For Phase 2, we wrote a rhetorical analysis which helped us further analyze the author and their writing piece, here is my rhetorical analysis:

In Amy Tan’s essay, Mother Tongue, Tan discusses her upbringing having a mom who didn’t speak proper English. Tan uses different rhetorical strategies throughout her essay, like logos, ethos, and pathos to further justify her argument. Tan first explains how her mom’s English is seen as improper or wrong by others, or as Tan called it, “broken English”. Tan discloses how her mom’s broken English affected both of their lives. Using diction, Tan is able to provide examples from her experiences with her mom and further clarify how her mom’s improper English made a difference in Tan’s life. For example, as Tan describes her mom’s English she reveals that, “Like others, I have described  it to people as ‘broken’ or ‘fractured’ English” and “It has always bothered me that I can think of no way to describe it other than ‘ broken’, as if it were damaged and needed to be fixed, as if it lacked a certain wholeness and soundness.” Depicting her mother’s English, Tan also includes how she felt talking to others around her mom in public. Tan mentions how whenever they went out to eat, had to talk to doctors, or talking to others in public, Tan was always the one that spoke to people. Everyone would make fun of Tan’s mom English and they could never understand her. Tan often felt embarrassed by her mom speaking English since people would look at her mom like she doesn’t understand what’s being told to her or what she is saying. While Tan felt embarrassed, her mom felt offended, nobody was able to understand her the way her daughter was able to. Feeling this way, Tan realized what it was doing to her mom and ultimately Tan would feel the same in certain situations. By doing this, Tan allows the readers to sympathize with both her and her mom. The more Tan thought about it, the more she reflected on herself and the way she felt about her mom’s English. Allowing the readers to get a full insight on her experience and how her mom has been treated her entire life, reveals how both pathos and ethos are used in Tan’s story. The words and experiences Tan writes about acknowledges how logos is used throughout Tan’s essay, along with the evidence that makes it even stronger. As Tan ends her essay, she mentions how having a mom who didn’t speak proper English ultimately helped her with life. Tan decides to enter the English career field, utilizing the many different English’s she experienced growing up with her mom. The purpose of Tan’s essay was for Tan to help others who have experienced or are experiencing the same or similar circumstances she is going through. By doing so, Tan was able to achieve all her goals and more, and hopes that others can realize how much having a parent who speaks “broken English” can positively impact their life.

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