Tan is a “Chinese American novelist” who “was born on February 19, 1952, in Oakland, California” (Amy Tan Bio). When Tan was young she has many problems because her parents wanted her “to hold onto Chinese traditions and her own longings to become more Americanized” (“Tan, Amy”). Her parents always wanted her to become a neurosurgeon, but she wanted to become a …show more content…
As Tan was growing up she had to use and learn different types of English. In the very first sentence, she states that “I am not a scholar of English or literature” (Frost, 118). By this, she means that she’s not so great in the English and literature. When Tan was in grade school her English wasn’t all so great but in college she switched to an English major from pre-med. English was tans second language so she wasn’t so encouraged to become a writer since she thought she couldn’t write so well. But she didn’t let that get in the way of her career because her audience was always her mother. “Apart from what any critic had to say about my writing… ‘So easy to read’” (Frost, 121). Tan’s mother always had a tough time speaking English but she didn’t have much difficulty understanding or reading it. She called her mother’s English “broken or fractured English” because of the way her mother would speak. (Frost, 119). She would say sentences like “why he don’t send me check, already two weeks ago but it hasn’t arrived” (Frost,