Two Kinds By Amy Tan Literary Analysis

Mothers have always played an important role in their daughter's life. They help mold us into the people we will become; they are there for us when we need support and raise us in the best way they know how. In Amy Tan's "Two Kinds", we see Jing-mei struggle with her mother's expectations and the disappointment that follows when she doesn't meet them. She struggles to see her mother's quiet support and love and instead feels as though she isn't being seen for who she really is. Like many other mother-daughter relationships, Jing-mei and Mrs. Woo had their ups and downs but despite unmet exceptions and miscommunications, they were able to obtain a better understanding of each other. Ultimately the story reveals that daughters typically have complex relationships with their mothers but it's difficulties that make those relationships stronger and deeper.
Jing-mei's Mother, Mrs. Woo, always had high hopes for her daughter but those hopes didn't exactly translate well. When Mrs. Woo came to America, she had high expectations for what someone could accomplish here, "America was where all my mother's hopes lay" (Tan, 336). The use of the word "all" emphasizes the extent to which Mrs. Woo believed America would give her a new and better life. This new life included her daughter becoming a prodigy, she didn't know
It took Jing-mei years to discover the real reason behind her mother's demands. She didn't expect Jing-mei to be someone else but only wanted her to be the best version of herself. It was through all of her hopes, expectations, piano lessons, talents shows, and disappointments that Mrs. Woo communicated with her daughter. However, it wasn't until after her mother’s death that Jing-mei would realize all of this and understand that like the piano song, her and her mother were two halves of the same