Life As a Translator Like Tan, the author of Mother Tongue, I also am a translator in my family. My Mother came from central America, only arriving to America when she was around 12 or 13. As a result, she knew no English, and faced difficulty acquiring employment. The only job she was able to find was the typical immigrant jobs, working as a maid or waitress. As my brothers and I grew up, we used English to our advantage, speaking in English whenever we didn’t want out mother to understand. We weren’t aware of it at the time, but our mother was secretly learning to use English. Adopting words and phrases around those around her, therefore, her English falls under ‘broken or fractured.’ Despite her knowledge of English, she still has difficulty …show more content…
My Mother came from central America, only arriving to America when she was around 12 or 13. As a result, she knew no English, and faced difficulty acquiring employment. The only job she was able to find was the typical immigrant jobs, working as a maid or waitress. As my brothers and I grew up, we used English to our advantage, speaking in English whenever we didn’t want out mother to understand. We weren’t aware of it at the time, but our mother was secretly learning to use English. Adopting words and phrases around those around her, therefore, her English falls under ‘broken or …show more content…
Some phrases or words may come out differently from what she really means, and that’s where I come in. Recently, my mother and I went on a trip to Honduras, her home country. The tickets were bought through the phone, and I was the one who made the transfer. At the time, I was struggling to finish all the homework assignments, but since my mom’s English isn’t ‘understandable.’ This is one of many instances where my work is put aside to help my mother, but it doesn’t happen periodically. It happens at her workplace, on the phone, restaurants,