Imagine moving to a foreign country abroad and not knowing how to navigate it. You need advice to find your way, but you don't speak the local language. Wouldn't you feel lost? Distraught? Maybe, excluded? This is what author Amy Tan, in “Mother Tongue,” wanted readers to feel. Tan believes that language is a barrier to prosperity in everyday life. Many Americans speak English as their native language, but I believe that no two individuals speak the same English. This is also what Amy Tan reinforces in her story. She uses her writing skills throughout her essay to convey to readers the struggles she and her mother had, as non-Native Americans, with language throughout their daily lives. In my opinion, the amount of English one knows impacts one's ability to communicate effectively, one's cultural identity, as well as one's exposure to opportunities. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essayAmy Tan and her mother are Asian Americans who immigrated from Shanghai, China. They had to assimilate and adapt to American culture with little knowledge of English. It wasn't easy to adapt to the new environment, especially having to learn and speak English. This was particularly difficult for Amy, as her essay says: "When I was little, my mother's 'limited' English limited my perception of her." Tan's mother's "limited" English affected his childhood. As English was not her mother's first language, she was often treated with inferiority by others due to her literacy level, leading to a lack of confidence in her English. The author illustrates his mother's abuse in his story. She mentions an incident where her mother contacted a hospital to receive copies of CT scans to understand her diagnosis. Despite his pleas, the hospital did not apologize for misplacing his scanners. When Amy called them, without an accent, they seemed to cooperate and apologize for their mistakes. Amy was often her mother's right hand when it came to carrying out daily tasks related to the English language. For example, Tan explains how, when she was fifteen, her mother “would ask me to call people on the phone to pretend to be her.” This incident is a stark example of how a person's language hinders the ability to perform such simple tasks. Language influences an individual's opportunities and success. Tan's English language was influenced and shaped by his mother's language. “The language spoken within the family, particularly in immigrant families...plays an important role in the formation of the child's language.” The language spoken by individuals from immigrant families shapes their identity. Even though Tan's English was acceptable and considered "not bad", as she stated, she still struggled in school. This was especially evident in English class, where she remembered that her language affected her ability to do well on IQ tests, achievement tests, and the SAT. As she did not speak English regularly at home and her mother was not someone she would ask for help with her English homework, Tan had problems with grammar and structure in English class. . In terms of grammar issues, it was "always a matter of judgment" or a "matter of opinion", as Tan stated. The language spoken at home influenced his..