Amy Tan's "Two Kinds".

In Amy Tan's short story "Two Kinds" we see the strained relationship between a Chinese immigrant mother and a first-generation American daughter. Throughout the text, Jing-mei's mother continually pushes her to become a prodigy. She is so obsessive of her daughter's excellence, that she does not see the emotional damage she creates. Jing-mei reacts negatively to the pressure. She becomes indifferent, angry, excited and hopeful; her emotions fluctuate, because she is in a perpetual struggle …

…her daughter will always be just Jing-mei. The piano is almost like a trophy, it says "OK, you've won." After Jing-mei wins she is comfortable enough to play the piano--the piece of furniture that tormented her. She is at peace playing "Pleading Child." At a glance she notices that the other half of the song is "Perfectly Contented." At the final stage in the story, that is exactly how she feels, perfectly contented. Word Count 537