The Relationship of Mothers and their Expectations of...

Our mothers have played very valuable roles in making us who a we are and what we have become of ourselves. They have been the shoulder we can lean on when there was no one else to turn to. They have been the ones we can count on when there was no one else. They have been the ones who love of us for who we are and forgive us when no one else wouldn’t. In Amy Tan’s â€Å"Two Kinds,† the character Jing-mei experiences being raised by a mother who has overwhelming expectations for her daughter, causes Jing-mei to struggle with who she wants to be. â€Å"Only two kind of daughters,† â€Å"Those who are obedient and those who follow their own mind!†(476). When a mother pushes her daughter to hard the daughter rebels, but realizes in the end that their mothers†¦show more content†¦However, her mother sees it as a way for her daughter to be the best. Meanwhile, Jing-mei decides to rebel against her mother’s wishes. During piano lessons with Mr. Chong she realizes easy ways to get out of practicing. Furthermore, Jing-mei discovers, â€Å"Old Chong’s eyes were too slow to keep up with wrong notes [she] was playing,†(472). As a result, Jing-mei performs â€Å"Pleading Child† miserably at the talent show her parents and all of the members of the Joy Luck Club attended. Jing-mei saw the disapproval and shame on her mother’s face, and decided to stop practicing piano. If Jing-mei’s mother wouldn’t have looked so disappointed and been proud of her daughter Jing-mei wouldn’t have been so discouraged. Jing-mei would’ve still had faith in herself like she did before her performance. â€Å"When my turn came, I was very confident. I remember my childish excitement. It was as if I knew, without a doubt, that the prodigy side of me really did exist. I had no fear whatsoever, no nervousness. This is it!† (474). After seeing the dismay in her parents eyes Jing-mei changed her whole outlook on the situation, which weakened Jing-mei’s pride, causing her to fully rebel from being a prodigy. Furthermore, encouraging her to be who she wanted to be. As an adult, Jing-mei’s mother offers her the piano once more, and Jing-mei accepts the gift. Appreciating the encouragement and faith her mother bestows upon her Jing-mei decides to care for the piano. The piano pieceShow MoreRelatedAnalysis Of Two Kinds By Amy Tan1567 Words   |  7 Pages One of the most complex relationships is that of a mother and daughter. Amy Tan is an author who writes about her life growing up as an Asian-American in Chinatown. Her novel The Joy Luck Club is a series of short stories about Chinese mothers and their assimilated daughters. One of these stories is â€Å"Two Kinds,† which looks into the life of Jing-Mei Woo and her struggle to gain a sense of self. Some key themes in The Joy Luck Club are the generational and intercultural differences among Chinese-A mericanRead More Amy Tans The Kitchen Gods Wife Essay1222 Words   |  5 PagesAmy Tans The Kitchen Gods Wife      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Amy Tans The Kitchen Gods Wife is the story of a relationship between a mother and daughter that is much more than it seems. This touchingly beautiful narrative not only tells a story, but deals with many of the issues that we have discussed in Women Writers this semester. Tan addresses the issues of the inequality given women in other cultures, different cultures expectations of women, abortion, friendship, generation gaps between mothers andRead MoreEssay on Two Languages and Two Cultures 1028 Words   |  5 Pages Two Languages and Two Cultures United States was built on immigrants and some of the immigrants were pushed from their homeland because of some reasons while other reasons such as America dream pulled them to the United States. Most of these immigrants came from China in 1949, when the communist party took over. These immigrants came with their cultures and languages which are significant in everyones lives because they play a major role in the development of individual’s characteristics.Read MoreTwo Kinds by Amy Tan Essay1820 Words   |  8 PagesTwo Kinds is a story about mother-daughter relationship Ââ€" Suyuan and Jing-mei. Suyuan believed that America is where her dreams will be fulfilled. She thought that her daughter, Jing-mei, would be the one to realize them. Jing-mei, on the other hand, was a confused child at first. She was led to believe that she can be someone. At first, she followed her mother, but when she felt that her mother was already forcing her and stealing her youth, she told hers elf that it was the end. The story is aRead MoreTwo Kinds vs. Yellow Wallpaper1599 Words   |  7 PagesTwo Kinds vs. The Yellow Wallpaper Literature 210 After reading two very different pieces of literature one could come to the conclusion that there are many similarities and many differences between them. By comparing and contrasting the two short stories Two Kinds by Amy Tan, and The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilmans we can better see how they are similar and different. Both authors of these short stories seemed to have created their stories a bit from theirRead MoreRelationship Between Parents and Children in Chinese Family1813 Words   |  8 PagesRelationship between Parents and Children in Chinese Family Guangyao Zhai Teddy Chocos Seminar-126G Apr 1, 2013 In general, parents from different cultures differ in the methods to deal with the relationship between their children. Comparing withRead MoreEssay on The Duality of the American Dream in Amy Tan’s Two Kinds1055 Words   |  5 Pagesdream can be found in Amy Tan’s short story, â€Å"Two Kinds.† The story centers around the daughter of a Chinese immigrant who desperately wants her daughter to become successful. In the story, the author shows the difficult lives immigrants face when moving to a new culture. In this short story, the theme shows the protagonist’s conflict with her mother on the type of daughter her mother wants her to be. The author establishes the theme of how difficult mother-daughter relationships can be through characterizationRead More Comparing Amy Tans The Joy Luck Club and The Woman Warrior Essay1866 Words   |  8 PagesComparing The Joy Luck Club and The Woman Warrior  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚   Amy Tans immensely popular novel, The Joy Luck Club explores the issues faced by first and second generation Chinese immigrants, particularly mothers and daughters. Although Tans book is a work of fiction, many of the struggles it describes are echoed in Maxine Hong Kingstons autobiographical work, The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood Among Ghosts. The pairs of mothers and daughters in both of these books find themselves separated alongRead More Point of View in Amy Tan’s Short Story, Two Kinds Essay1094 Words   |  5 PagesPoint of View in Amy Tan’s Short Story, Two Kinds In her short story Two Kinds, Amy Tan utilizes the daughters point of view to share a mothers attempts to control her daughters hopes and dreams, providing a further understanding of how their relationship sours. The daughter has grown into a young woman and is telling the story of her coming of age in a family that had emigrated from China. In particular, she tells that her mothers attempted parental guidance was dominated by foolish hopesRead More amy tan Essay1307 Words   |  6 Pages Amy Tan’s â€Å"Two Kinds† is an autobiographical look into her childhood that shows the conflict between Tan and her mother, the difference between old and new cultures, the past and the present, and parents’ expectations vs. reality. Couples of opposing elements comprise the basis of the entire story; to another extent even the title itself, â€Å"Two Kinds,† shows the friction that Tan creates. The strongest argument that Tan suggest is that this may not only be a loo k into her own life, rather it may

Immortal Beloved Essay - 707 Words

After seeing the acclaimed film, Amadeus, based loosely on the life of the child prodigy and great composer Mozart, the next best or potentially better choice had to be Immortal Beloved, a film focused on the equally amazing Ludwig van Beethoven and his infamous letters to an unknown lover. The sequences of events in the movie were largely intertwined. The movie begins with the death of Beethoven and proceeds with a friend and employee of Beethoven obsessed with justifying the rightful will of Beethoven’s assets and estate to an unknown lover. Avoiding Beethoven’s greedy brother, he travels around to meet with Beethoven’s previous lovers, listening to the tale of each, becoming closer to the truth as the movie moves forward. The stories†¦show more content†¦It is then revealed that a few small events had altered their path to happiness in the beginning, ultimately fueling some of Beethoven’s passion. This only makes the deaf composer’s life more unbearable. As one would expect, the movies trickles famous Beethoven clips throughout the movie in places where they seem a good fit. This is in contrast to when Beethoven plays the performances. In one great scene, Beethoven plays â€Å"Moonlight Sonata† , in a seemingly empty room, with his head on the top of the piano, perhaps to feel the vibrations that he cannot hear. One clever use of music in the movie is when Beethoven’s pieces move characters to tears, brings about healing, or change the way they look at the world. A movement plays, and a specific character describes its uncommon effect. Furthermore, Beethoven’s works depict parts of his life and expresses incredible feelings and states of mind through the music itself. The film helps you to realize this by playing corresponding events during the pieces. Once again, I loved the movie. The acting, cinematography, and specific renditions of the pieces were very good. Most of all, Beethoven was endl essly entertaining, interesting, and enthralling throughout the film. In the beginning of the film he runs into people without care, yelling back something like â€Å"They mean nothing. Their world is finished!†. HisShow MoreRelatedThe Establishment Of Wrongness : Fantasy Literature Essay1573 Words   |  7 Pagesoverrunning towns and villages. The only defense against the horde is a band of immortals governed by the Emperor. Unlike the other two novels wrongness is never seen in the novel, but is inherently implied. Much like the inference that Jant is the only immortal that can fly, the readers must deduce the initial moment of wrongness. This moment beginning when God leaves the Fourlands with the Emperor and his circle of immortals to protect it. The insects invade and the world as it previously was knownRead MoreHow Can Love Saves One From Death?877 Words   |  4 PagesPlato’s Symposium love exists as a drug that never fully satisfies neither the lover nor the beloved. The pursuit of love requires tricking the mind and soul into believing that happiness will be permanent once it has been achieved when in fact it never truly can be. It creates a frustration that in turn drives the lover to love and the beloved to learn from the lover. Thus, the truest, perhaps most immortal love can be achieved only through the love of wisdom and virtue instead of happiness. The ideaRead More‘Spring Offensive’ of Wilfred Owen1400 Words   |  6 Pagesrelates to the old Greek myth of Tithonus, a very handsome youth and the son of Laomendon, the king of Troy. The legend tells that Tithonus was loved by the dawn goddess, Eos, who bore him a son, the hero Memnon, king of Ethiopia. As his beloved was beloved was immortal, he requested her for the gift of immortality, Eos requested Zeus, the king of Gods, to grant this boon to her lover. Though immortality was granted, perpetual youth was not bestowed upon him. Thus Tithonus in his old age wither ed awayRead MoreMemory in Beloved Essay1897 Words   |  8 Pagesemotional experience. Very often it is thoughtful that this neglecting and abandoning is the best way to forget. In Toni Morrison’s novel Beloved, memory is depicted as a dangerous and deliberating faculty of human consciousness. In this novel Sethe endures the oppression of self imposed prison of memory by revising the past and death of her daughter Beloved, her mother and Baby Suggs. In Louise Erdrich’s story Love Medicine, memory of death and the past is revealed carefully among the charactersRead MoreLudwig Van Beethoven, Pianist And Composer1381 Words   |  6 Pagesrendition of the sonata, a scene from Immortal Beloved (1994), which is a film directed and written by Bernard Rose that illustrates Ludwig van Beethoven’s life and death surrounded by a letter addressed to his lover. The second is more subtle, a recorded performance (1983) of the piece played by Argentine pianist and conductor , Daniel Barenboim. Whilst both versions are of the same sonata, their methods of portrayal can be contrasted. In the scene from Immortal Beloved, we are given a story behind theRead MoreShakespeare s Sonnets : Reoccurring Themes1479 Words   |  6 Pagesideal love poem that truly embodies his love the individual he speaks so fondly of in this English sonnet. This sonnet takes power away from death by immortalizing the beloved. The beloved’s beauty will not fade; nor will she ever die because she will live on forever through this poem. The poem begins with him praising the beloved through metaphors and then shifts to praise his poem by making her everlasting. He takes away all power that death has and credits it to his poem in lines 1 and 12 whenRead MoreThe Immortal Work of the Poet as Seen in Shakespeares Sonnet 55642 Words   |  3 PagesThe Immortal Work of the Poet as Seen in Shakespeares Sonnet 55 Since the beginning of recorded time, humanity has attempted to give immortality through art. Great people have attempted to have themselves remembered through statues and other means. The poet too, has attempted the same feat. Capturing within his or her lines the essence and emotion of someone whom he or she loved. During the Renaissance, the sonnet was the poetic form of choice. The sonnet is only fourteen lines in lengthRead MoreDemigods in Iliad1451 Words   |  6 Pagestheir children are born as demigods: half human, half god. These hybrid offspring have extraordinary strength and enjoy an advantage over their human counterparts. For example, the demigods are able to receive assistance during battle from their immortal parents and oftentimes are saved from death; however, they do not possess immortality. While the gods are able to intervene and help their children during desperate moments, they are ultimately unable to alter their children’s fate. A lack of controlR ead MoreThe Immortality of the Soul Essay1427 Words   |  6 PagesSocrates. Through Plato, Socrates lived on generations after his time. A topic of Socrates that many will continue to discuss is the idea of â€Å"an immortal soul†. Although there are various works and dialogues about this topic it is found to be best explained in The Phaedo. It is fair to say that the mind may wonder when one dies what exactly happens to the beloved soul, the giver of life often thought of as the very essence of life does it live on beyond the body, or does it die with it? Does the soulRead MoreSummary : Immortality Of The Soul 1542 Words   |  7 Pages Socrates lived on generations after his time. Phaedo begins with Socrates addressing his death and stating a true philosopher should look forward to death. He asserts that the soul is immortal and the philosopher spends his life training and detaching itself from the needs of the body. This topic, of â€Å"an immortal soul†, has co ntinued to be discussed. There are various works and dialogues about this topic, but the Phaedo explains it best. Death is defined as the separation of the body from the soul

In the arms of sleep Free Essays

It happened again last night. Just like before. It began slowly, with little things. We will write a custom essay sample on In the arms of sleep or any similar topic only for you Order Now Then it got worse. Much worse. I suppose this is your way of punishing me. If it is, it’s working. If it’s not when I’m awake, it’s when I’m asleep. Mad isn’t it? That’s what most people think anyway. Sometimes I think I’m going mad. Am I? No. I can’t be. It’s so real. I can feel it. It is more than a nightmare. Trapped. Trapped under the hideous black carpet that chokes the sky. Darkness complete. Shadows begin to move, writhing, with an eerie shrill sound of the sucking of the air. Unmoving, I watch. Without breathing. Without thinking. The wind pounds against my face like a thundering waterfall. My breath illuminates the sky in a vivid cloud of white smoke. A trail of ivy cradles gravestones like newborn babies. An ominous feeling of dread seeps through my bones. I am in a churchyard. This is no ordinary churchyard. This is where it happened. He was standing over there. I remember now. Right next to that cross. I shouldn’t have done it should I? But I had no choice. There was no way out at the time. I can feel him now. Watching me like a hawk. His hot breath creeping up my neck. Hark! What was that? Did you hear it? There it is again. I turn my head slowly to locate the sound. It’s coming from the church. The sound is distant and musical – almost menacing. The organ! It plays on like an instrument of torture. I hold my breath. It stops. One . . . two . . . three. There it is again. Calling me. Calling me so softly at first; so softly it could be the blood rushing to my ears. I can hear the words. Katherine . . . Katherine. Come and find me. You know you want to. I’m walking. Walking. My feet have a mind of their own. Uncontrollable. Eyes glued in front of me. I feel like a ventriloquist’s dummy. The church door lies in front of me, like the gateway to hell. My hand trembles violently as I push the heavy iron handle forward. Then the door slams behind me with a metallic slice, like a falling guillotine. Silence. Nothing can be heard except the soft pit-pat of rain. The stillness is worse than noise. I know he’s in here. I can feel his eyes – watching me. Stalking me. I can smell him. The smell of decay and dried blood wafts up my nose like rotten eggs. I feel sick. A thin hot trail of sweat runs down my temple. I need to get out of here. I need to get out of here now! But where is the door? It was behind me. That noise. There it is again. That faint tune. Sheer black terror is sweeping though me, every hair on my body erected. It is dark. So dark. Too dark. My entire body goes cold with terror. Something is watching me. Something is hunched over the organ. Something is there. No. It can’t be. Can it? Just one yard away from me. On my feet, skin crawling and body washed with adrenaline. He plays on. Back turned, but I know he is aware of my presence. My neck prickles as I edge away. The music stops. I walk backwards. Away. Going nowhere. My eyes afraid too – open painfully wide, then narrow – struggling to focus. My eyes close in the terrifying reality of it, lips mouthing frantic prayers, teeth clenched. I dare not look upon his face. I can smell his breath; making me feel nauseated. Heart banging like a drum. I can’t stand much more of this. I’ve got to get out of here. I must open my eyes. I must go. He breathes hard, and a raging movement disturbs his limbs. His yellow skin has sunk into his body, showing the crevices of his bones. His hair, of a lustrous black, reminds me of a beetle. These features only form a more revolting contrast of his eyes. They glow in their own light, like fire fox. They are cold, ravenous. So different. Every shred of decency, kindness, forgiveness and passion, is gone. Replaced by the unmistakable look of a predator. His jaw opens, saliva dripping down his chin. He breaks into a fiendish grin. He cackles loudly, echoing across the hollow room. Stop! Make him stop. Make it go away. Make him disappear. I never could’ve imagined . . .never dreamed of such a foul creature. The devil of devils. I’ve never looked him directly in the face before. His gaze is hypnotic, mesmerizing. He lifts his arm up, his long knifelike fingers pointing towards the ceiling – clenches his fists, so tight – a trail of blood slowly trickles down, like a falling raindrop. He thrusts his arm down in anger; causing a sickening crack as it hits the organ. I shudder violently. He wants to punish me. He’s going to do it properly. Whimpering, I move away. I can’t watch this wretch lead me to my merciless death. I’d rather die with my dignity left alone. A scorched, rotting smell fills my lungs. I can’t breathe. Gagged. I am going to die. No! I will run. I will save myself. I can’t. He is too strong. He throws back his demon head, and lets out a howl of laughter. I look away. Trying not to look upon his face. I can feel fear ripping; opening my chest. Can he not see that I have suffered enough? Can he not see I am sorry? I can feel a surge of dizziness rush through me as my eyes rush in and out of focus. I stand still, very straight, as if paralysed. He rests his cold, lifeless hands on my cheek. My heart contracts with sorrow and pain. My knees buckle. I grab the organ to stop me from falling. This is not happening, I’m thinking. Why? Why are you doing this? Have you no heart? No soul? You did . . . once. But now it is long gone. Buried forever. Now leaning over, to kiss me goodbye – lips purple and cracked, flesh peeling off his face like the petals of a rose. His eyes glittering. A gust of wind whips my hair, stinging some feeling back into my cheeks – some coherence back into my brain. He puts his hands round my neck. Gasping for breath. I feel like a stuffed animal. Like a balloon about to pop. He is angry. He is not going to let go. Please . . .God no! I wake up. Neck throbbing with pain. Sucking in every ounce of air. Relieved. The wind wails as it bangs against the cold glass window. A faint knocking on the door, a gentle rattle of the knob. My door creaks. I stare into oblivion as my life flashes before me. I can feel him. Watching me. Trapped. How to cite In the arms of sleep, Papers

Advice to a Friend on Choosing a Mistress free essay sample

In his message, Franklin advises his friend that marriage is the best solution not for only sexual desires but also the undisputable source of solid happiness. Having suspicions that his friend would not follow his guidance, Franklin recommends him to choose older mistresses instead of younger ones and lists eight valuables reasons to better support his argument. Franklin commences his essay by presenting advantages of the marriage. He says I know of no medicine fit to diminish the violent inclinations you mention Marriage is the proper remedy. It is most natural state of man and therefore the state in which you can are most likely to find solid happiness. Through those sentences, Franklin seems to estimate that from a masculine view, one of the main advantages of the marriage is to bring pacification toward requirements of the flesh. The recipient of the letter who was the friend of the author seemed to be looking for a situation in which he could find sexual partner and happiness without commitment. We will write a custom essay sample on Advice to a Friend on Choosing a Mistress or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Based on the previous quotes, the author claims that the best situation in which he could find hat he was looking for was a marriage. In his letter, Franklin advices his friend to settle because It is the man and woman together that make the complete human being. If Franklin thinks that the marriage is so positive, this is relied to both psychological and socio-economical reasons. First all he is convinced that the married life is more balancing that the single lifetime. Franklin believes that a man who did not find the soul mate is in other words incomplete, unaccomplished by saying that A single man has not nearly the value he would have in that sate of union, He is an ncomplete animal. He resembles the odd half of a pair of scissors. Based on this judgement, Franklin means that family life calms people; it is the natural arrangement in which they can organize their production strength with the most possible benefit. While Franklin affirms that together there are more likely to succeed in the world there is no doubt that he is referring to the material success. Concerning the woman, it is only in a marriage that she can show up her real values. Through the letter, Franklin continues to give worthy reasons in order to convince the ecipient about getting married. Franklin having doubts that his friend would not consider his advice followed his representation of the marriage by an alternative solution to satisfy his needs. If his friend his not ready to commit and wants to continue a commerce with Sex inevitable, he suggested that you should prefer old woman to young ones. The first raison that Franklin used to support his case is that they nave more knowledge ot the world, and their minds are better stored witn observations, their conversation is more improving and more lastingly agreeable. By affirming this, Franklin makes an allusion to the intelligence of older woman. He illustrates that people gain knowledge as they get older. They have, in principle knew more love stories or adventures than youngest ones, thus they better know men, know how to take care of them and also how to satisfy them. Franklin defends the idea that a debate with an old woman is rich and interesting, because they had been through many involvements from witch they had retains acquaintance. They have lived longer and have things to communicate to you. Franklin also supports his reference for older woman by saying that To maintain their influence over men, they supply the diminution of beauty by an augmentation of utility. This is to illustrate that older woman, with the time spend less time worrying about their appearance, which they use to do more important stuff. To him, when beauty disappears, women improve their service. At their age, they assume their femininity and do so without any complex. Franklin, who was a man of science and also know as Lady Man also gave bodily motivation for choosing an older woman. He implies that Ђ because in every animal that walks upright the deficiency of the fluids that fill the muscles appears first in the highest part. The face first grows lank and wrinkled; then the neck; then the breast and arms; the lower parts continuing to the last as plump as ever: so that covering all above with a basket, and regarding only what is below the girdle, it is impossible of two women to tell an old one from a young one. His purpose here is to assure his friend that there are no doubts or fear to have on the corporal pleasure of an old woman. According to him as in the dark all cats are rey, the pleasure of corporal enjoyment with an old woman is at least equal, and frequently superior. This is to support that woman are woman regardless of age, an old woman can perform the same way as a young one concerning sexual experience. Sometimes, they are even considered superior. Through the note, Franklin by saying because there is no hazard of children, which irregularly produced may be attended with much inconvenience refers to the fact that woman at a certain age cant get pregnant. Thus while dating them the chance of being relied to them by omeone or something is null. This also makes the separation easier and leaves out others inconvenient that children can bring in a relationship. Across the letter, Franklin continues to encourage his friend to choose an old female if this last one persist in thinking a Commerce with the ser. He establishes a formal and highly analytical tone with his receiver about the discretion an old mistress can have in their relationship. He supports his suggestion by affirming that because through more experience they are more prudent and discreet in conducting an intrigue to revent suspicion. The commerce with them is therefore safer with regard to your reputation. From the following sentence, the author suggests that with an old woman, it is less probable that the relationship get revealed consequently with her you reputation will be at the shelter because they are more responsible in managing a relationship and they now what they want. Finally, Franklin ends up with his letter by saying they are so grateful. Even thoug h Franklin, in his letter gave an approved receipt to find the best mistress, it is obvious that considering as the ounding father his interest for marriage respond to others concern more important than the promotion ot the psych-to-emotional blooming.