Mia Estelle James: A Short Story

The piano in “Two Kinds” by Amy Tan is a vital symbol to the story. The piano was first introduced when June and her mother were watching television. The narrator illustrated that the piano music on the television, “…was being pounded out by a little Chinese girl, about nine years old, with a Peter Pan haircut” (Tan 384). This closely resembles the description of June, and most importantly, the mother seemed to judges the girl has harshly as she did to June. This is evident when June argued, “maybe she’s not the best, but she’s trying hard” (Tan 385). The mother bluntly responded to Amy, “just like you” (385). Therefore, it was almost as if the mother not only wants Amy to be like the girl on the television playing the piano, but even grander.

It wasn’t until that summer I walked across a bright yellow home. Through the windows, I could see an Asian woman was playing a beautiful song on her black grand piano. The sound of her music was like a stream of water running quietly through the green forest. From that moment, I became inspired to learn how to play the piano. I decided to take piano lessons with her and made it a goal to learn how to play the piano. My piano teacher, Ms. Li, was my role model because she showed me that there are unique and fascinating things people can learn to do in this world. As days turned to months and months turned into years, I continued to strive to become my inspiration. Many times, I felt like the Indians on the reservation and just wanted to give up because I felt it was too hard to make it to the top. Eight years later, I’ve completed my piano training. Today, people would always compliment my style of playing when I would play the piano. Sometimes I would come across a very young boy or girl who wanted to learn how to play the piano after they heard me play. I told them, “If you put your mind to it, you can do anything.” My piano teacher has been and will always be my inspiration and role model. Today, I have become a role model and inspiration for many people who want to learn how to play the piano. Role models and heroes are important in shaping people’s personalities and qualities because they provide people with goals to strive for.

I also think Mia moved on to be very famous, because of her amazing talent on the cello. Overall, I think despite all the sadness Mia got her happy ending after

She began to rebel, “‘why don’t you like me the way I am?’ I cried. ‘I’m not a genius! I can’t play the piano. And even if I could, I wouldn’t go on TV if you paid me a million

She says, “I looked at my reflection… the girl staring back at me was angry, powerful” (601). She embraces this side of herself instead of trying to work with her mother or stand up for herself in a meaningful way. Instead, she just gives up. “I performed listlessly…I pretended to be bored” (601). She purposely practices the piano wrong, “If I hit the wrong notes…I never corrected myself” (603). While she could have made herself into a really good piano player, it was more important to her that she go against her mother. In the end, it’s her own character that suffers.

Even though Jing-mei thought she was safe from having to learn to play the piano because her family did not have one and could not afford one, her mother traded housecleaning services for a piano and lessons with a neighbor who was a retired piano teacher in the apartment building in which they lived. She told Jing-mei that she would be practicing for two hours every day. This was when Jing-mei realized that she was not going to be free to be who she wanted to be and her mother

Molly Mullis may not be the loudest person in the Freshman class, but she definitely knows how to channel her voice. Her voice isn’t heard through her mouth, however: it’s heard through her heart. Beginning in 2013, Molly has taken 30-minute piano lessons once a week for the entirety of the school year. This extensive training allows her to play a plethora of familiar and/or challenging pieces; moreover, it has given her the chance to create her own music herself. Often times, she will simply sit at the piano and then see her where her fingers take her. “Usually the songs will come depending on my mood,” she says. Even though many of her improvisations happen at her house, Molly does take time to share her work with the world. Last May, she

As an adult, Jing-mei’s mother offers her the piano once more, and Jing-mei accepts the gift. Appreciating the encouragement and faith her mother bestows upon her Jing-mei decides to care for the piano. The piano piece

As a pianist, her career was a failure and thus we move into the climax of this story. On

In the beginning, Ni Kan became “just as excited as her mother, maybe even more so” at the idea of her becoming a prodigy (Tan, 223). She could imagine herself with many different talents and she felt that once she “became perfect,” (Tan, 223) her parents will never be disappointed with her. Unfortunately, her mother has become so demanding of her that she is forced to take daily tests at home. Ni Kan tells of “the tests are harder- multiplying numbers in my head without using my hands, predicting the daily temperature in Los Angeles, New York, and London” (Tan, 223). Ultimately, her mother talked her into taking piano lessons, this became the mother’s center of her judgement. As the story continues to reveal the many conflicts between mother and daughter. Ni Kan explains of the enormous amount of pressure her mother was putting on her to become a prodigy. She argues,

     The poem Piano, by D. H. Lawrence describes his memories of childhood. Hearing a woman singing takes him to the time when his mother played piano on Sunday evenings. In the present, this woman is singing and playing the piano with great passion. However, the passionate music is not affecting him, because he can only think about his childhood rather than the beauty of the music that exists in his actual space.

Following this, she embarrasses herself at her concert by messing up the two songs she was supposed to have mastered. This part is "Pleading Child". Reaching adulthood her mother gives her the piano for her birthday. She finds the two pieces she played at the concert and plays them with ease. " Perfectly Contented" with what she was able to play and the freedom of being able to play as she wishes.

Determination is emphasized through the entire story. This little girl is so focused on proving to her mother that she isn’t a prodigy that she doesn’t recognize the potential she has as a pianist. The story is told in chronological order starting from the main character being a little girl to when she's grown up. This is to unfold the story of her childhood and underline the goal. The story uses an anaphora by saying ”You could work for the government and get good retirement. You could buy a house with almost no money down. You could become rich. You could become instantly famous” (Amy Tan, 1). It repeats ”you could” to say with the right effort and determination you can do anything. The mother truly believed the daughter had great potential

Then when she must sing at the concert in the climax, show her conflicted, trying to overcome her fear. Maybe she sees the piano and sits down, like she’s alone, and she

Mary Canary is the main character of the story she is a 15 year old girl with Autism.Mary is very polished small girl with jet black hair, a small nose, rosy cheeks and smooth tan skin.Some people would say she was made out of Porcelain.Although she seemed perfect she was not she had a darkness inside that bothered her. Besides that Mary has a gift that she shared with the world she could play Piano better than anyone in her home town Welwyn Garden City. With her talent she had a sliver spoon in her mouth even her unseen flaws faded away.Over all Mary had a good life, two parents, a full blown scholarship to the Musical college of her choice and she was a healthy girl. Till one day after one of her concerts at the Cervello Theater a common place she performs. Mary slipped past the mass of her fans after the show to catch some air outside. Mary was running so fast hoping no one would notice. They usually don’t she is so small she could weave through.Her parents the Canaries were too busy talking to potential clients the to notice her.The show had gone well like always. Even getting a standing ovation and encore.Mary was sad and overwhelmed when she performed she would usually have her sound blocking ear pieces yet for some odd reason they were forgotten them, the sounds was just too much to handle. Mary had so many fans, even the newspapers wrote about her. Headlining Mary Canary Next Mozart??? All these positive things Mary has accomplished as young child yet she was still