wanted June to realize her internal worth, rather than monetary and academic success or fame. Suyuan had to grasp that her daughter wasn’t a traditional Asian girl with traditional goals for her life. She was June, and she was

Read More
430 Words | 2 Pages

Daisy hopes that young Jing-mei will try to be her best at anything. The mother's encouragement shows how greatly important it is for her daughter to succeed. In any of her works, Amy Tan includes various Chinese cultural values. One value that is existent in every on of her pieces is family, for it is a very important aspect of Chinese culture that

Read More
1066 Words | 5 Pages

This disagreement quickly became a source of resentment and anger for both of them, but Jing-Mei and her mother were unable to resolve this conflict because of their different backgrounds and experiences. The story showcases how relationships between mothers and daughters can be strained because of differences in culture and a lack of communication. One of the difficulties between Jing-Mei and her mother is their different cultural backgrounds, which is supported by two points from the story. Firstly, Jing-Mei and her mother both disagreed on the opportunities that existed in America. According to Singer, Amy Tan uses “two entirely

Read More
628 Words | 3 Pages

Every day we use our culture. Whether it be to argue claims, express opinions, or make decisions, culture plays a part in each area. Culture is who we are, one’s identity, its extent is enormous over our views and actions. A person grows up surrounded with culture at a young age. This can affect how they learn and what they learn.

Read More
408 Words | 2 Pages

However, some of the things her mother showed and did got her excited to become this. In the beginning of “Two Kinds”, Jing- mei and her mother were watching TV and Shirley Temple was on. Jing- mei and her mother were watching something they thought was magnificent. Jing- meis’ mother said, “ Ni Ken – you watch”, she said this to Jing- mei because she thought they were like training videos to help her become a famous child star.

Read More
1369 Words | 6 Pages

At first Jing-Mei grew in her dreams and desirers to be perfect for her family; “In all of my imaginings

Read More
2019 Words | 9 Pages

She then uses these “new thoughts” and ideas to state that she “won’t let her [mother] change” her into the person she seeks her daughter to be. When Jing-Mei experiences a realization that she is her own person and not simply another part of her mother, she can embrace the comfort of knowing that she will not change for anyone, and is simply extraordinary for having her own thoughts and feelings. This reflects how Amy Tan can understand her thoughts and feelings about the hardships in her relationship with her mother as a way to connect more closely to her characters and make them more realistic in her writing (“How Amy Tan’s family stories made her a

Read More
650 Words | 3 Pages

Her mother eventually forgives her for what she said in their argument and offers to send her the piano as a birthday gift. After her mother's death, Jing-mei accepts the piano. While looking through her mother's things, Jing-mei finds sheet music of the song she practiced for a talent show when she was a child. She sits down at the piano and plays the song, realizing that it wasn't as difficult as she perceived it to be when she was young. She then realizes that the two sheets of music, titled "Pleading Child" and "Perfectly Contented," are two halves of the same song.

Read More
733 Words | 3 Pages

I suppose when i used to think of cultural identity, i perceive it as what racial background we come from, what race we are. Whether it’s Mexican, Asian, French, etc… I assumed it meant what special foods we eat, and events or activities we participate in according to our background. Little did i know this is a misconception; quite a common one actually. Cultural identity is actually how you live your life and how you express yourself, the things you enjoy that make you, you. I am someone who enjoys many things, ranging from A-Z.

Read More
937 Words | 4 Pages

Jing Mei, while portrayed as an obedient child, is only willing to listen to her mother to a certain extent. Throughout the story, it is consistently hinted that Jing Mei would eventually explode against her mother as an attempt to free herself from her mother’s chains. In addition, after the fiasco at the piano recital, she eventually derives further from her mother’s wishes as she “didn 't get straight A...didn 't become class president...didn 't get into Stanford...dropped out of college.” (54). On the flip side, Jing Mei’s mother is a stereotypical Chinese parent who is fully determined to ensure her daughter’s success in a new environment.

Read More
1309 Words | 6 Pages

At her first glance at them, she knew exactly who they were because of their resemblance to their mother. However, as she approached them, she realized that there were no evident similarities in features between them and her mother, but that the similarities she noticed at first ran deep in their blood: they were family. And at this brief moment of realization, the most perceptible change in Jing-Mei took place. She said, “Now I also see what part of me is Chinese. It is so obvious.

Read More
477 Words | 2 Pages

“For unlike my mother, I did not believe I could be anything I wanted to be, I could only be me.” (Tan 24). With this statement you can see that she does not agree with her mother. Jing-Mei’s Mother was raised in Chinese culture, therefore she is very strict and demanding to Jing-Mei to do what she wants. From doing a chore, to hobbies or even Jing-Mei’s passion.

Read More

More about Amy Tan Two Kinds Cultural Analysis

Open Document