Response to "Mother Tongue" by Amy Tan

I really enjoyed reading this article by Amy Tan because it showed how she initially felt her culture and family upbringing negatively influenced her life, but later comes to the conclusion that these influences were positive. In the beginning Tan discussed how she felt embarrassed, ashamed and stereotyped by her mother’s “broken” English. I chuckled a little bit at the example Amy Tan used when she had to make phones calls acting as her mother because of her improper English. Tan was told she would never be able to advance in English because of her Asian culture and that she should pursue math and science. I can imagine Amy Tan feeling offended by this comment, as I would be as well, so she wanted to prove them wrong and master the English language. I believe that after Amy Tan began writing she realized that the language she was using was so complicated that only a few people could understand her. With this being said, Amy Tan decided she needed to use simpler and more easily comprehendible language so that people like her mother could understand it. She decided that the language she had learned through her culture and her family upbringing which was “broken” and simple was the best way to communicate effectively.