Two Kinds by Amy Tan and Under Pressure by Carl Honor are two texts which both examine the significance and underlying meanings of a mother-daughter relationship.

by gaby123456 (student)

International Baccalaureate World Literature

Gabriela Kassing

February 27, 2012

Paper One – Section B

Texts: Two Kinds by Amy Tan and Under Pressure: Rescuing Childhood from the Culture of Hyper-Parenting (2008) by Carl Honoré

“Do not live down to expectations. Go out there and do something remarkable” (Wendy Wasserstein). Expectations -- the belief to achieve something great in one’s life – are universally accepted. For many of us while growing up, our mothers have been an important part of who we are. Thus we as children learn to depend on them because they are always there when needed the most. Similarly, Two Kinds by Amy Tan and Under Pressure by Carl Honoré are two texts which both examine the significance and underlying meanings of a mother-daughter relationship. These extracts are prime examples of a mother trying to live her life through her child. Two Kinds is a short story, which creates a dynamic connection between mother and daughter, demonstrating how the daughter best complies with her mother’s idealistic expectations. The extract focuses on the idea of power and territory on the mother's side, while the daughter, for entertainment purposes, obeys her mother at a cost without questioning. The story is based on the complex as well as unfavorable relationship between a mother and daughter. Under Pressure in contrast is a self-help book with a didactic purpose, which explains how pushing children too hard at an early age will eventually backfire on the parents and society as a whole. Both extracts were written for adults. Especially parents, teachers and counselors will benefit from reading Under Pressure. While Two Kinds appeals to pathos, Under Pressure informs the reader using scientific facts to support a purpose. Two Kinds and Under Pressure are two extracts that employ differences in voice, organization style, and the characterizations of children as contrasting literary features while sharing a similar purpose.

Initially, Two Kinds and Under Pressure are two articles that illustrate contrasting uses of voice. The titles Two Kinds and Under Pressure hold significance introducing the texts. The words “two kinds” illustrate the variety in a mother-daughter relationship. There are two kinds of daughters the one that obeys their mother and the other who follow their own mind. The reader can interpret the way in which her mother treats her child as foreshadowing the kind of woman the girl will grow up to be. As a child, the daughter is quiet and obedient towards her mother. However the mother’s actions foreshadow that a more rebellious side will eventually arise due to all the oppression. In fact, it is human nature that everyone has two sides to them, a “positive” and a “negative” side. Similarly the girl in the story is shaped by her two different cultures. In Two Kinds the narrative is told from a child’s innocent point of view, which contrast with the point of view of an experienced adult. The child tries her best to please her mum however, “after seeing my mother’s disappointed face once again” (Line 21), the girl accepts that regardless her mother, she has different expectations. The voice in Two Kinds is an issue of power and territory on the mother’s side, and compliance on the daughter’s part. Although this high pressure made the girl die within, did she never complain. “I hated the tests, the raised hopes and failed expectations” (Line 22) Her mothers pushed her child to do these tests guiding her unnecessarily in the wrong direction. In addition to that, irony is expressed throughout the extract. The mother expects her daughter to know all sort of fact without having any relation to the topic. “I had to look at a page from the Bible for three minutes and then report everything I could remember”(Line 17). The ridiculousness of the assignment is clearly expressed through the author’s voice.

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Quite on the contrary, Under Pressure uses a very formal, factual and strong voice that comes through to the audience. Under Pressure is a self-help book that is supposed to alert parents and educators and remind them of how children should be raised in the 21st century. Over the past decades, children have grown up under the pressure of being forced to accomplish too much. The title “Under Pressure: Rescuing Childhood…” reminds the reader that something has to be done to solve this problem. It symbolizes a new beginning, a new century in which children are allowed to grow up to be what they want to be, instead of what their parents want them to be. To emphasise the fact that pushing one’s child normally fails, Carl Honoré uses voice as a literary device to contrast with Amy Tan’s description of her relationship with her mother. He analyzes parenting from a historical and scientific perspective. For instance, he begins by telling a story about an English writer who raised her daughter to be a prodigy, using dates, “eighteenth century”, (Line 1) and names, “Hester Lynch Thrale”, (Line 2) to emphasise that he has historical context to back up his message. However, in the story, the daughter never achieved anything great in life due to the high pressure she suffered under. By recalling this tale, the reader thinks about past events that help him or her make sense of the present, and therefore supports the author’s intention of the book. In addition when referring to the children, all parents would wish for an “uber-child” (Line 16). This word comes from the German word, Übermensch, meaning a super-human, in the sense that this human being has strengths and other skills uncommon to people. This explains the word uber-child, and the wish for parents to have a child, who is beyond human proportions. Through his word choice Carl Honoré wanted to emphasize of the fact that each child is unique, and although driving a child onwards is good, too much pressure might ruin the child’s self-esteem and hope. In other words, Two Kinds and Under Pressure demonstrate differences in the voice of the narrator.

Second, Under Pressure and Two Kinds demonstrate contrasting organizational styles as literary features. Both Amy Tan and Carl Honoré use short sentences written in both active and passive voice, which allows for a more flexible sentence structure. Firstly the short story by Amy Tan is told from the perspective of a young immigrant girl, who is trying to please her mother. Her mother considers the American Dream to be true, and believes that “everyone can be anything they want to be”. Amy Tan portrays her moral to the reader through a tale. She begins with introducing the setting of the story and then continuous explaining the problems of the situation. The extract ends with an open ending “I began to cry” (Line 24) which leaves the reader wondering what would have happened next. These organizational styles attract the reader and keep him or her captivated throughout the short story and long after they have finished reading it. Two Kinds similar to Under Pressure by Carl Honoré is written to catch and inform the audience. Carl Honoré is much more realistic, and portrays the life of a childhood which is defined by adults. Childhoods are being shaped and moulded by adult’s fantasies and fears, anxieties and agendas. Every aspect of a childhood is set to please the parents and not the child. Carl Honoré uses a factual person, Hester Lynch Thrale, to prove his point. He begins by telling a story which is based on facts and not a memoir as Amy Tan has done. In addition he uses scientific facts to appeal to logos through the quote, “buried deep within the DNA”. Then gradually Carl Honoré switches his style appealing to pathos through his written work. He reminds the parents that not everyone will end up “to be truly exceptional in any field” (Line 23) however with tolerance, love and dignity parents have the power to change and accept their children. Both writers launch the reader straight into the issue, and present the bleak picture of modern parenthood and touch upon the daughter-mother relationship having a deep effect on the reader, because each person is able to relate to this theme. However both authors also add their own sense of organizational style into their extract using different ways to attract the reader’s attention. For example Amy Tans text ends abruptly while Honoré comes to a conclusion of how things should be done in the future. Therefore both extracts contrast the literary feature of organization style.

Next Two Kinds and Under Pressure differ in their characterization of children as literary features. In both extracts children are viewed very differently. In Two Kinds, the mother is portrayed with power and the daughter never complains. However from the perspective of the daughter bitterness can be viewed. “I hated the tests, the raised hopes and failed expectations” (Line 22). The mother pushed her child to do these tests guiding her unnecessarily in the wrong direction. The character of the mother has an all-knowing personality, however this influences the growth of the girl in a negative way. The words “I began to cry” (Line 24) portrays a voice of lost hope and depression. Every time she did one of these tests did it not raise hope within the mother, but in her as well, willing herself to be extraordinary. Quite on the contrary Carl Honoré wrote the book because he wanted to explain to parents how to approach children differently. The tone implies that the author wants to inspire parents to trust their instincts and encourage them to find a natural way to handle children. As Carl Honoré said “A child is not a project or a product or a trophy or a piece of clay you can mold into a work of art. A child is a person who will thrive if allowed to be the protagonist of his own life.” The text by Tan gives quite a shocking image of a childhood while Carl Honoré tries to clarify how children should actually be brought up. Both readers bring up the problems in mother-daughter relationship, which are a topic that concerns everyone. Tan and Honoré differ in their characterization of children as literary features and therefore they are able to bring a similar message across to the reader very differently.

A comparison of Two Kinds and Under Pressure as literary extracts shows a shared similarity in purpose. Through their extracts both authors want to portray the difficulties of a mother-daughter relationship. A common theme found throughout both texts is the way in which mothers express their frustrations when expectations are not met, and how in response children mimic their mother’s dreams and ultimately rebel against them. The extracts focus on the idea of how mothers use their power to criticize which leads their children to obeying their mothers without questioning. Both texts come to the conclusion that pushing a child to hard at an early age will end badly and lead to the break down of a child. Through these shared ideas, Tan and Honoré were able to show a shared similarity in purpose.

Two Kinds and Under Pressure are two extracts that employ differences in voice, organization style, and the characterizations of children as contrasting literary features while sharing a similar purpose. Each text focuses on the pressure of mother’s high expectations influencing a difficult mother-daughter relationship. Although the authors have the similar message their written work varies greatly in literary features. Two Kinds uses a voice of loss hope and confusion written from a child’s perspective while Under Pressure uses a more formal register to inform the reader. The extracts portray the yearning of parents for their children to be prodigies as well as the mother’s bitter resentment when the daughter fails over and over again. The authors of the text depict these two themes through different literary techniques and devices, making them different and similar from one another. Therefore Tan and Honoré in Two Kinds and Under Pressure respectively use the contrast of literary features of voice, organizational style and the characterization of children, while sharing the similarity of purpose.