American Literature

Amy Tan has been considered one of the best ethnic writers in this age, but it is through the use of her characters, plot, settings and symbolisms that reach out and pull the reader into the story.  Her effective use of writing tools and techniques is shown in perfect harmony within her short story Two Kinds. Within 10 pages, Tan give the emotional story of a young girl that transcends the years until she is her own woman. This type of story is in-depth and moving, but would not be if not for the skillful use of the words. This analysis of Two Kinds will show that Tan uses these skills to perfection and ends up with a story that is moving and lacks for nothing even within its small confines of the short story.

The plot within this story is singular and focused with the basic premise of an individual learning to live as their own person.  In conflict with everyone around her, the protagonist keeps true to herself, even in the face of her parents, mainly her mother.  This whole focus of the plot is brought into life when her mother says, Only two kinds of daughtersThose who are obedient and those who follow their own mind (Tan 466).  The protagonist initially tries to be the child her mother wants, but eventually gives up You want me to be someone that Im not (Tan 467).   In this one sentence, it becomes clear that the protagonist is obviously one of those that follow their own mind (Tan 466).

These two kinds of daughters part of the main symbol of this story and are created with the differences between the protagonist and her cousin, Waverly.  The perfect daughter is one that obeys and it is apparent that Waverly obeys.  Her mother brags of her achievements She bring home too many trophy from her chess playing (Tan 464).  Her winning means that she is obedient and therefore a better daughter than the protagonist, however, that does not become clear until after the piano recital.  Unfortunately, her glory is not as anticipated and her mother is devastated.  Therefore it is implied that the protagonist is not an obedient daughter, because she is not as good as others.  Even the young cousin Waverly knows that protagonist is not as good when she smugly mentions You arent a genius like me (Tan 466), thereby disgracing the young girl to herself and her community.

The obedient daughter and the daughter of her own mind are two different sides of cultures. It is within this symbolism that the rest of the story, the plot, characters and setting are pulled together and bound nicely. The characters of this story are originally from China, but in the story live in Chinatown in Sacramento, California.
While the mother believes that America holds the ability to be rich and famous, she does not want to give up her heritage completely, and therefore lives in Chinatown.  Her daughter, on the other hand, is Chinese-American, going to American school, and learning to be an American individual.  The cousin Waverly represents the child raised in China.  It would seem only natural that Waverly, the obedient Chinese daughter, would be at odds with the protagonist, the American daughter following her own mind.  This was and is the main contention too many cultures moving to the United States, but the deep cultural history of China is embedded even deeper within their own communities.

Tan used her life, her provocations, and her ability to use just the right words to show the world the community of her youth. The cultural barriers that needed to be destroyed so that she could flourish is obvious in this story, but what is also obvious is that she wanted to be her own person, and American living by American codes of honor and culture, and not just another Chinese immigrant, held back by ancient culture.