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Amy Tan Two Kinds Theme

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Alesia Robinson March 6, 2018 ENGL 1102 “Two Kinds" Interpretation and Analysis As I read the story, the words used seem to be dimensionless and one could also say static. In the story, "Two Kinds" by Amy Tan a major element in the story is the narrator. The voice of the narrator creates the tone, and characters in the story which make the story seem real when played in your thoughts. Jing-Mei is the narrator, and she is the daughter of a Chinese immigrant. As the story progresses, her journey through the struggling relationship with her mother is unfolded. The closeness Jing-Mei felt was almost instantly, because she plays the part of a protagonist. Because she is the storyteller, it is easy to understand the things she is going through. …show more content…

She wants her parents to be happy and proud of her, as most children do. Although Jing-Mei wanted to be the kid that would never disappoint, her normal rebellious ways were hard to avoid. This was a point in proving her childishness, while her mother was trying to make her this perfect person, she was doing the opposite. Jing-Mei had a change in perspective occurred after her mom tested her memory many times by making her memorize bible passages and capitals. Every time Jing-Mei answered incorrectly or stumbled with remembering, her mother would look disappointed in …show more content…

She wanted to be normal, independent, and free from her mother's high standards and expectations. Jing-Mei says, "I won’t let her change me, I promised myself." We can say she gives up hope of being a child prodigy. Because Jing-Mei is a child, we can trust her feelings towards things because she has an honest view of the the world. At the the time of the showdown after the talent show drama, Jing-Mei made it clear she wasn’t going to anymore piano lessons by going off on her mother in the worst way. Jing-Mei knowing her mother lost her twin daughters said the most disrespectful, hurtful, and meanest thing she could. Jing-Mei shouted, "I wish I were dead! Like them." Her words fulfilled every ounce of frustration and anger she had towards her

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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

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