Amy Tan: Mother Tongue

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This activity contains 3 questions.

Tan’s focus here is on the “different Englishes” she uses. What are these, and what occasions her shift from one to another? Consider, as well, her feelings about these various “Englishes” and about her mother’s fractured English. In what ways are these both limiting and liberating for communication?

To create paragraphs in your essay response, type at the beginning of the paragraph, and at the end.

Tan is pleased when he mother’s verdict on her first novel was that it was “So easy to read.” Do you find Tan’s style in this essay “easy to read”? In an essay, evaluate her style, quoting from the text to support your viewpoint.

To create paragraphs in your essay response, type at the beginning of the paragraph, and at the end.

How does your language and that of your peers differ from that of a different generation of speakers—your parents, say, or your children? How does the language you use in formal situations differ from that you use in less formal ones? In an essay, describe the different sorts of “Englishes” you encounter in your life.

To create paragraphs in your essay response, type at the beginning of the paragraph, and at the end.

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