Language In Mother Tongue By Amy Tan

In the fictional essay “Mother Tongue,” Amy Tan states that we speak diverse languages to communicate with each other and that our intellect is judged by the way we speak. She uses language as a way to observe experiences that assisted her in realizing the many “Englishes” she uses. Tan defines “Englishes” as Chinese-English. As a child Tan had to speak two types of languages because she was born in a Chinese culture. The first language she learned was “broken English.” Her mother is not fluent in the English language therefore they established a special language to communicate with each other. Tan’s first language was used only with her Chinese family and would sometimes cause problems when in normal conversations. She would say things that would not make sense or words that only she and

By not teaching them Spanish, I am not teaching them about our culture or any other culture. My children need to know that they live in a very diverse country and it is important to understand other people and their differences. Tan wants to open the eyes of fluent English speakers and prove to them that not all people that speak the English language speak in the similar way. The English language is divided into many dialects. Tan refers to this English as a “language of intimacy” within the family but also notes how it weakens in public encounters. (466) Every family has an internal language that they share because it is their identity. This unique internal language is what allows each and every family show their true culture. People should not be ashamed of their English, even if it is broken. After my grandmother’s incident with the store clerk, I could see that she was ashamed and embarrassed. After that moment I never heard her speak English again and that really upset me. She let one person decide what language she should speak rather than embracing her