Two Kinds Character Analysis

The use of children in the Sierra Leone Civil War was widespread, with up to 10,000 children taking part in the conflict and up to eighty percent of RUF forces between the ages of seven and fourteen. Ishmael is one of these children. In his memoir, A Long Way Gone, Lieutenant Jabati and his men exploit several techniques to transform these frightened children into ruthless killing machines. They do this through the use of drugs, pop culture, as well as character and emotional manipulation. Tactics like these create habits and addictions that are almost impossible to break.

Growing up is a hard time, and for the three most important characters in the short stories, “Two Kinds,” “The Bass, the River, and Sheila Mant,” and “Fish Cheeks” it certainly is no different. It makes them feel unacknowledged when all they want is just independence and acceptance of the ones that they find to be important to them. Acceptance is something every person wants to gain from everyone, it just is not something focused on commonly.

One of the difficulties between Jing-Mei and her mother is their different cultural backgrounds, which is supported by two points from the story. Firstly, Jing-Mei and her mother both disagreed on the opportunities that existed in America. According to Singer, Amy Tan uses “two entirely

That in return turns into resentment within the mother daughter relationship. In a study performed by Akm Aminur Rashid that was published in the Journal Of Humanities And Social Science states Mrs. Woo “places unreasonable expectations on the shoulders of her young tender daughter. While the mother may not exactly know where her daughter’s prodigal talents lie, she is nevertheless adamant that her daughter is destined for greatness, by virtue of having been born in America” (Matondang, A. Yakub, and Dja’Far Siddik, IOSR Journal of Humanities and Social Science, Www.iosrjournals.org). Although, Tan’s story is set 29 years ago, this issue of elevated expectations and cultural differences still remains today. Therefore, “Mrs. Woo’s aspirations for her daughter can be learnt from her dogmatic belief that America is the Land of Opportunity” (Matondang, A. Yakub, and Dja’Far Siddik, IOSR Journal of Humanities and Social Science, Www.iosrjournals.org). Which is safe to say that America does have many opportunities in which one can succeed in. But as an American we may see the chances of being some type of prodigy differently due to cultural

Ha’s life has turned inside out and back again. Ha’s life has turned inside out because she had been forced out of her home in Saigon due to war. Her life has also turned back again because she is settling into Alabama and starting to be smart again. Along her journey she faces many challenges because of language and other people not being friendly and welcoming to her. The book Inside Out and Back Again by Thanhha Lai is about a girl named Ha that is a refugee from the city of Saigon in Vietnam. She has to learn a new language and learn a new life in a different country. She gets bullied by the way she looks, but tires get through it at home by talking to her mother about it. One of her neighbors, Ms. Washington, helps her learn English

The American Dream is something all immigrants dream of achieving when arriving to the United States. But what exactly is the American Dream? Some believe it to be the long-term achievement of a goal through hard work, while others see it as a new opportunity to redo life. The emphasis and interpretation of the American Dream changes between generations because it evolves with a sense of individuality in the new era of citizens, as they lack the background that deprived older generations their rights, which made them crave success and achievement when arriving to America, as illustrated by the relationship of Suyuan and Jing-Mei Woo.

“After losing everything in China…She never looked back with regret.”(Chunk 1 ¶3). Jing-Mei’s mother is a Chinese immigrant with the typical ‘everything is better in America’ mindset. Jing-Mei, being raised in America, had more of an American mindset. “You want me to be someone i’m not…I’ll never be the daughter you want me to be!” (Chunk 6 ¶10). Jing-Mei feels as if she will never be able to please her mother because of their cultural differences. This causes cultural conflict between the two because they will never be able to please each other because they both have different mindsets, which they cannot see past.

In the short stories "Catch the Moon" and "Two Kinds," the main characters Luis and Jing-mei are both alike and different. They are alike in the sense that they rebel against their parents for similar reasons, but their reasons for rebellion differ. In both stories, the main characters eventually accept that their parent had their best interests in mind, but at different times and for different reasons.

“The Power of One” by Bryce Courtenay is a novel which illustrates the harsh truths of the systematic racism faced during South Africa’s apartheid. Throughout the novel Courtenay displays the main character Peekay’s growth and transition from a child to a man who grows up surrounded by the oppression of the South African people. Courtenay uses Peekay’s unprejudiced and independent spirit to show how one person can help to heal the tensions between the oppressed and the oppressor.

“My mother believed you could be anything you wanted to be in America-America was where all my mother's hopes lay,” (Tan). In this quote from the excerpt we see the views most people have coming to America from another country. “I was just as excited as my mother, I pictured this prodigy part of me as many different images,” (Tan). In this quote we can see how the daughter has the same view as her mother concerning their future. Due to their same cultural views and experiences, such as, coming from a hard life in China they have similar views on the world and

It is said that mothers and daughters have the closest bond on earth. This is the only relation where people can truly and blindly trust each other, but this relation can vary in different situations. In most families where both the mother and the daughter have the same root, they seem to have a good relationship with their mothers because they share the same point of view. In “Two Kinds” by Amy Tan, the mother’s harsh rules and Jing-Mei’s quick decisions have made Jing-Mei regret later in life. Similarly, in “Saving Sourdi” by May-Lee Chai, Sourdi’s mother’s traditional ways of living has made Sourdi to suffer through an abusive marriage. In both the stories, in which both families include a mother who is the first generation immigrant and the daughter who is an American citizen, their relation is very complex because of their distinct thinking.

"Two Kinds" by Amy Tan is a complex representation of an unsteady mother-daughter relationship. The focal point of the story is oftentimes troublesome yet inescapable and uncovers clashing values. The relationship between Jing-mei and her mother stretches throughout the story. Conflict rises as opposite standpoints in connection with identification surface. Living in America as a Chinese immigrant, Jing-mei 's mother plants her dreams of American success on the shoulders of her daughter. On the other hand, being born into this country, Jing-mei is against wanting to live up to the expectations her mother sets on her. Two kinds reveal two different sides of the cultural spectrum, and their opposing view towards their values. Jing-mei 's mother felt like an outcast existing in a dominate population. Grasping the same idea, she held onto her hard time back in her home. Jing-mei is her last hope to prove that her homeland can be just as talented as Americans. To follow through with this objective, her mother bends over backwards in search of the "right" kind of prodigy for her daughter. Although Jing-mei determinedly upsets her mother 's desires to make her a prodigy, it was as if it were decades afterwards in life that she picks up the understanding into her mother 's basic motives. This exposition will endeavor that "Two Kinds" is a compelling story to bring to light on the issues of identity.

In the book “Two Kinds” by Amy Tan, it’s about a little girl who is pressured by her mother to become something she doesn’t want to be. Jing- mei , the daughter, is forced to become a prodigy(child actress), by her mother, and she doesn’t want to be one. In the story, Jing- meis’ mother uses allusions such as Shirley Temple to push her into becoming a prodigy. Although at first Jing- mei is excited to become a prodigy, she later realizes its something she just doesn’t enjoy doing. Consequently, the uses of allusion in the story help Jing- mei discover to not be a prodigy and that what her mother wants for her is not always important. However, some of the things her mother showed and did got her excited to become this.

“Two Kinds” a short story out of Amy Tan’s book “The Joy Luck Club” is a representation of the pressures immigrant children face from their parents. In the story, we follow a young girl named Jing-Mei as she embarks down the road to becoming a Prodigy. Her mother believed that “you could be anything you wanted to be in America” (Tan). For Jing-Mei that meant her mother believed she could become instantly famous. “Of course, you can be a prodigy, too”, her mother told her (Tan). For a nine-year-old who wants nothing more than to make her mother proud this was exciting. In the beginning, we can see her excitement and desire, “in the beginning I was just as excited as my mother, maybe even more so.” (Tan). However, as we follow the story we see her excitement quickly fade to sorrow and anger. The high expectations immigrant families place on their children is still a very relevant social issue and can be witnessed throughout the United States. In this short story, we witness how a parent’s good intentions can ultimately lead to the destruction of their child’s motivation.

Similarly to More and Congreve, Melick finds comfort in his ignorance and is quite hostile to differing takes. De Mille describes Melick as “a litterateur”, whom alike to Congreve, proceeds to decipher the manuscript through the expertise he is familiar with (99). Yet, naysayers will state that Melick exemplifies an accurate interpretation of the novel as “a satirical romance” that mocks society; nevertheless, that is not the problem with Melick (De Mille 245). The issue that confounds Melick is his neediness to belittle and ridicule the remarks of his companions. After Congreve’s long and tedious explanation of “polar day”, Melick ridicules Congreve by giving him a glass of wine and remarking “after all those statistics… you must feel rather