Analysis of Two Kinds Written by Amy Tan - Essay Example

Two Kinds “Two Kinds” is a beautiful story written by Amy Tan. It deals with the most complex relationships between a mother and a daughter, perhaps, between all mothers and daughters. The desire of a mother to see her daughter growing up to become some kind of a prodigy is a theme of universal interest. The place may vary, the social conditions may vary, and even the culture may be different. But, the basic maternal love and desire cannot be different. If a mother is not intelligent enough to study and understand the different kinds of pressures under which she brings up her child, the relationships with her daughter may become strenuous. This is what one learns from Amy’s wonderful story. Therefore, “Two Kinds” provides an opportunity to the readers, particularly to all mothers, to undertake a critical evaluation of all the issues involved in the relationships between a mother and her daughter. This paper is an attempt to examine Amy Tan’s story in the light of the several conflicts in it, which shattered a mother’s maternal hopes to see her child becoming a musical prodigy. Mrs. Woo, a Chinese immigrant mother, settles in San Francisco with her young daughter. She is sincere and hard working. With the sole desire to see that her daughter comes up in her life, the mother scrapes and cleans many nearby houses. She also brings magazines and watches television to discover a role model for the child. A child actress named Shirley seems to be the right choice for her. But it does not click. Next, she tries to enrich her child’s knowledge. That also fails. "Why dont you like me the way I am?” questions the daughter (p.1). Finally, she thinks that her daughter is instinctively good to become a pianist. Therefore, she is sent to learn music under the tutorship of a deaf and blind piano teacher, an old man. The mother is now very sure that the child will become a musical prodigy. She learns the basic lessons in music. But the old tutor is not aware that the child has no enthusiasm to pick up music. It is this simple reality which is symbolically developed into a story by the writer to highlight the truth that no one can be forced to become a prodigy. The story also unravels the inner conflicting motives of the characters, which can never find a meeting place. The child is so adamant. She says, “And then I decided, I didnt have to do what mother said anymore. I wasnt her slave”(p.3). In short, the issues involved in the story are of universal interest. The first and foremost issue is that unless one has the innate talent, it is impossible to become a prodigy. To prove this the writer gives a contrast in the story. Waverly is another girl in the story, who becomes successful as a chess player. She receives only some simple guidance to develop her talent. And her mother knows the art of cultivating her skill. Mrs. Woo, on the other hand, uses her maternal power excessively, resulting in the total ruin of her instinct. “Only one kind of daughter can live in this house. Obedient daughter!” asserts the mother (p.3). Thus, an unconscious repulsion develops in the child towards music. In fact, “Two Kinds” highlights several pairs of opposing issues emerging from the situations created by the conflicting attitudes of the mother and the child. Two kinds of places, China and America, influence the inevitable conflicts. America symbolizes a dreamland. Mrs. Woo lacks the intelligence to blend these two kinds of cultures for the benefit of the child. The magazines and the television programs which she relies on to guide her are not really reliable ones; they are simply means of exploitations. Even human hopes are commercially exploited in a capitalistic country. Mrs. Woo becomes a victim to that. Both America and the piano are cultural traps. Not only two kinds of places, but several kinds of social pressures frustrate the sincere desires of the mother. The two dissimilar cultures, time in the form of past and present, old and new, obedience and defiance, expectations and reality, etc are some of the “Two Kinds” working on the tiny psyche of the child. Everything has two sides is something the mother never realizes. And, as far as the daughter is concerned, she is incapable of seeing beyond her immediate instinct. With all these, the mother has become an object of utter dislike for the child. Therefore, anything coming from her mother provokes her. With utter despair the child utters, "Then I wish I werent your daughter, I wish you werent my mother” (p.3). All these issues lead to the problem of space. The maternal space is filled with the thought of making her child a prodigy. And the child is striving to create a space of her own, independent of her mother’s influence. Here lies the greatness of the story. If taken in a wider sense, the growth of a child, be it physical or psychic, is not the exclusive concern of a mother. It is a social concern, a universal concern. Yet, the family is the microscopic centre where the character and culture are usually molded. Hence, if the mothers are not cautious, repulsive tendencies, as seen in the story, develop. By sending the child to the piano teacher, the mother thinks that there is nothing more to do. In fact, more than the teacher, it is the mother who is blind. She is blind to the changing reality. There is a general belief that once a child is admitted to a school, the parental responsibility ends there. The story proves the other way. The child failed in her musical performance mainly because the mother had no knowledge of the real level of her learning. The piano teacher stands as a symbol in the story, sending across the message that one should never take a teacher for granted. Like the mothers and children, the teachers are also likely to be of two kinds. The greatness of the theme alone cannot make a story great. The story, “Two Kinds”, reveals the writer’s ingenuity in telling a story. The narration is confessional and straightforward. It is full of humor and realism. The burden of American reality on an innocent child with Chinese heritage is marvelously depicted in the story. There cannot be a better title too. The two opposing kinds of forces working on an ignorant woman and an innocent child, making them victims of situations beyond their will or desire, catch the sympathy of the readers. The story gains a gripping quality as the events are narrated retrospectively, after about twenty years, when the child has grown up. Here again, the title becomes significant. We get the point of view of the narrator as a child, as well as a grown up woman. From these two different angles, the same inanimate object, piano, gains two different interpretations. There is an element of pathos too, as the daughter regrets that she, as a child, could not catch the true emotions of her mother. The object of dislike has now become an object of total acceptance. This has small philosophical implications too. Everything is relative, the narrator learns. She learns that the “Pleading Child”, which she failed to learn, is the first part of “Perfectly Contented”, her old lessons. The piano enables her once again to look at the different issues confronting life. It also gives her a chance to review the heritage and identity of her mother in relation to all the past events. She recollects, “Unlike my mother, I did not believe I could be anything I wanted to be, I could only be me” (p. 4). In short, the story can have several kinds of interpretations. Reference Tan, Amy. “Two Kinds”. http://www.angelfire.com/ma/MyGuardianangels/index9.html. 25 September, 2007. Read More