Two Kinds Conflict Essay

The central struggle in Amy Tan 's story "Two Kinds" is a battle of wills between the narrator, a young Chinese American girl, and her mother, a Chinese immigrant. "Two Kinds" is a coming-of-age story, in which the narrator, Jing-mei, struggles to forge her own sense of identity in the face of her strong-willed mother 's dream that she become a "prodigy." Jing-mei is caught between her Chinese mother 's traditional ideas about how to raise a daughter, and her own development as a Chinese American girl straddling two cultures.

“Two kinds” is a story, a Chinese girl whose life is influenced by her mother. Her mother came to America after losing everything in China. Jing-Mei’s mother was immigrated early to America from China who has “American dream”. Her mother had high expectations on her daughter and did not care how it could affect her. It made Jing-Mei become a stubborn and rebellious person. “In the years that followed, I failed her so many times, each time asserting my own will, … for unlike my mother, I did not believe I could be anything I wanted to be, I could only be me. (104) She expressed her anger by going against her mother's expectations in ‘who I am’, it inferred that such tendency come from her childhood experiences. Jing-Mei was frustrated because she could not satisfy her mother.

In the short story, "Two Kinds" by Amy Tan, a Chinese mother and daughter are at odds with each other. The mother pushes her daughter to become a prodigy, while the daughter (like most children with immigrant parents) seeks to find herself in a world that demands her Americanization. This is the theme of the story, conflicting values. In a society that values individuality, the daughter sought to be an individual, while her mother demanded she do what was suggested. This is a conflict within itself. The daughter must deal with an internal and external conflict. Internally, she struggles to find herself. Externally, she struggles with the burden of failing to meet her mother’s expectations. Being a first-generation Asian American,

Jing Mei is starting to get the feeling that her mother is putting too much pressure on her. In Friday Night Lights Mike is starting to feel the pressure as he gets closer to the game.In “Two Kinds” Jing Mei is failing at all the test that her mother is putting in front of her and she is trying but she is getting to the point where she is wanting to give up and just not do them anymore. But Jing Mei’s mother is saying that she is only wanting the best for Jing Mei but, Jing Mei is not seeing it this way.

sobbed Jing-Mei(Tans Stanza 66).”Only two Kinds of daughters,those who are obedient and those who follow their own mind!” shouted Suyuan Woo ,which was the cause of the title of the novel “Two Kinds”(Tans Stanza 67).Jing-Mei shouted back “Then I wish I weren’t your daughter,I wish you weren’t my mother” which made her feel good that at last she showed this side of her.She felted the disappointment of her mother especially on how she failed her many times ,but she didn’t believe she can be anything she wanted to be ,but can only be herself. This goes against her mother 's belief on how she can become anything she wanted to be in America ,but the daughter wants to go her own way.

In her short story "Two Kinds," Amy Tan utilizes the daughter's point of view to share a mother's attempts to control her daughter's hopes and dreams, providing a further understanding of how their relationship sours. The daughter has grown into a young woman and is telling the story of her coming of age in a family that had emigrated from China. In particular, she tells that her mother's attempted parental guidance was dominated by foolish hopes and dreams. This double perspective allows both the naivety of a young girl trying to identify herself and the hindsight and judgment of a mature woman.

The story “Two kinds” introduces the protagonist 's as young Jing-Mei, and antagonist as her mother. The story’s physical setting takes place in San Francisco, the city Jing-Mei’s parents resided after immigrating from china.

“Two Kinds” is a short story written by Amy Tan about a young girl attempting to please her mother, but also cultivate her own identity. Ironically, (or most likely intentionally), there seem to be two different types of themes driving the text: the cultural differences between an immigrant and a natural born citizen of America, and a mother and daughter. The mother is an immigrant from China that believes in the American dream; she believes that anyone can make it in American with enough hard work and practice. However, her daughter was raised in American and does not have the same ideology as her mother. Instead, she believes that people should have their own identity and thoughts, rather than trying to be like someone else or impress other people. Her mother refuses to think in such a way, and instead attempts to make the daughter into a child prodigy. Unfortunately, the daughter gives up trying to please her mother, and instead begins to live her own life, to the disappoint of her mother.

The mother in “Two Kinds”, is culturally accustomed to raising a child to be obedient and expects her daughter to bare her extreme parenting measures. With the daughter’s mother coming from China she

Often in literature, character relationships change and evolve. “Two Kinds” by Amy Tan is about how a daughter’s feelings change when her mother has higher expectations than the daughter, Jing-mei, does in herself. Jing-mei’s lack of self confidence in becoming a prodigy creates conflict between her and her mother. After a careful analysis of the story, the reader understands how Jing-mei’s feelings toward her mother changed, why her feelings changed, and how those changed feelings affected the entire story.

In the story Two Kinds by Amy Tan it tells the tale of conflict between a mother Suyuan and her daughter Jing-mei over piano lessons. Two Kinds deals with a clash between a mother’s belief of hard work and persistance and a daughter's belief that being a prodigy is unachievable. Amy Tan shows generational differences among immigrant families negotiating the mythology of the American Dream.

In the “Two Kinds” story the author illustrates the struggle between her American cultural identity, and her mother’s Chinese culture, as like the characters in the story. The author shows what is the struggle and the conflict that cultural differences creates. The author also uses symbolism, to address the conflicts between the characters in the story.

The short story “Two Kinds” written by Amy Tan uses many literacy devises in it such as conflict, foil, syntax, point of view, setting, and theme. These literary devices help show the conflict in the story between the daughter and mother and there cultural difference in being Chinese and a Chinese-American. The first two literary devices to talk about go together which are conflict and foil. Conflict being the mother wanting something different then what the daughter wants for herself.

In the short story “Two Kinds”, by the author, Amy Tan intends to make the readers understand the real purpose behind the story by illustrating what is the real problem between her and her mother, she doesn’t speak out as an authority she is using her own point of view as a narrator to explained what she has experienced by living in The United States when her mother culture is from a different country. The daughter tried to explain her feelings and events of her childhood and how frustrated she is feeling for failing her mother expectations giving the story a bittersweet relationship between mother and daughter but a good sign of forgiveness end. The young Chinese American “June” in the story is going through a lot of pressure by living under her mom different lifestyle, Suyuan is the name of the mother she was born and raised in Asia but then she moved to the united states wanting the best for her family because she always said The United States was the country of opportunities but deep inside she was living with sadness and depression after having to left her twin baby girls in China in 1949. Suyuan the mother wanted her daughter June to be an American prodigy she was still applying the Asian culture on her and wanted June to just obey her orders by doing what she wanted not what she was really good at.

The short story, “Two Kinds”, written by Amy Tan, is written from the point of view of the character named Jing-Mei. There are three experiences which demonstrate her viewpoint. In the first experience, Jing-Mei is being told by her mom about the “American dream”. At first, she strives to pursue this prodigy. Her mom would test her every night after dinner. Through Jing-Mei’s eyes, she starts to realize that it was not the life she wanted to live. Lines in the story illustrate this when he says “I won’t let her change me, I promised myself. I won’t be what I’m not.” (p.406). In the second experience, Jing-Mei performs in a talent show. Her mother forced her to learn how to play the piano. After seeing a little girl playing the piano