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Trivedi 0

Shubham Trivedi

Ms. Wu

English 102

Mother Tongue –Being Bilingual

Speaking two or more languages in the United States is a major benefit, but sometimes there are drawbacks as well. Amy Tan writes about her bilingual experience in her article Mother Tongue. Amy Tan is a Chinese immigrant who shares a unique and unfathomable bond with her mother. Tan idolizes the strength of language in family ties, she is able to redefine the meaning of language in terms of her experiences. Her mother’s primary language is Chinese; this greatly affected her ability to speak the English language without an accent. Tan had to learn to speak for her mother and defend her speaking capabilities against people who criticized her accent. She learned to speak English perfectly and developed a rebellious nature to challenge the English language. She argues that many foreigners do not attempt to master a new language, instead they choose to learn a different skill such as mathematics which has a universal language. Tan’s parents wanted her to become a neurosurgeon or an engineer because that’s what the common trend is. Tan extrapolates many answers to today’s question about the weakness many students face in learning new languages. There is clear evidence of the use of the rhetorical appeals in Tan’s work. Throughout her article Tan uses appeals to ethos, logos, and pathos to develop a potent argument to defend her belief of overcoming the bilingual language barrier.

Amy Tan’s article Mother Tongue, strategically increases Tan’s creditability through various personal experiences and via powerful emotional connections with the reader. Her article, similar to her other popular books (Joy Luck Club, etc.) deal mostly with the experiences she had with her mother. As the article progresses the reader slowly beings to appreciate her authority and acknowledges the situation she describes. This is clear proof that ethos is present in this article. Tan is able to convey her reputation to the reader by using a first person point-of-view, her projected confidence, and her life experiences.

By using first person point-of-view Tan is able to give herself credit without the use of an external source. This gives the reader an honest opinion about the author. This even appeals to pathos, allowing the author to create an emotional tie with the reader. Credibility has to be earned, and Tan does this by interacting with the reader as her article progresses. Throughout the article Tan states quotes such as “It’s my mother tongue. Her language, as I hear it, is vivid, direct, and full of observation and imagery” (Tan 623). She seems to almost take a defensive stance against negative opinions. This quote was able to earn my respect, the reader can feel the love and admiration Tan has for her mother. Only a person with a strong passion for writing can write such a fluid and influential statement. Another key technique Tan utilizes is the projection of her feelings. She seems to be brimming with confidence, which is an important step to take when applying ethos to an essay.

Confidence reflects on one’s ability to reinforce their ideas with solid credibility. Which Tan was asked why so little Asian-American students apply for writing majors or partake in writing programs, she confidently answered “…this makes me think that there are other Asian-American students whose English spoken in the home might also be described as ‘broken’ or ‘limited’ ”(Tan 626). Tan can properly define her situation with authority rather than flimsy bluffs. She also uses many rhetorical questions to have the reader question their own ideals, so they can adjust to the arguments Tan wishes to make.

Tan reveals multiple adventures she has experienced with her mother by her side. Most people gain credibility by their educational endeavors. Tan states she went to college with a chosen English major instead of pre-med like she parents wanted her to do. She gains most her credibility by states she has published an award winning book called The Joy Luck Club. This proves her mastery in the English language. Throughout her essay she states how her mother’s level in the English language was very limited. Tan was able to finish of her essay by quoting her mother who claimed that book was “so easy to read” (Tan 627). This is crucial to note because Tan’s complex novel was easily read by a person who has troubles with the English language. Not only that, the book her mother is speaking about is the book which earned Tan the Finalist National Book Award. Tan’s work overall, brings her creditability to a high status. Tan also uses various appeals to logic throughout her article as well, this is important to convince the reader that “real” information is used to compose the article.

Tan provides the reader with multiples sources of logical statements. Logos is the use of facts and solid evidence to prove an argument. There are many ways an author can in cooperate statistics into their writing to convey their thoughts. Everything’s an Argument defines logos as “the use of reasons and evidence- to the presentation of facts, statistics, credible testimony, cogent examples…” (Lunsford, Ruszkiewicz & Walters 27). Tan uses mainly credible testimonies to prove her point. Tan also uses deductive reasoning to make her claims about how being bilingual is not a setback, but more of an advantage. Logos is witnessed in Tan’s essay in her use of rhetorical questions which cause rebuttal of common beliefs and deductive reasoning.

A rhetorical question is also used to challenge a common belief. A person can only use such rhetorical questions when they are confident with their own personal beliefs and ideals. In this case Tan is flipping the common belief that a foreigner will not be as successful in a secondary language as a primary speaker would. An example of Tan’s use of rhetorical questions is “Why do so many Chinese students go into engineering?” (Tan 626). This well placed rhetorical question links in with the personal experiences she has written about in the previous paragraphs. Tan is integrating statistics she has witnessed to formulate a logical theory of why this phenomenon occurs. Tan believes that since most Chinese students struggle in their English class, they choose to excel at courses which are more universal such as mathematics or science. This approach does however, contain non sequitur fallacy (Lunsford, Ruszkiewicz & Walters 85). Tan assumes that if a student performs poorly in English, they will succeed at math or science. This is not a logical approach to the situation because according to Tan a good math student will not be successful at English, which would not make sense. Deductive reasoning is used by Tan to approach the source of her argument.

Tan is able to deduce that the language barrier generated by a person’s primary language is not always the source of error in the second. She is able to deduce this using testimonies of her past experiences. She uses the United States standardize testing as a powerful example of why some students are placed in the position of not choosing a language as their source of interest. When Tan was in high school she achieved mediocre grades in English and excelling grades in math. On standardized exams such as the SAT, her math scores outshined her English scores. Tan believe at an early age the primary language as a negative influence on the secondary language. She states herself “But those scores were not good enough to override the opinion that my true abilities lay in math and science, because in those areas I achieved As and scored in the ninetieth percentile or higher.” (Tan 625). Later on she explains that math is precise and has a single answer, whereas English had multiple answers which “seemed” to be correct.

Tan evokes the reader’s emotions using various personal experiences. Strong family ties also hold students back from facing unknown territory. Everything’s an Argument states that “facts alone often won’t carry the day, even for a worthy cause” (Lunsford 31). This is important to mention because Tan realizes this and shares plenty of background information and special memories with the reader. By sharing her inner emotions through her stories the reader feels as if they have a special connection with the author. Supported by strong diction and narration her stories carry an emotional tone. Tan’s relationship with her “mother tongue” is extremely crucial to her success as a writer. Tan generates pathos by gaining sympathy from the reader and uses strong diction to achieve it.

Overall Amy Tan was able to create a strong argument for her judgement that language barriers can be surpassed. She utilized the three main points of the rhetorical triangle to create a influential argument structure. The strongest feature of her article was the ethos she was able to generate by defining her talents as a writer. She wrote award winning books which highlighted her life with her mother. Her mother was a dominant symbol of pathos throughout her essay. Family was key topic Tan used to describe her deep emotions. Tan displayed her intelligence by strategic use of logos. The logic she provides flows smoothly and the reader is able to grasp her inner most thoughts as they are presented in a professional manner. After reading Tan’s article, any reader will agree being bilingual in the United States is not a challenge.

Works Citied

Lunsford, Andrea A. John J. Ruszkiewicz, and Keith Walters. Everything’s an Argument with Readings. 6th ed. Boston: Bedford, 2013. Print.

Tan, Amy. “Mother Tongue” Everything's an Argument with Readings. E.d. Lunsford, Andrea A., John J. Ruszkiewicz, and Keith Walters. 6th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martinś, 2013. Print.