Amy Tan Mother Tongue Summary

The essay “Mother Tongue” written by Amy Tan tells readers that she had two different types of languages that she speaks. One is used for the public and the second used at home with her mother. During a large conference she was telling about a book she had written and was using Standard English. Suddenly she remembers that her mother was there and never heard Ms. Tan speak this way. When Ms. Tan was at home with her mother they spoke in the same way and fashion. Many times, in the writer’s life she had to translate for her mother. When the author was younger she was often embarrassed for the way her mother sounded when she was speaking English. She came to realize that nothing was wrong with her mother intelligence. The author goes on talks about her mother cashing in money that she earned using the stock market and having to talk to …show more content…
In other words, she acted like her mother to get answers or express an opinion on wrongdoings. This sounds a lot like what I must do for my mother. My mother relies on me to make people believe I am her on the phone when it comes to paying bills, getting medical results, or dealing with banking information. Of course, she is right there telling me what she wants me to say and argumentative at times. She says I am more educated than her and know how to get her point a crossed, but my mother is very smart in ways that I will never be. I may handle problems that deal with technology almost daily but history, cooking, and reading she excels at. I find myself standing up for my mother when someone may have been rude to her. Unlike Amy Tan and her quote that I have included in the first sentence, I am not forced to help my mother. I do this because it is the honorable thing to do. My mother does the same for me by supporting me in school and helping me when I have homework and don’t understand something I am