Portrayal of Bicultural Daughters and Immigrant Mothers in Amy Tan’s “Two Kinds”

Abstract

This paper outlines the specific ways in which the bicultural daughters depicted in Amy
Tan’s “Two Kinds” struggle with identifying themselves with her mothers’ cultures and the
dominating American culture in which they grow-up. It correlates the relationships between
immigrant mothers and their bicultural daughters and provides examples of this bond as
viewed in this short-story. This study brings out the prominence of current criticism the
struggles portrayed in story that a bicultural daughter deals with while attempting to revive
her mother’s culture while being forced to adapt the dominant culture.