Anna A

pom
Amy
motherTounge
Tan

Amy Tan uses

symbolism to express “My husband was with us as well, and he

This quote counts as symbolism because
the author is using different Englishes as a

a theme of living in
didn't notice any switch in my English. And
then I realized why. It's because over the
symbol for different levels of intimacy while
she is living in America. The more “simple”

different 2 worlds in
twenty years we've been together I've often
used that same kind of English with him, and
the English she uses in conversation, the
more intimate she is with a person because

Mother Tongue
sometimes he even uses it with me. It has
become our language of intimacy, a different
it makes her feel connected to her roots

sort of English that relates to family talk, the

language I grew up with. (P.1) ”

This symbolism of 2 different Englishes

builds the theme of living in 2 different

worlds when Tan describes changing the

her English depending on if she is intimate

with someone.

Amy Tan uses symbolism to express a theme of living in different 2 worlds in

the short story Mother Tongue by using English as a symbol to show which

world she is living in with each person. If she uses her “simple” English she is
close to a person like her husband or mother, because she does not feel she
needs to use large difficult words to prove her intelligence, while if she is not

familiar with a person and wants to appear intellectual, she will switch to her
world of large words and complex sentences

Amy Tan uses metaphors to

express a theme of living in 2 The quote counts as a literary device

di erent worlds in the short because the author is using words

story Mother Tounge . like, “broken, and watered down”

the English I spoke to my mother, which words cannot literally be to

which for lack of a better term describe the way someone talks,

might be described as "simple"; thus using metaphors

the English she used with me,

which for lack of a better term

might be described as "broken";

my translation of her Chinese,

These metaphors build the theme of having to live in
2 di erent worlds by using rather condescending

which could certainly be

words to describe the English that foreigners use
which usually forces them to work extra hard to

described as "watered down"; sound native to be taken seriously, and they only use

É
their “broken” English when they are relaxed with
and what I imagined to be her

translation of her Chinese if she

someone

could speak in perfect English, by describing the second language someone speaks as

her internal language, and for that broken, simple, or watered down. This shows us that if
you speak the language of a country that you are not
I sought to preserve the essence,

but neither an English nor a

native to, you will not have complete mastery over it
whereas you might with your own native tongue. This

Chinese structure. (P.3)

splits your life in to two worlds, utilizing large words to
sound smarter and make up for the barrier, and being

relaxed and using your own mother tongue

Amy Tan utilizes the use of a protagonist

to display the theme of living in 2 worlds
“Language is the tool of my trade.

In the short story Mother Tongue And I use them all -- all the

Englishes I grew up with. This quote counts as a

É
Recently, I was made keenly aware literary device because it is a

of the di erent Englishes I do use.” rst person point of view

(P.1) from the protagonist, talking

about her experiences.

g
Having a protagonist builds the theme of living

in 2 di erent worlds because it gives us rst

hand experiences and examples of times she

had to switch between worlds, which is

É
referring to the way she talks and her comfort

level.

Amy Tan utilizes the use of herself as a protagonist to

display the theme of living in 2 worlds in the short

story Mother Tongue by telling us about the di erent

times and circumstances she switched between

worlds and how anyone who has a mother tongue

must live ina balancing act for the world so they they

are taken seriously, and are still able the language of

their love with the people they love, their mother

language. She uses it to try and expose to us how

di erently those who speak “simple” English are

treated and why she has to split her life into 2 worlds
to be taken seriously.

“Recently, I was made keenly aware of the di erent Englishes I do use.” (P.1)

“I again found myself conscious of the English I was using, the English I do use with her.” (P.1)