Amy Tan Two Kinds Reading Assignment

Reading Check

a. What does Jing-mei’s mother want for her daughter?

Jing-mei’s mother wanted her to become a prodigy in something. The story

states, “she would look through them all, searching for stories about remarkable

children.” This shows that she was really pushing to find something that Jing-mei

could successfully do.

b. How does Jing-mei feel about her mother’s plans for her?

At first, Jing-mei was fond of becoming a prodigy. After failing different

challenges her mom had for her, she begins to feel something die inside. While

looking at her reflection, she came to a realization that she is disappointing her

mother and she decides she will never be a prodigy. Then she states that “I won’t

let her change me, I promised myself. I won’t be what I’m not.”

c. What happens when Jing-mei plays the piano in front of an audience?

She messes up a note. After messing up a note, she begins to mess up other

notes which end in a disastrous performance.

d. What does Jing-mei say to hurt her mother in their last struggle over the piano

lessons?
After being forced by her mother to play the piano, she tells her mother no. This

leads to an argument, in which her mother says, “Only one kind of daughter can

live in this house. Obedient daughter!” This leads to the main character saying

that she wishes she was dead like her mother’s deceased twins.

e. What is the resolution to this mother-daughter conflict?

Her mother stopped forcing her to do anything. Jing-mei would continue to fall

short of expectations by not getting all A’s and not getting into Stanford. Her

mother never mentioned her playing the piano after the argument. Overall, they

resolved the situation by never discussing it again.

Shaping Interpretations

2. What do you think motivates the mother to push Jing-mei into being a prodigy?

Consider:

• the mother's life in China

• her life in America

I believe that Jing-mei's mother is pushed by her past experiences. She lost

everything that she originally had, so she did not want to lose any chances with

Jing-mei. This is why she pushed her to be a prodigy. The story states, “She had

come here in 1949 after losing everything in China: her mother and father, her

family home, her first husband, and two daughters, twin baby girls. But she never

looked back with regret. There were so many ways for things to get better.” This
shows that her mother was determined to have the best life in a new country and

she wanted the same expectation for her daughter.

3. Why do you think Jing-mei’s mother wants her to keep playing the piano, even after

her disastrous performance? What kind of daughter does she really want Jing-mei to

be? She wanted Jing-mei to continue to play piano because she truly believes

that Jing-mei has the potential to do anything. She just never tries. Her mother

describes her as, “Not the best. Because you not trying.” She wants a daughter

who can excel in whatever she puts time into doing and who will put in the effort

to do it.

4. How do you think other children might respond to the pressure to become a prodigy?

What inferences can you make about Jing-mei’s character from her response to her

mother’s pressure?

I feel as if this question has two answers. Some children would want to be

prodigy because they feel as if they owe it to their parents to make them proud.

On the other hand, some will resent their parents for forcing a principle onto them

that they did not ask for. Jing-mei resented her mom because she never cared

about being a prodigy, she just wanted to be herself. This was seen when she

looked into the mirror and said she will only be herself and not what her mother

wanted her to be.

5. Near the end of the story, Jing-mei says, “In the years that followed, I failed her so

many times. . . .” What do you think she means by that? Do you agree that Jing-mei

failed her mother? Does Amy Tan think so? Give your reasons.

I believe that she thinks she never lived to her mother’s expectations for her. She

never really amounted to anything substantial. However, I do not think she failed

her mother. Her mother told her, “You have natural talent. You could been genius

if you want to.” This shows that her mother never lowered her expectations,

instead, she lowered her own ambition to push her daughter to these

expectations of greatness that she had envisioned for Jing-mei.

6. What do you think the title of the story means? Do you think Jing-mei’s discovery

about the two Schumann songs also relates to the story’s title? Why, or why not?

She names the story Two Kinds because it shows the two types of people there

are. There are people who are obedient and reach for goals in front of them and

there are people who go their own way with no real expectation. This was

explained by her mother when she told her that there are only two types of

daughters, which are the ones that are obedient and the ones that follow their

own minds. This relates to the song because it shows the two sides of a child.

“Perfectly Contented” is about obedience and “Pleading Child” is about going

their own way. Each piece makes up the two sides of Jing-mei, as she relates to

her mother.
7. This story is in a collection called “Hearts That Love.” Are there “hearts that love”

Tan’s story? Find details from the text to support your response.

There are hearts that love throughout this story. For example, Jing-mei's mother

loves her this is why she pushed her to be the best. Her mother states, “you have

natural talent. You could been genius if you want to.” She believed in her. Jing-

mei also loves her mother which is why she originally tried to impress her by

becoming a prodigy. I feel like the strongest love in this story is between the

mother and the main character despite the arguments that they had between the

two. When she was given the piano as a present, her mother did that as a way of

love, showing that her mother has apologized for her actions in pushing her

daughter too far. The love between them never died. The only thing that died is

the expectations.