Malcolm Gladwell wrote that the key to success, in any particular field, is practice for a total of around 10,000 hours. He applied this ideology to the "outliers" of society in his book Outliers: The Story of Success (Gladwell Chapter 2).  Many would agree that this persistent practice is a promising method to attain an expert level in any field.  Ruth K. Chao's research on parenting in Chinese culture supports a similar concept known as "training" which can be linked to the plot of Amy Tan's Two Kinds, and an almost mirrored story written by Amy Chua, Battle Hymn of The Tiger Mother. The Chinese cultural concept of training shapes Amy Tan's Two Kinds into a piece that provides insight to Chinese parenting as it culturally diffuses in Chinese-American families. 

Ruth K. Chao did extensive research on the causes of Chinese parenting by focusing on the concept of training, and authoritarian methods. Training is the method that gives Chinese, and Chinese-Americans, the edge over European-Americans. It is a parenting style exploited by the Chinese, wherein the parents control all aspects of the child's upbringing, setting strict rules, schedules, and expectations. The success of this method is based on the parents' attentiveness to the child, meaning numerous hours of training on a regular basis, in cohesion with encouragement. Chao found that Confucian principals, such as respect for your elders, and heavy emphasis on the importance of family, were key factors in why this method is used for child rearing (1111-1119). Chinese parents using training expect unquestioning obedience, as apposed to the open two-way communication that most Euro-American families promote. Stereotypes of strict Asian parents stem from the perception by Euro-American society. Culture differs across the world, understandably someone in the United States would see training as authoritarian, whereas someone in China would think nothing of it. Chao's research suggests the belief of "guan" in Chinese culture, which literally means "to govern", contributes to this style of parenting. To an outsider, this may sound negative, but in Chinese culture "guan" has a positive connotation that is associated with love and care (1111-1119). Despite any cultural differences, the fundamental role of a parent is still to love and care for your child.

Chao also did a bit of research on the effects of different parenting styles on academic and relationship success. Comparing Chinese training, to the authoritarian style of Euro-American parents, she found that in Chinese-American families, the success of training decreased with each new generation, but was still generally more successful than Euro-American styles (Chao 1832-1843). This decrease in success suggests that cultural aspects effected each new generation. The 1st generation having the most exposure to Chinese culture and society, were most successful. The 2nd generation and so on, having lived only in America, did not take to training in the same effectiveness. Cultural diffusion can be expected wherever people of multiple cultures coexist. 

Amy Tan, the author of Two Kinds, is well known for the focus on cultural difference in her writing. Often she incorporates topics such as identity, and mother-daughter relationships, as seen in Two Kinds (Tan 211).  Tan, like the main character Jing-Mei, found herself in confrontation with her mother throughout her childhood. However, the relationship eventually grew into a beautiful bond between mother and daughter. Tan's closeness to the story allows for a more personal insight to her message. 

In 1943 the United States passed the Chinese Exclusion Repeal Act, after allying with China in WWII. This allowed the legal immigration of Chinese citizens to America for the first time in 60 years (57 United States Statutes at Large 600-601). Jing-Mei's mother came to America in 1949 after losing everything in China, her parents, her husband, her children, all gone. Looking back wasn't an option; she could only look forward to what America had in store for her daughter (Tan 211). 

"Of course you can be prodigy, too...you can be best anything" Jing-Mei's mother believed her daughter could achieve anything with enough practice (Tan 211). From the age of nine, Jing-Mei was bombarded with expectations to be some kind of prodigy.  It started with Shirley Temple; the child super star captivated Mrs. Mei, but after one poor haircut that dream was killed. Every day Jing-Mei was tested by her mother, in attempt to match her with some skill from Ripley's Believe it or Not, or anything child prodigy related. Eventually Mrs. Mei settled on the piano, and the training began. Jing-Mei was scheduled to practice two hours a day in addition to weekly lessons from a retired piano teacher in her apartment building, and she did so reluctantly, putting in the least amount of effort possible. Because she never tried, she never became a piano prodigy, and it lead to butting heads with her mother. The conflict eventually escalated to an all out shout fest. Jing-Mei's mother told her "only two kinds of daughters, those who are obedient and those who follow their own mind! Only one kind of daughter can live in this house. Obedient daughter!" (Tan 218). This brought the confrontation to the point of no return, and the piano training ceased. Jing-Mei's rebellious attitude can be attributed to her being a 2nd generation Chinese-American. As Chao's research showed, the later generations didn't take to training as well as previous generations. Mrs. Mei believed in her daughter more than Jing-Mei did, but didn't understand the effects of cultural diffusion on the rearing of her daughter. 

Amy Chua's Battle Hymn of The Tiger Mother is shocking similar to the plot of Amy Tan's Two Kinds, but is instead written from the mother's point of view. Amy Chua writes about her Chinese-American daughter, resilient to her training of math and violin. Like Mrs. Mei, Chua thinks that believing in your child more than they do is reinforced by good intentions (Chua). As a 2nd generation herself, Chua actually found training to be beneficial in her own upbringing, which is why she decided to pass it on to her children. However, her daughter Lulu did not take to it as well as she had. During one of her lessons, Lulu burst out at her mother "Your brain is annoying me, I know what you're thinking" while her mother was just standing there judging in her head (Chua Chapter 9 "The Violin"). Lulu's reaction lined up with that of Jing-Mei, but the way their mothers' reacted to them was different. Mrs. Mei continued to be hard, but Chua let off a little, giving Lulu some space. This change in behavior can be attributed to the cultural difference between a 1st generation and 2nd generation mother. Chua was asked if she did all of this for her daughter or if it might be for herself, and she thought of this as a very Western question. The Chinese see children as an extension of the self, so when asked this, Chua responded with confidence that it was for her daughters. All the effort to train your child is exhausting for the parent too, but the intentions are good and the goal is what drives her (Chua Chapter 22 "Blowout in Budapest").

The stereotypical Asian parent is seen as strict, controlling, and unforgiving. Amy Tan's Two Kinds gives us a look into the life of a Chinese-American child, and at first glance might be seen as just another example that strengthens the stereotype. However, this is just perception. Amy Chua, known as the Tiger Mother, also provides insight to the life of a Chinese-American child, but from the view of the mother. This standpoint allows you to see how the mother feels and thinks, instead of rebellious thoughts from a child. In combination with the research of Ruth K. Chao, it's much easier to understand the backstory to this method of raising a child. Training is what shaped both Tan and Chua's writing, but without the knowledge of what training really means, your perception of their stories is subjective. Cultural diffusion is inescapable, and how you perceive it is dependent on how well you understand the cultural aspects at play.
