Amy Tan Mother Tongue Summary

Our Founding Fathers of the United States embodies John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and George Washington who all spoke English. Let’s acknowledge that our entire presidential body is full of English speakers. Imagine seeing a non-English speaker in the store clueless because they don’t know how to ask for service in English? Because they know the bewilderment they’ll receive from the employee trying to interpret what their saying. Imagine how much better they would feel knowing English and not feeling discouraged to ask for guidance. Declaring English as the national would prevent situations like this, avoid excluding non-English speakers, and transform ways of life.

In Mother Tongue by Amy Tan, Tan presumes that her mother is treated as an ignorant person most of the time because of her mother’s native language and the “broken” language she expresses. Tan reminisces about how she would have to talk to people for her mother because they didn’t take her mother serious. If Amy’s mother learned English soon as she moved to America she wouldn’t have to rely on her daughter. It’s not that what her mother was communicating wasn’t important but, most aren’t accustomed to her

dialect. Instead of trying to decipher her “broken” English people would dismiss it. Declaring English as the national language will help Amy’s mother character by not having others think of her as some foreigner who’s irrelevant to English speakers.
Everyone speaking English would not only intertwine us together but, also make no one seem erased.

Intimidation was felt by new foreign exchange student David, thrown into the “language pool” (Sedaris591), and told to “sink or swim” (Sedaris591). As he looked around he saw all returning students and appeared out of place. Each student introduced themselves and, their professor ridiculed the, for the way they spoke French. Students continued to stride in to class that followed the professor deriding anything the students said. It came to the point where the students became reticent unless spoken to. Once David began to understand what his professor was saying he felt like “The world opened up, and it was with great joy”

(Sedaris594).
Learning English transform life’s in many ways whether it’s inspiring yourself or others. The seven years Malcolm X spent in jail changed his way of life. Instead of lifting weights and playing cards he educated himself with an English dictionary. Days in and days out Malcolm X created a replica of the dictionary in his tablet. Arrived the day he could pick up a book and read without skipping over words. He felt as if “I never had been so truly free in my life” (X 247). Studying the dictionary opened doors for Malcolm X he learned history, philosophy and more. Without English Malcom X wouldn’t have been able to read the dictionary which educated him and, led him to traveling around the world inspiring others.
America is defined as the melting pot but we don’t have to have different languages to be a world of combined cultures. America can still be great without having multiple languages, conversely have one official language will better America. Having one united language cancels out the discrimination against non-English speakers, and foreigners being excluded moreover, inspires people to inspire others.