“Mother Tongue” by Amy Tan

“Mother Tongue” an article by an author named Amy Tan is about the many different forms of the English language that she has used and continues to use throughout her life. Amy goes on to describe the different English’s she uses, the one when she is having a conversation with her mother and then the one that she uses when she begins to write. She goes into great detail about the challenges that her and her mother both faced because of these differences.

My belief is that Amy’s goal in the article was to present to the public that just because an individual does not have or speak “perfect” English, it does not mean that the person is not intellectual. Being that her mother used a more simplified form of English, she was exposed to this and other forms of the English language, so it was easy for her to go back and forth and understand them.

Amy utilizes many key points to achieve her goal and reinforces my claim in the article. One of the points Amy expresses is the simple approach when she would talk to her mother. Her mother being one to, as Amy stated, “reads Forbes report, listens to Wall Street Week, converse daily with her stockbroker” (Tan, 2006) This right here is proof that reinforces the claim that just because there is a shortfall in the perfect English category does not mean there is a shortfall in the intelligence. Just because Amy spoke to her mother in this fashion did not mean she could not do things or tasks that were required of her, such as being able to understand the information that was given to her by her stockbroker. On page two there is a section where she states, “I believed that her English reflected the quality of what she had to say. That is because she expressed them imperfectly. Her thoughts were imperfect.” (Tan, 2006) This is one of many statements that give a glimpse into the type of challenges they faced as both mother and daughter. Placing the blame on her mother and her broken English for all of the prejudice they had to suffer through together.

Even through all the challenges they faced, Amy continued to see her mother English as she always had, clear and natural. She supports this by saying “Her language, as I hear it, its vivid, direct, full of observation and imagery.” (Tan, 2006) Further reinforcing my claim of how her mother’s version is what she had been taught and how she grew to understand it. She then states, “This was the language that helped shape the way I saw things, expressed things, made sense of the world.” (Tan, 2006) Coming from a family that immigrated here from I agree with Amy, dealing with family members struggling to speak the proper way, but in the end I felt their version was better than the “proper” English we are taught in school, being that it was more colorful.

After all was said and done she chose to fuse all of the different forms of English she had and utilize them in her book. After this her mother was finally able to read and understand her writing without needing any explanation. “when my mother finished reading my book and gave me her verdict: ‘So easy to read’.” (Tan, 2006) Amy was able to recognize the different forms of English she was able write in and use it to her advantage to appeal to different type of reader which in return gave her an advantage regarding her writing.

“I have heard other terms used, “limited English”, for example. But, I wince when I say that. It has always bothered me that I can think of no way to describe it other than “broken”, as if it were damaged and needed to be fixed, as if it lacked a certain wholeness and soundness. I’ve heard other terms used, “limited English,” for example. But they seem just as bad, as everything is limited, including people’s perceptions of the limited-English speaker.” (Tan, 2006) This passage here really validates Amy’s claim in her article and mirrors my argument of not having to speak “proper” or “perfect” English to be deemed intellectual. It is just another way our society has found to discriminate. Nevertheless, her mother still pushed through all challenges she was faced with and got things done no matter who didn’t understand her or give her the time of day. Because of her mother and the different forms of English that Amy grew up with, she was able to use this to her advantage and appeal to a different type of reader, but most of all to her mother.