The Pros And Cons Of Speaking English

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.

Mother Tongue is a story that describes how Amy Tan’s mother was treated unfairly because of her “broken English”. As the second generation of Chinese immigrants, Tan faces more problems than her peers do. Her mom, who speaks “limited” English, needs Tan to be her “translator” in order to communicate with the native English speakers. Tan has felt ashamed of her mother “broken” language at first. She then contemplates her background affected her life and her study. However, she changes her thought at the end since she realizes things behind language might be more valuable than language itself sometimes. Through the various different literary devices and rhetorical strategies such as the ethos, pathos, and logos appeals, as well as a

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.

The article "Mother Tongue" by Amy Tan shows firsthand instances of how Amy's mother was treated because of the way she spoke. She was disregarded, not taken seriously, and thought of as dim. The author uses logic, emotion, and reasoning to show why this way of thinking is not often true. The article’s main claim of how people perceive the intelligence of those who speak broken English is easily defined because of the authors use of writing techniques like telling personal stories, creating an appeal to emotion, and an appeal to logic.

English is an invisible gate. Immigrants are the outsiders. And native speakers are the gatekeepers. Whether the gate is wide open to welcome the broken English speakers depends on their perceptions. Sadly, most of the times, the gate is shut tight, like the case of Tan’s mother as she discusses in her essay, "the mother tongue." People treat her mother with attitudes because of her improper English before they get to know her. Tan sympathizes for her mother as well as other immigrants. Tan, once embarrassed by her mother, now begins her writing journal through a brand-new kaleidoscope. She sees the beauty behind the "broken" English, even though it is different. Tan combines repetition, cause and effect, and exemplification to emphasize

Time and time again, Tan’s mother’s inability to speak proper English is seen by standard English speakers as a sign that she is unintelligent; they believe that the way she speaks is wrong and therefore the things she has to say are not important. This belief is so pervasive that as a teen, Tan herself used to believe that her mother was not smart because of how she spoke. Because Tan’s mother’s speech did not follow the rules of traditional English, Tan “believed that her [mother’s] English reflected the quality of what she had to say. That is, because she expressed them imperfectly, her thoughts were imperfect” (146). Because Tan’s mother speaks in ways that are described as “broken” and “limited”, as a teen Tan felt her mother’s language indicated that her mom was simple minded. However, as Tan grew up, she came to appreciate the beauty and intellect behind her mother’s words. While Tan’s friends comment that they cannot understand a majority of what Tan’s mother says, Tan hears her mother’s speech as “perfectly clear, perfectly natural”, and remarks that “her language, as [she] hear[s] it, is vivid, direct, full of observations and imagery” (146). Tan’s friends seem to hear Tan’s mother’s speech on a surface level; since they cannot understand what she is trying to say, they cannot understand how rich her language is. Just because Tan’s friends do not understand her mother, it does not make the intricacies of how she speaks any less unique. The tendency of standard English

Ever been in a situation where you were the only person who couldn’t understand a specific language? Ever been in a situation where you felt no one could understand you? Do you remember how it made you feel in that moment? Imagine feeling that way all the time; alone, isolated, and misunderstood. Jimmy Santiago Baca and Maxine Hong Kingston do a great job of conveying these feelings in their articles. In the article “Coming into Language”, Jimmy Santiago tells his story as a troubled young man who never saw the value in reading and writing. And in the article “The Language of Silence”, Maxine Hong Kingston tells her story as a first generation Chinese American who struggles with speaking English. As for me, I’ve always struggled with

who speak English less than very well” increased by 3.9 million.” Time taking an important role contribute to study language. Immigrants take ESL classes but finding the time between jobs and caring for their kids gonna be difficult. Especially difficult because you already common with native tongue and now had to speak with different tongue. The immigrant children and children of immigrant contribute to one of the fastest growing America’s child population.With children perspective, according to Global Citizen: “ With regards to school, parents often feel disappointed to see their children struggling to keep up in class, and many parents report bullying and discrimination as a result of cultural differences. Kids are often placed by their age rather than by their ability, and for those who are unable to speak English, it’s virtually impossible to keep up.” Not just adult, children have to deal many struggle while they at school. Not being able to mix with other American native speaker, hard to keep up with other make them felt behind and stressful or even

In the excerpt from “Funny in Farsi” by Firoozeh Dumas a mother and a daughter struggle in a school as they speak a different language, yet they soon realize the father's description of America is exactly right. “Since my mother and I did not speak English, the meeting consisted of a dialogue between my father and Mrs. Sandberg(The teacher)”. It was very difficult for the mother and daughter to communicate with others around them, for example, their teacher. “He had decided that it would be a good idea for my mother to attend school with me for a few weeks”. The child’s mother does not know much more than her daughter, this is a great opportunity for both to learn something new in their lives. “After spending an entire day in America, surrounded

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.

In the narrative essay, “Mother Tongue” by Amy Tan, the author sets out the story between her mother, whose English is her second language, and Tan herself can speak native English very well. The essay covers the tonal shift of Amy Tan 's psychological change, from grudge to understanding. Although she begins the essay saying, " I am not a scholar of English or literature. I cannot give you much more than personal opinions on the English language and its variations in the country or others." The essay uses personal narrative and pathos to tell us that language is not the only key to communication. But sometimes, people use it as a tool to measure individual value.

The United States is continuing to grow in the number of families that are immigrating to our country. According to Washington State Institute for Public Policy (2007), “As of 2000, there were approximately 107,000 immigrant elementary students and 100,000 middle and high school students in Washington State, based on U.S. Census data.” Children from these families enter our educational system knowing very little English and they are considered to be an English Language Learner (ELL) defined by “those whose primary language is a language other than English and who have English language skill deficiencies that impair their learning in regular classrooms” (Malagon, McCold, Hernandez, 2011, p. IV). While parents truly believe their children will receive a better education in the United States as oppose to the country they came from, English Language Learner students face a number of everyday challenges while at school. These challenges go beyond learning the English language; they include the struggles that are faced not only academically, but socially as well. English Language Learner students face these day-to-day problems due to their inability to express their ideas and thoughts, along with not being able to communicate substantially and identify with the people in their community.

Moving to America was one thing, but with the language barrier between the immigrants and this foreign country, it creates a stagnant in their road to success. Min decided to go to the Art Institute of Chicago. However, nobody would take her without having her demonstrate the English language. It is a hard and lonely road. She didn’t get far without English. She taught herself English by watching Sesame Street. Learning English wasn’t her only struggle. She keeps herself afloat working five jobs at once and lives in unheated rooms. It wasn’t long until she attended school. When she was in school an English professor from her English 101 called her a “lousy writer with excellent material” (181). Professors criticized her but also acknowledged

Although the narrator’s parents are keeping him from learning or speaking their native languages, which is what most of his family members speak, in order to stabilize his English proficiency, there are many negative effects of doing so. The narrator constantly feels

In today’s society, there are many reasons why people in the world need to know the fundamentals of using Standard English. When working in a business environment, we as employees need to know how to use Standard English to compete in the world and become successful. Many opportunities and rewards can come from learning how to use proper Standard English. There are many reasons why people should use Standard English in an office or workspace frequently, and using non-standard English can lead to many effects on your outlook as a professional.