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Amy Tan Mother Tongue Essay

625 Words3 Pages

After reading Amy Tan’s essay, “Mother Tongue”, it is evident that language plays a huge part in our lives. For Tan, it is her mother’s English. Her mother grew up in China, so she wasn't a native English speaker. While a large portion of people couldn’t understand Tan’s mother, she could understand her just fine. This is largely because she grew up with her mother and she taught Tan how to speak English. To Tan her mother’s English symbolizes home. In the essay there are a few symbols. When Tan speaks with others out in the world she transitions her language from when she is talking at her house with her mother. Her “out in the world” language can be described as proper English. This symbolizes Tans acceptance into the American society and her distancing away from her mother. The language that she uses at home with her mother can be described as simple language. This, on the other hand, symbolizes the bond between Tan and her family. …show more content…

An example of this from “Mother Tongue” is when she was at the hospital. Her mother had gotten a CAT scan for brain tumor a few months earlier. She went back to find out more and the hospital didn’t apologize for losing the CAT scan. The hospital said that she would have to wait until the next appointment for more information. When the doctor called Tan and spoke with her, there was a different outcome. Tan spoke in perfect English, which led to an apology and assurance that the CAT scan would be

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