The Violin by Amy Chua and Two Kinds by Amy Tan are two novels about a mother-daughter relationship. The speakers utilize varying tones when speaking of recollections of their memories. Chua’s and Tan’s use of tense and hostile tones help illustrate the drama in the relationships that blankets the love between the mother and daughter. Amy Tan’s recounts of her past prove to be escalated versions of Amy Chau’s with lesser presence of love; however, love remains a driving force behind both of the mothers’ harsh encouragement.
“The Violin” illustrates the mother-daughter relationship of Amy Chua and her daughter Lulu. Amy Chua is strict and hard on Lulu but only because she loves her and wants her to be successful. The message of the necessity of relaxation comes out harsher and more critical …show more content…
She expresses this relationship through implementing aggressive diction and hurtful tone into her recounts of past experiences. For instance, Amy is “yanked” off the couch by her “frighteningly strong” mother who then begins to “shout” (Tan 141-142). By using diction like “yanked,” “frighteningly,” and “shout,” Tan shows the aggression and anger in the relationship. The hurtful tone surfaces in order to show the daughter’s pain and misery resulting from her mother’s fierce words. Tan claims she “wish[es] [she]’d never been born” because her mother’s harsh words became too much for her to handle (Tan 141-142). Tan’s mother's reaction of shock and grief to Tan’s words shows the sadness her mother feels for her role in her daughter's misery. This reaction illustrates the mother’s good intentions in her yelling as a way of helping her daughter succeed. The mother-daughter relationship Tan describes through the aggressive diction and hurtful tone demonstrates the mother’s want for her daughter to be successful; however the daughter does not react well to the way in which the mother advises
“The Violin” illustrates the mother-daughter relationship of Amy Chua and her daughter Lulu. Amy Chua is strict and hard on Lulu but only because she loves her and wants her to be successful. The message of the necessity of relaxation comes out harsher and more critical …show more content…
She expresses this relationship through implementing aggressive diction and hurtful tone into her recounts of past experiences. For instance, Amy is “yanked” off the couch by her “frighteningly strong” mother who then begins to “shout” (Tan 141-142). By using diction like “yanked,” “frighteningly,” and “shout,” Tan shows the aggression and anger in the relationship. The hurtful tone surfaces in order to show the daughter’s pain and misery resulting from her mother’s fierce words. Tan claims she “wish[es] [she]’d never been born” because her mother’s harsh words became too much for her to handle (Tan 141-142). Tan’s mother's reaction of shock and grief to Tan’s words shows the sadness her mother feels for her role in her daughter's misery. This reaction illustrates the mother’s good intentions in her yelling as a way of helping her daughter succeed. The mother-daughter relationship Tan describes through the aggressive diction and hurtful tone demonstrates the mother’s want for her daughter to be successful; however the daughter does not react well to the way in which the mother advises