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Explain why Jing-Mei does not want to be a prodigy in "Two Kinds".

In Amy Tan’s story “Two Kinds” Jing-Mei changes her mind about being prodigy. A prodigy is a person, most often a child, who has abnormally high ability in a specific area such as music or mathematics. This talent is usually considered to be an innate ability that is perfected by practice.


Jing-Mei’s mother, Suyuan Woo, believes in America you can be anything including a prodigy. At first Jing-Mei agrees with her mother, and the two spend hours examining magazines and watching television shows to determine her area of expertise. Finally, after seeing another child on the Ed Sullivan show, the mother decides that Jing-Mei should be a prodigy on the piano.  Suyuan Woo acquires a used piano and an inept teacher, and plans a practice schedule for her daughter. Unfortunately, Jing-Mei is not a prodigy on the piano and she is not interested in practicing, therefore, she barely becomes proficient.


Jing-Mei is aware that she is not prodigy material. Jing-Mei just wants to be herself, and after a disastrous piano recital, the mother and daughter quarrel.  Jing-Mei, asserts her independence as she progresses through school as a mediocre student who goes on to live life her way, not the way her mother intended it to be. She is determined to develop her own identity. Instead of being a prodigy, she wants to be an individual, not a replacement for the life her mother left behind in China.

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