Wednesday 22 March 2017

Which excerpt from “Two Kinds” shows that the mother knows how her daughter can become a prodigy?

To Jing-mei's mother, being a prodigy is not only the result of inborn talent but also of effort and desire. In her mother's view, the promise of America, as opposed to China, was that in America one could be whatever one wantedto be. Thus her mother announces to Jing-mei when she is only nine, "Of course you can be prodigy, too." When Jing-mei opposes her mother about playing the piano, the mother insists she...

To Jing-mei's mother, being a prodigy is not only the result of inborn talent but also of effort and desire. In her mother's view, the promise of America, as opposed to China, was that in America one could be whatever one wanted to be. Thus her mother announces to Jing-mei when she is only nine, "Of course you can be prodigy, too." When Jing-mei opposes her mother about playing the piano, the mother insists she doesn't expect Jing-mei to be a genius, only to "be your best." She tells Jing-mei that the reason she is "not the best" is "because you [sic] not trying." After Jing-mei has become an adult, her mother offers to give her the piano, the center of so much conflict in their relationship, as a birthday present. Jing-mei says she probably can't play anymore. Tan writes:



"You pick up fast," said my mother, as if she knew this was certain. "You have natural talent. You could been [sic] genius if you want to. ... You [sic] just not trying."



This section shows the three elements Jing-mei's mother believes make a prodigy: natural talent, desire (wanting to), and effort (trying). 

No comments:

Post a Comment

Is there any personification in "The Tell-Tale Heart"?

Personification is a literary device in which the author attributes human characteristics and features to inanimate objects, ideas, or anima...