Theme Of Two Kinds By Jing-Mei

Parental Expectations: Jing-Mei and Her Mother The short story, “Two Kinds,” written by Amy Tan, explores the differences between a mother and daughter’s perspectives. Jing-Mei, a girl who wants to fulfill her mother’s dreams, develops her own goals in life and resists her mother’s scolding. Cultural norms, the pressure to achieve, and the debate of personal fulfillment or parental approval are explored through this story's theme of parental expectations.

Cultural norms are the first indication of parental expectations in the short story. They play a valuable role in the text since they explain the outcome of why certain characters evolve their actions. It illustrates how both Chinese and American culture clash and influence one another.

Parents put a lot of pressure on their children to strive for academic and professional success. Jing-Mei and her mother express this multiple times during the short story. The mom puts Jing-Mei through a series of activities because she believes she can become a prodigy. For example, forcing her to take multiple tests and enrolling her in piano lessons. Jing-Mei’s mother’s strong belief in her becoming a prodigy creates a sense of pressure to meet her mother’s expectations. “And after seeing, once again, my mother’s disappointed face, something inside of me began to die. I hated the tests, the raised hopes and failed expectations. Before going to bed that night I looked in the mirror above the bathroom sink, and I only saw my face staring back - and understood that it would always be this ordinary face - I began to cry. Such a sad, ugly girl!” (Tan, 2). Knowing that Jing-Mei cannot live up to her mother’s expectations, she begins to belittle herself, saying she’s a sad, ugly, ordinary girl. This short story pictures the pressure that parents may put on their kids to succeed throughout their life with the example of Jing-Mei and her

personal satisfaction. Jing-Mei struggles with the difficulty of choosing between her desires and her mother’s. Throughout the short story, she wants to live up to her mother’s expectations, but she is unhappy because she is being involuntarily forced into tasks. This brings up the idea for Jing-Mei to assert her independence to find her own path. She realizes that all this hard work she’s been doing is getting her nowhere, and decides that she is done following her mom’s instructions mindlessly. “I had new thoughts, willful thoughts - or rather, thoughts filled with wonts. I won’t let her change me. I promised myself. I won’t be what I’m not,” (Tan, 3). This quote highlights Jing-Mei’s understanding of the value of following her passions even when defying her mother. It underlines you should prioritize yourself over others. In the end, Jing-Mei chooses her happiness over her mother’s because she realizes the importance of finding her own