Literary Devices Found in Two Kinds
Oliver Gallardo August 24, 2012
Setting
This story takes place in San Francisco, California in the most populated by chinese place Chinatown
Characters
Jing-mei and her mother are the main characters that appear in the text they conflict agianst eachother through out the story.
Plot
The story stars out with the background of the mother how she lost her other children in China and introduced her high hopes for Jing-mei in America. The rising action is when the mother puts Jing-mei through all of the prodegy trainig. The climax is when the talent show comes around and Jing-mei blows it then the mother and her have a fight about being a prodegy then the mother backs off. The falling action is when the mother and daughter make up. The conclusion is when the daughter goes back and plays the piano and realizes that her mother only anoyed her with the prodegy stuff because she loved her and wanted her to be happy.
Internal Conflict
Jing-mei shows internal conflict when she tries her hardest but does not do well and she fells she has disappointed her mother. She also experiences internal conflict when she goes up on the stage during the talent show she feels that she wants to be succesfull but she ended up failing because she had practiced it wrong just because her mother wanted her to succed.
External Conflict
Throughout the story Jing-mei and her mother show external conflict because they're always fighting about being a prodegy.
Theme
In this stroy Jing-mei feels obligated to do what her mom wants her to do beacuse she feels that her mother would be disapointed in the regular person that she wants to be when instead of going along with the mother she could have just told her that she does not want to be a prodegy.
Symbolism
When the mother gives Jing-mei the piano it sybolises forgivness. The other girl in the mirror that Jing-mei sees every time she fails represents her hatred and she puts the blame on her mother.
When Jing-mei first looks into the mirror she sees an ordinary face that she feels will never be outstanding it show that she is beging to loose confidence in herself. It relates to the title because it shows two different personalities.
Jing-mei and her mother are both strong willed and are pitted against eachother because her mother wants something for her daughter that her daughter does not want.
Jing-mei's mother everything inChina now all the hopes she had for everyone she loved have been shoved on her dughter, she wants her to have a really good life so she expected her to amazing at everything.