Mother’s Values The mother’s values in "Two Kinds" and in "Everyday Use" were two completely different values of life but yet have similarities and differences between them. In “Two Kinds” they were Chinese immigrants and in “Everyday Use” they were African American, two completely different heritages but the mother’s showed their daughters values in life, the way they each looked at it. Never can a child agree with the way a mother tries to raise a young lady, until they realize for themselves, it was all for a good cause.
In the short story "Two Kinds" Ni Kan's mother had values for her daughter with high expectations. She wanted Ni Kan to have great success in prodigy, she also wanted her to be great and perfect at everything she ever did. Her daughter always told her she was not a genius but her mother gave up on her. She insisted she was perfect at something and had her try many different talents like, child actress, intellectual tests clipped from famous magazines, and finally it hit her, her daughter would be professional piano player. Ni Kan’s mother was going to do anything in order for her daughter to be the best piano player and exchanged her cleaning, Mr. Chow, Ni Kan’s piano instructor’s, home just so her daughter could learn to play the piano. Ni Kan thought her mother was just trying to make her life miserable as a kid but she was not. Ni Kan did not notice this until she was older and her mother died, she was trying to teach her a lesson in which she thought was like the American dream, with hard work and luck she can be anything she wanted to be.
In the short story “Everyday Use” Mama gave her daughter Dee or “Wangero” as she changed her name, everything she could. Dee was the oldest and Maggie was the youngest of the two siblings. Dee was a successful lady that went to college because she did not like her traditional African American heritage and wanted to get out of the brutal south. Mama did everything she could so that her daughter could go to college and better her life but by her doing that it later back fired at her. Dee was so disrespectful toward her mother and sister and did not value her heritage that her mother tried teaching her. After Mama had always treated Dee with respect she finally stood up to herself when Dee wanted to take the quilt Mama had. The Quilt was already promised to Maggie although Dee did not care she still wanted it, but Mama finally put a stop to her by saying no, the quilt belonged to Maggie, finally she said not to her daughter.
These mothers had some similarities in the ways they showed their daughters value. They valued their heritage, their background was important in order for their daughters grow up with a little something from their backgrounds. Although their daughters did not value what they were given, the mother’s tried their hardest so that their daughters could have a better future and becoming successful.
There were more differences than similarities between these two mothers. Despite the mothers being different race, one was a little more focused on the background of their heritage, Mama from “Everyday Use.” In “Two Kinds” Ni Kan’s mother was forcing he daughter to try different things and in “Everyday Use” it was Dee who was the one who wanted to do different things. Maybe Ni Kan’s mother was a little more strict on her because she had no one other kids, since the rest had died, and Mama Had Dee and Maggie to teach values too. Mama seemed more laid back with her daughters, whatever made their kids happy she did but Ni Kan’s mother did not see it that way. At the end of the short story “Two Kinds” Ni Kan realized that her mother was not trying to do wrong and at the end of “ Everyday Use” Dee was not talked about, if she had understood why her mother stood up to her and said no.
Although the differences of each mothers value, they had one main thing in common, they both wanted their daughters to be happy and have pride in who they were. They may not have been geniuses or show so much respect toward them but they loved their daughters in their own way. All mothers want, is for their children to grow up and show people respect but not just that but to have pride for whom they are and not be ashamed of their background.

Work Cited:
Literature, An Introduction to Reading and Writing 9th Edition By Edgar V. Roberts http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Everyday_Use http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Two_Kinds_(short_story)