Intro to “Two Kinds”By: Amy Tan

Say hello to the author, Ms. Amy Tan

• Born in Oakland, California in 1952• Both parents Chinese Immigrants• Therefore She is Chinese-American• Father, John Tan, came to America to escape Chinese Civil

War• Mother, Daisy Tan, lost custody of her 3 daughters when

fleeing from China before the Communist takeover in 1949 and divorced her abusive husband

• Pursued English and Linguistics in college after defying her mother’s wish for her to study Pre-Med to become a neurosurgeon

• At the peak of her writing career, her mother became ill and she promised herself once she recovered she’d take her to see her daughter whom she hadn’t seen for over 40 years.

• She was diagnosed with Lyme Disease, a chronic bacterial infection received through the bite of a common tick. She still fights the symptoms

• Her background closely relates to what she writes about… For instance, in “Two Kinds”:

• “America was where all my mother’s hopes lay. She had come here in 1949 after losing everything in China..” (p.383; pg.3)

• “I now had hair the length of a boy’s, straight…my eyebrows.: (p. 383; pg.7)

• The Chinese-American heritage of the main character• As well as the rebellious nature of the main character• Also, the strained relationship between the mother

and daughter in the story played parallel to her life

• "Amy Tan Interview -- Academy of Achievement." Achievement.com. Academy of Achievement, 2008. Web. 02 Feb. 2012. <http://www.achievement.org/autodoc/page/tan0int-1>.

•  "Amy Tan." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 02 Feb. 2012. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amy_Tan>.

•  Enotes.com. Enotes. Web. <http://www.enotes.com/two-kinds>.•  "Schumann - Pleading Child - YouTube." YouTube - Broadcast

Yourself. Web. 02 Feb. 2012. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_y7uo00g_JA>.  "Schumann Scenes from Childhood Op.15 No.5 Perfectly Contented - YouTube."YouTube - Broadcast Yourself. Web. 02 Feb. 2012. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lymg8IdaC0c>.