Not only that caused her to resent her mother but the way she introduced her to perfect strangers, "This is my daughter Waver-ly Jong"(101) just to tell people or make reference to the TIME article on Waverly cause her to become upset. ). Though her mother, Lindo is clearly proud of her, "one day after we left a shop I said under my breath, `I wish you wouldn't do that, telling everybody I'm your daughter'"(101) Waverly's success puts a wall between her relationship with her mother. Waverly feels like they are competing, instead of her mother supporting her. She thinks her mother is trying to take credit for her success. Waverly brings forth a tough exterior, but it's clear that she has some insecurities and although she constantly argues with her mother and refuses her traditional Chinese views and values, Waverly also seeks her approval. By the end, Waverly does come to understand Lindo better and fear her less by the end of the novel. She even begins to appreciate some of the Chinese heritage that her mother has tried to instill in her. .
Lena is ashamed of her mother, but, like Waverly, she knows she has learned a lot from her too. For Lena, however, the knowledge is almost entirely bad: her mother has taught her to be afraid, and to bend to other people's wishes. Lena hates these qualities in her mother, but she can't stop herself from adopting them. She finds herself being married to a man, Harold, who gives no credit to her for the help that made him a success. It's like he doesn't want her to amount to anything, "Harold explains, it would not seem fair to the other employees if he promoted me.even thought I am very good at what I do" (173). He makes seven times more than she does and yet they still split all the bills down the middle when clearly he should pay more since he not only makes more but they are a couple and things don't always have to be fifty-fifty. I find it unusual for a married couple to still be splitting things down the middle even though it's not necessarily fair.