Two Kinds: Themes | SparkNotes

Themes are the fundamental and often universal ideas explored in a literary work.

Obedience versus Individuality

The title of the story, “Two Kinds,” refers to Jing-mei’s mother’s statement that there are two kinds of daughters: those that obey and those that choose to be an individual. This idea encompasses the story’s central theme of obedience versus individuality. Jing-mei’s mother escaped Communist rule in China where obedience and collectivism were valued over individualism. Jing-mei was born in the United States which values individualism over everything. Jing-mei’s mother wants her daughter to be obedient, but Jing-mei is convinced that she cannot obey her mother and be herself at the same time. In the pursuit of individuality, Jing-mei sabotages both herself and her mother’s hope. Her mother only ever wanted Jing-mei to try, so Jing-mei is determined to fail. In this way, she fails as an individual on her own terms. It isn’t until she becomes an adult that she realizes she could have been both kinds of daughters: obeying her mother, putting effort into learning the piano, and becoming successful while maintaining her individuality.

Cultural Identity, Assimilation, and the American Dream

Jing-mei’s mother believes in the American Dream—that anything, particularly material wealth, is possible if one tries, but this view leads to assimilation issues and a faltering cultural identity for Jing-mei. When describing all that is possible in America, Jing-mei’s mother lists all the material successes one could accrue and considers fame the ultimate gain. Jing-mei’s mother constantly compares her daughter to children from American TV and magazines. Initially, both she and her mother want her to be like the blonde-haired, blue-eyed American icon Shirley Temple. In trying to look like Temple, Jing-mei experiences a symbolic loss of identity when her hair is destroyed and must be chopped off. When Jing-mei fantasizes about her inner prodigy, she pictures her as a ballerina, as Cinderella, and as the Christ child. Her own fantasies do not include any figures from her Chinese heritage because she is disconnected from it. It is notable, too, that Jing-mei’s mother is critical of the lone Chinese prodigy she presents to Jing-mei and sets her up to emulate: the little Chinese pianist on the Ed Sullivan Show. By assimilating, Jing-mei has favored American culture and has lost touch with Chinese culture. However, when she looks in the mirror, she sees what she perceives to be the source of her mother’s disappointment: that she is ordinary. Her mother wants her to stand out, but by being ordinary, Jing-mei can blend in, just as she wants to blend into American society by forgoing her Chinese culture. After her mother dies, Jing-mei’s decision to keep the silk Chinese dresses is symbolic of her acceptance her Chinese heritage.

Mother and Daughter Generational Conflict

Both mother and daughter in this story represent a generational push and pull in opposite directions. “Two Kinds” refers to the two kinds of daughters Jing-mei’s mother talks about, symbolized by the two songs at the end of the story, but also represents the two opposite forces of mother and daughter. For all of Jing-mei’s mother’s hopes for and pride of her daughter, she does not attempt to bridge the gap between them or concede her position. She does not ever ask what Jing-mei wants but instead forces her will. Jing-mei responds by pulling the other way. With every instance of pride or hope she sees in her mother, Jing-mei is determined to produce the opposite result. Jing-mei and her mother were raised and grew up very differently. With her Chinese upbringing, Jing-mei’s mother doesn’t understand the experiences of Jing-mei’s American youth. In Jing-mei’s adulthood after her mother’s death, she realizes there were two sides to the story of the conflict with her mother: one in which Jing-mei felt stifled by her overbearing mother, and one in which she is able to see her mother as a flawed human with good intentions. Her recognition that the piano pieces “Pleading Child” and “Perfectly Contented” create a complete song represents her eventual understanding of her mother and a forgiveness of both mother and daughter for the conflict that plagued their relationship.

Miscommunication and Misunderstanding

Due to language difficulties and cultural differences, Jing-mei and her mother are doomed to misunderstand each other. These communication difficulties emerge most notably in the dialogue between the two characters. Jing-mei speaks fluent English while her mother speaks in both broken English and in Chinese. Jing-mei’s mother is determined to make her daughter a prodigy, but it is possible that she doesn’t understand what a prodigy is as she is focused on the notoriety of such a role rather than on the inherent skill it requires. Because of her mother’s misinterpretation of this word, Jing-mei doesn’t have a firm grasp on what she is expected to become. She describes her inner prodigy as a trapped girl who is running out of time, then as a powerfully disobedient force, and finally as a heroic figure who will gloriously emerge at the talent show. Though her mother states that she only wants her to try her best, her insistence that Jing-mei can be a genius is confusing and frustrating.

As Jing-mei seems to have a natural talent for the piano, it is possible that she might have become a talented player. But the many misunderstandings between Jing-mei and her mother ultimately cloud her path and render it difficult for Jing-mei to make an honest attempt. Additionally, had Jing-mei’s mother opened up about her past trauma and loss, Jing-mei might have understood why her mother pushed her so hard. When Jing-mei enters adulthood and remarks on their inability to communicate, she wonders why her mother hoped for something that would inevitably fail and why she gave up hope when it did. Instead of asking these questions, Jing-mei is left to interpret her mother through objects like the piano until it is too late to gain any meaning through communication.

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