Not only can language articulate a simple truth, one's command of it demonstrates a simple truth: without language, one is voiceless, with imperfect language, one is seen as imperfect, and with standard language, one is superior, at least from the perspectives of those who possess the standard command of language. Tan also examines this relationship of language to acceptance in a dominant community in “ Mother Tongue”.
Language is many things: the arrangement of words in a particular order, uttered in a certain way, denoting a certain meaning; it is a political instrument, which evokes images and motion. Certainly, all of this is a description of the purpose and function of language. But as its most fundamental, language is quite simply the expression of self and the ability to share that expression with others. The learning of one's mother tongue will provide an individual the right to study their culture and will also preserve family bonds and lessen cultural conflicts between generations.
Timikeyi Egbuson.
You May Also Find These Documents Helpful
-
udwig Wittgenstein once said in his book Logico Tractatus Philosophicus ,“The limits of my language means the limits of my world.” This quotation means language has no limit, it’s something that can be translated into a wide variety. Both Amy Tan in the essay, “Mother Tongue” and Richard Rodriguez in the essay, “Aria: Memoir of a Bilingual Childhood” write about their struggle with their identities not only because of their race, but also the language there families speak. Amy Tan and Richard Rodriguez both struggled with there families language conflicting with the need to speak the language of society. While children they share similarities with their struggles, and they differ in their perception of the importance of maintaining their families…
- 555 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Language is very often considered something that all of us take for granted, something we learn when we are so little that we can’t even remember how, something that for all of us was always part of our lives. Helen Keller with her need of language to give sense to life, Frederick Douglass with his ways of learning and Amy Tan with the importance of the “Mother Tongue” language, convey to us a totally different view of how language changes, develops and gives meaning to our lives.…
- 1643 Words
- 7 Pages
Better Essays -
The essay “Mother Tongue” describes a writer who grew up with a mother of Asian origin and the limitations created by her mother’s speech. The author, Amy Tan, defines her mother’s English as “broken” and that it created communication barriers. For example, when Tan’s mother would need to call her boss about work, she would rely on her daughter to make the phone call and use proper english. When Tan decided to go into English in college, it seemed foolish since she was more skilled in math and science. The author also mentions how not everyone’s speech is the same, but that is not a bad thing. Tan decided to start writing fiction, and write a book in a way her mother would comprehend. Though the writing was harshly critiqued, Tan knew she…
- 227 Words
- 1 Page
Satisfactory Essays -
In “Mother Tongue” (1990) an essay written by Amy Tan, a Chinese-American author who has written a lot of beautiful novels, Tan argues that all languages have a purpose and value. Tan tells us how every language has a purpose by giving us examples from her own life, specifically, she talks about the way her and her mother talked; her mother wasn’t very fluent in English, but the little English she could speak she could say smart and brilliant things like, “ . Tan uses personal examples in order to make us believe in the importance of language. The people she directs this story to is to people who grew up in English homes from birth to see just because someone doesn’t talk perfect English doesn’t mean they don’t know things, they do have brilliant…
- 175 Words
- 1 Page
Satisfactory Essays -
It is a struggle to adapt to a new culture and language, which may be completely different from the ones young child may have already learned. This can lead to inner conflict, confusion, and even anger. One way to handle the conflict is to cut ties with the first culture including language. But is this the answer? Doing so can create a sense of loss. In the essay “Aria: A Memoir of a Bilingual Childhood”, Richard Rodriguez shares his personal experience with learning English as a second language. In his linguistic journey, the author feels a disconnect between Spanish, the language used at home by his Mexican immigrant parents, and English, the language used in the public world. He raises an important question…
- 1381 Words
- 6 Pages
Better Essays -
Amy Tan, the author of “Mother Tongue,” gives the audience a new outlook and better understanding of the struggles that every immigrant who lives in United States had gone through every day. Amy Tan gives the audience the positive view on the “broken” English speakers by using herself and her mother as an example. Her mother did not get respect from the hospital and also the stockbroker due to her limited use of English. In contrast, Amy Tan was treated very well because of speaking proper English. This shows that there is discrimination between people who speak proper English and people who do not. Further, Amy Tan points out that although her mother speaking is not fluent, her comprehension is really good. The author argues that people should not judge the others (especially immigrants) based on their spoken language successfully because she uses most of rhetorical appeals pathos, ethos, and logos to show that language is not a credible indicator in measuring individual’s competency.…
- 887 Words
- 4 Pages
Better Essays -
Amy Tan’s story “Mother Tongue” starts by the affirmation that she is not a scholar of English or literature. She is just a writer and the person who understand the power of language. From Tan’s observations from her daily life, she realizes that there are different types of English that she uses. The first time Tan notices the difference is when she gives a speech on her book “The Joy Luck Club” using academic English, the one that she never uses to talk with her mother. The second time is when Tan talked using “fractured” English unconsciously with her mother when walking down the street. After that, Tan recalls her memories from her early age: the phone call for her mother to the stockbroker, the meeting with a doctor in the hospital for her mother’s CAT scan result to demonstrate her mother’s realization of “limited” English. Then Tan agrees with the idea that language spoken in…
- 760 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
In the article of “How to Tame a Wild Tongue” written by Gloria Anzaldua, she discusses about the relationship between the language and identity. In the other article, which is “Mother Tongue” written by Amy Tan, she discusses her observation and thoughts about using the English and the perceptions, prejudices from other people regarding other languages. Both articles are pointing out how important is the language is in our lives and how we can suffer if we are not using do not use it correctly. Using another language can be very beneficial or painful depending on the way the people use it.…
- 616 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Both articles reflect how the language an individual speak is linked with their identity. Anzaldúa and Tan’s article both displayed a strong aid for their claim that many languages one’s speaks has a major impact on the way they interact with the society. They both demonstrate the essence of language, using their own experiences. They both talked about how they grew up surrounded with limited…
- 833 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
Language is the system of words or signs that people use to express thoughts and feelings to each other. Language has an impulse on a person that allows them to make ties with a certain society, thus giving them a cultural identification. When residents of another country come to America and speak a contrasting language to English, immigrants most likely feel uneasy having to adapt to a completely new culture and learn the English language. During this journey, the individuals’ cultural identities might fade away as well as losing their efficient fluency on their native language. In Amy Tan’s, “Mother Tongue” and Richard Rodriguez “Aria: A Memoir of A Bilingual Childhood”, both authors experience the difficulties of language barrier and adjusting to a different lifestyle in order to develop as an individual in the United States.…
- 970 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
"Mother Tongue" written by Amy Tan, the author reveals that there's bias in spoken and written language when communicating. The speaker herself says she uses different Englishes when speaking to her Chinese immigrant mother whose second language is under developed compared to hers. Ms. Tan alternates between different events that support a change in her own awareness involving forms of English, such as when speaking to a group about her herself, she notices herself saying, '"The intersection of memory upon imagination" and "There is an aspect of my fiction that relates to..."' while confessing that this is not her daily language when conversing with her mother or husband, that it’s a language of intimacy, which I believe is to be more vulnerable…
- 226 Words
- 1 Page
Satisfactory Essays -
During the course of American history, immigrants have come in from all around the world. In “Mother Tongue”, Amy Tan describes her mother’s experience as well as her own experiences with the English language. Amy Tan tries to give a more positive view of people who immigrate to this country and shine a light on those who try to take advantage of these immigrants. In her essay she appeals to pathos, applies subjective diction, and uses several anecdotes in order to clearly tell the experiences she and her mother have and to give us a better understanding of people who do not speak English well like her mother.…
- 493 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
Gloria Anzaldua in How to Tame a Wild Tongue and Amy Tan in Mother Tongue both share a similar message in their essays, they argue that every single culture faces different language obstacles when learning the english language. Both struggle to develop the correct form of english, the one considered acceptable by society. Both Tan and Anzaldua teach us about their ethnic backgrounds, in an effort to better help us learn of their struggles. Amy Tan, is of asian descent, and tells us how growing up with a mother who spoke “broken english” influenced the person she became and how she approached the world. Gloria Anzaldua, considered herself a Mexican American but mainly Chicana, and she tells us of her struggle to accept her roots and to find a place where she belonged. Ultimately, this also influenced who Anzaldua came to be. The…
- 554 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
In Amy Tan’s essay “Mother Tongue” (1990), she emphasize that her mother’s way of speaking English has created a cultural wall. Tan used truth from her life and her mother’s personal experiences to express how society treats people who speak poor English. Tan’s purpose was to encourage the reader not to prejudge a person who speaks imperfect English and in spite of how the individual speak, they should be treated the same way as the person who speaks perfect English. Tan’s anticipated audience was anyone who’s been judge or mistreated because of their imperfect English and anyone who judged or look down on a person that speaks imperfect English.…
- 362 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
In the book, “Mother Tongue”, Amy Tan asserts that language is a tool of communication.…
- 317 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays