Mother Tongue Amy Tan Summary

The purpose of Amy Tan’s essay, “Mother Tongue,” is to show how challenging it can be if an individual is raised by a parent who speaks “limited English” (36) as Tan’s mother does, partially because it can result in people being judged poorly by others. As Tan’s primary care giver, her mother was a significant part of her childhood, and she has a strong influence over Tan’s writing style. Being raised by her mother taught her that one’s perception of the world is heavily based upon the language spoken at home. Alternately, people’s perceptions of one another are based largely on the language used.

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.

In Mother Tongue, Amy Tan addresses the issue of non-native English speaker, who is Tan’s mother, and native speaker, who is Tan. Tan talks about different “Englishes” in her life. Tan’s English is mostly fluent, academic and formal. Tan describes her mother’s as “broken English” which mostly translate Chinese to English directly. Due to the unfamiliar to the language, Tan’s mother is always ignored by her stockbrokers and doctors, but Tan always get answered from the same parties by her standard English. Racial discrimination is shown through the different treatment of Tan and Tan’s mother.

However as Amy Tan reflects upon in her essay ‘’Mother Tongue’’, ‘’She used to have me call people on the phone to pretend to I was she.’’(Tan, Tongue) A young Amy would have to translate her mother's broken english whenever an important call would have to be made, or any transaction was needed. Making it very difficult for her family to afford what they needed, along with the overall discrimination.‘’The fact that people in department stores, at banks, and at restaurants did not take her seriously, did not give her good service, pretended not to understand her, or even acted as if they did not hear her.’’(Tan, Tongue) Not having the ability to communicate as easily as her daughter meant that her options for work were very

In “Mother Tongue,” Amy Tan describes how her mother’s English impacted her views of the world as she was growing up, which made her experiences more valuable. With Chinese parents growing up in America, Tan noticed some issues her mother came upon with the English language, such as how society assumes that language and intelligence are equivalent of one another. Describing her mother’s English, she explains the struggles of others compared to herself as “Some say they understand none of it, as if she were speaking pure Chinese. But to me, my mother’s English is perfectly clear, perfectly natural. It’s my mother tongue...vivid, direct, full of observation and imagery...that helped the way I saw things, expressed things, made sense of the

Critically acclaimed author, Amy Tan, in her essay “Mother Tongue”, considers cultural standards and preconceived notions propagated by society in the terms of language. Tan explores the perceptions behind those who speak in ‘broken English’ and the validity of all forms of self-expression by revisiting past experiences in her own life with her mother. She adopts a sincere and emotional tone in order to expose audiences to the discrimination many immigrants face in society on a continual basis. Ultimately, through the use of devices such as definition, comparison and contrast, and her masterful command of language; Tan expresses her central claim that all of her ‘englishes’ are deserving of recognition and respect.

Tan writes that because her mother’s English is limited, people “did not take [her mother] seriously, did not give her good service, pretended not to understand her, or even acted as if they did not hear her” (Tan, para. 8). Tan further provides an example of the difficulties her mother encounters by recounting an occasion where the hospital lost her mother’s CAT scan. When Tan’s mother confronted the doctors in her “broken” English, “the hospital did not apologize… and did not have any sympathy” (Tan, para. 13). After Tan spoke to the hospital in her perfect English, they apologized “for any suffering [her mother] had gone through for a most regrettable mistake” (Tan, para. 13).

I was twelve years old when my family decided to move to America and I can still recall the memories when I left India. I was horrified. What worried me most was going to a new school where I would have to communicate in an unfamiliar language. I feared that other kids would look down upon me for my inability to speak English properly. However, in the essay “Mother Tongue”, the author Amy Tan gives a different, a more optimistic outlook on the various forms of English that immigrants speak as they adapt to the American culture. Using simple language to develop her argument, she casually communicates to the audience rather than informing, which helps the audience understand what is being presented. Tan’s mother plays an important role in her outlook of language because she helps her realize that language not only allows one to be a part of a culture, but also create one’s identity in society. Amy Tan shares her real life stories about cultural racism and the struggle to survive in America as an immigrant without showing any emotions; which is an enlightening experience for the audience. It reveals how a non-native English speaker handles everyday situations.

Amy Tan’s “Mother Tongue” As I read Amy Tan’s narrative essay of “Mother Tongue”, it seemed to me that as her mother spoke up to other people they found her irrelevant to talk to. It was as if they were brushing off an annoying fly that landed on their shoulder. I felt empathy for her mother as I read on in to Amy Tan

Amy Tan’s essay, “Mother Tongue” focuses primarily on her awareness and relationship with all of the different forms of English that she grew up with. She explains that while giving a speech to a large group of people, there was a specific factor that was distorting her focus. Although she has given this speech to a large audience before, she realizes that the offsetting factor was indeed the fact that her mother was present in the crowd. Tan becomes completely aware of how differently she speaks based on who she is speaking to and who is around to hear her. Despite the fact that Tan’s mother does not speak proper English, it is clear that she undoubtedly comprehends what she is reading or listening to. Because Tan grew up listening to her

In her article “Mother Tongue,” Amy Tan maintains that the inability to speak the “correct” English does not reflect intelligence; however most people believe it does. Tan’s mother experience shows how society treats a non-fluent English speaker. Tan, a daughter of a Chinese immigrant family who fled China’s Cultural Revolution, used to go with her mother to stores and banks; Tan admits. “ I was ashamed of her English” (78); people ignored Tan’s mother because “the way she expressed her thoughts were imperfect” because of her “limited” English (78). As a consequence, Tan “tried to distance herself from her ethnicity” (76). How can a person think of such a thing? Simple answer: because if you don't speak English, you are not intelligent; this

In the short narrative “Mother Tongue” Amy Tan talks about the different “englishes” she has experienced in her life. Tan illustrates the difficulties people with “broken” English encounter on a daily basis. Through the use of vivid imagery, the author illustrates her appreciation and opinion towards the variation of the English language. However, Tan has a shift in tone throughout the narrative. She begins expressing her embarrassment for having a mother whose English is not up to the standards placed by the American society that Tan is trying to belong in. However, later she realizes that this “broken” language is part of her culture and personality. Through the use of anecdotes, the author tells us that English was never her strongest subject

In Amy Tan’s story “Mother’s Tongue”, Tan argues that the way people speak the English language is directly taken from how family members have adopted the English language or dialect that they speak. Tan also claims that these “broken or limited” (635) forms of English are taken less seriously and people who speak it are often perceived as less intelligent. Tan encountered many experiences in relation to this theory; her mother would make Tan talk on the phone to customer service, because they would never take her mother seriously and would often be disrespectful because of how she spoke “broken” English. Tan was embarrassed and even ashamed of her mother’s form of English, because she knew her mother’s thoughts were clear, but the way that

As person living with the gift of dual language, Tan’s essay allowed some insight into my own life. She argued that a person’s limitation on language does not reflect their perspective on society or events of the world. The limitation is more of a token than a deficiency, people having these language issues must come up with an exclusive way to portray thoughts and ideas; therefore, enhancing their perceptual knowledge of the world around. Growing up listening to my mother’s English, I have learned to adapt and am able to fully understand her, even though I constantly catch myself trying to correct her. The way she conveys her thoughts and ideas is what makes her unique and who am I to change her by correcting her idiosyncrasies. Although I have become accustomed to my mother’s English there are certain things she says that even

Language as a combination of single words and different ideas affects us everyday in life. In the essay “Mother tongue” by Amy Tan, the author describes how her mother’s English influences her in her career and life that the “mother tongue” does not limit her as a writer, but shaped her and her perception on life instead. And her attitude to her mother’s English changes from the initial embarrassment to the final appreciation.