Name Date

Before Reading  Two Kinds Piano Room, 2000, Shuai Mei. Egg tempera on canvas, courtesy of Schoeni Art Gallery Ltd., Hong Kong.

LITERARY ANALYSIS: Analyze Protagonist and Antagonist

The protagonist is the main character. The antagonist is the opposing

character. Conflict occurs when the two characters want different things. Critical Viewing Describe what is happening in this oil painting. How do you
think each character feels about the music?

Comprehension Coach

A. Read the passage below. Identify the protagonist and the antagonist and
write what each character wants in the chart. Then answer the question.

Look Into the Text

Three days after watching The Ed Sullivan Show, my mother

told me what my schedule would be for piano lessons and piano
practice. She had talked to Mr. Chong, who lived on the first floor
of our apartment building. Mr. Chong was a retired piano teacher
and my mother had traded housecleaning services for weekly
lessons and a piano for me to practice on every day, two hours a
day, from four until six.
When my mother told me this, I felt as though I had been sent
to hell. I whined and then kicked my foot a little when I couldn’t
stand it anymore.
“Why don’t you like me the way I am? 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 dollars!” I cried.

Types of
Who Is She? What Does She Want?
Characters

Protagonist _______________________ _______________________

_______________________ _______________________
_______________________ _______________________

Antagonist _______________________ _______________________

_______________________ _______________________
_______________________ _______________________

B. What is the conflict between the protagonist and the antagonist?

The narrator ,protagonist,wants to be accepted for who she is and not
_____________________________________________________________________________________
made to play the piano.her mother, the antagonist, apposes her to play
_____________________________________________________________________________________
the piano.
20  Unit 1: Double Take
 Name Date

FOCUS STRATEGY: Clarify Ideas

Focus Strategy
How to Clarif y Ideas
1. Note Confusion  Stop reading if something is unclear.
2. Reread  Go back. Reread slowly to see if you missed something important.
3. Read On  Keep reading. The answer may come later.
4. Relate to Personal Experience  Link ideas by using what you already know.

A. Read the passage. Use the strategies above to clarify the ideas. Answer
the questions below.

Look Into the Text

And after seeing my mother’s disappointed face once again,

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 when I saw
only my face staring back—and that it would always be this
ordinary face—I began to cry. Such a sad, ugly girl! I made high-
pitched noises like a crazed animal, trying to scratch out the face
in the mirror.

1. Why is the narrator crying and behaving “like a crazed animal”?

___________________________________________________________________________________________
She’s behaving that way because she is discouraged about being ordinary.The
narrator is upset to think that she can never full fill her mothers expectations
___________________________________________________________________________________________
2. Which strategy did you use to answer question 1? How did the
strategy help you clarify ideas?
___________________________________________________________________________________________
Text
___________________________________________________________________________________________
B. Choose one of the strategies you did not use. Explain how you could
have used this strategy to clarify ideas.

_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________

Unit 1: Double Take  21