Amy Tan Mother Tongue Summary

As society begins to change so do other aspects that are within that particular society. Within the articles “Why Good English is Good for You” by John Simon, “Do You Speak American” by Robert MacNeil, and “Lost in America” by Douglas McGrey, each author gives their own insight as to how social changes have impacted the language within America, as well as the implications of those changes. While they each argue different views on how those implications have benefitted or hindered the language, they all agree on the fact that the language is ever-changing.

Based on where we’re from can have a lot to do with how we communicate with one another. Language is apart of our culture and way of life. We become accustomed to the way of life based on our surroundings and the language being spoken around us.

Do you ever think about the way you speak and why? Well, Paul Robert does an excellent job explaining why people use the dialect they use in Speech Communities. He discusses that people change their use of language throughout their lives to conform to either society or to what kind of person they want to be, or to just conform to who they need to be at a particular moment, in which I agree. People’s choice of language, including myself, are affected by many of their surroundings, such as where they live and grow up at, their peers, and a person’s work place.

Amy Tan’s literacy narrative “Mother Tongue” is about the different dialects of English, she is familiar with. She explains that her intelligence is judged by the way she speaks. Amy Tan, explains memories from her life where she encounters many forms of English. Her mother, a Chinese immigrant spoke “broken English.” She describes her mother as someone who was able to understand English, well the mother claims that she understands everything, but when it came to speaking, she spoke without the correct grammar. Due to her mothers broken English, Amy Tan has adapted to the type of English her mother speaks, their own type of English language. Tan feels as if the English she is speaking with it outside world is more complex than the English she

In Mother Tongue, I agree with Amy Tan’s claim that people value how you speak more than what you are speaking. Tan explained how her mother spoke poor English and this lead to others treating her mother as inferior. This belief has come to fruition in my experiences as well; I recall a time when I was waiting in line to check out at ShopRite, I noticed how the cashier gave the lady in front of me attitude as the lady bought her groceries. When I checked out however, the cashier was pleasant. Subsequent to reading Tan’s passage, it hit me that the cashier's negative demeanor was probably due to the fact that the customer in front of me spoke broken English with a foreign accent. The lady was attempting to learn a second language

From an article called My Mother’s English of Vision Across Americas, the author called Amy Tan intend to tell us that the differences between her mother’s English and standard English. Plus, the process of how she finds these differences. Moreover, she tells us the influence of it to her mother, even to her. She makes some examples to prove that her mother suffered from unfair treatment because of her mother’s nonstandard English. In other words, English limit affect the daily life of her mother. Therefore, she always pretends to be her mother when she was fifteen years old. When she grows up, she was ashamed of her English and find why her English is different from other people. Then, she tries her best to improve her English.

According to Colin Goh, a Singaporean filmmaker, people always play with a language which is also the case with English and we are going to see the use of many vernaculars more and more in future. English has always evolved and this is simply the next step of its

People could live in the same country but still have a language barrier, this could be because they may be from a different region. For example: Britain i.e. Bristol, Essex or Glasgow. People from a different region may use the same word but can have a different meaning known as “slang”. When talking to someone, we must use the correct intonation (gestures and body language) so that others know that we are friendly towards them and show that we’re listening.

The individual may also come from a culture where they speak loudly or speak quickly, this can be taken in consideration. If English is not their first language, then they may also have difficulties in expressing themselves.

Because English is my second language; most microaggressions are associated with this. Oh, you got an accent, are not you an American? Do you live in this country and do not speak English? Often in my face people express their attitude to the whole nation, to which I belong.

The author’s purpose in writing this essay is to show that there are different forms of English – there is no one way of speaking the language. The moment of realization for Tan occurs when she is speaking to a group of professionals and notices that she is speaking to them differently than she would her mother. Tan obviously sees the difference in her speech pattern when she notes, “Just last week, as I was walking down the street with her, I again found myself conscious of the English I was using, the English I do use with her.” (Tan, 2006) In spotting her different versions of English with her mother, Tan proves the point of her essay. She is correct in her theory that we speak to different people in our lives in a variety of different manners. She brings to light an occasion with her mother’s stockbroker where her mother’s “broken” English would have caused confusion and Tan had to represent her mother with a clearer English to make the point adequately. In that one memory, Tan integrates the English people believe they should hear and the English that exists in her life.

Richard is not the only one that struggled to phrase sentences, his parents have as well, in another quote from this chapter in paragraph 14, “It was more troubling for me to hear my parents speak in public: their high-whining vowels and guttural consonants; their sentences that got stuck with 'eh' and 'ah' sounds; the confused syntax; the hesitant rhythm of sounds so different from the way gringos spoke.” (Rodriguez) Richard felt uncomfortable hearing his parent speak in English, he also felt slightly

This is shown by the different manner and circumstances when the Americans chose to speak spanish. For example Sully often spoke Spanish only in anger of as a method to intimidate the crew. He said “We have laws. Comprendé?” “Sí” said Nayeli (247 BN) this struck fear in the crew when the only spanish word spoken was to emphasize the point and as a fear tactic to challenge and ensures the crew follow the laws. In contrast the use of spanish in conversation and not only one word demonstrates courtesy and the desire to communicate versus just enforce rules. “Pérdon?” “Ud. me está mirando? he said, in spanish “Sí” she said “Porqué?” he asked “It’s your skin…” she said “It’s...beautiful” He laughed, out loud. (155 BN) The man uses spanish is not showing use in a forceful way as he speaks in full sentences and not just in one

It is fairly evident that to succeed in any society, one must be able to communicate clearly and eloquently. It’s like the musician that transmits that certain vibe when you hear him/her. This musician has practiced and studied music so as to master it and perform to the best of his/her ability. If we want to communicate to our best, we must also strive to perfect and master our language skills. But we are not going to do it in a tongue that the “public” is not familiar with, you will be driving the wrong way on a very fast one way highway, and find yourself in an accident of a sort.

Imagine moving to a new country and having to learn a foreign language. You do not seem able to speak without your accent and some words in your native language are coming out instead. Furthermore, you are unable to speak without pausing after almost every word. You are constantly looked down upon. People constantly correct your pronunciation and word choice. People look at you like you are not even speaking the same language. Thus, you only speak with people in your same social structure. They—like yourself—moved and had to learn the language of your new home. So, together you kept your native language alive and only talk to them because you know they will not judge you. In my opinion, This is reflective of