Amy Tan Mother Tongue Rhetorical Analysis

Amy Tan’s essay fails as a rhetorical essay. This can be proven with a substantial amount of evidence, with a definitive lack of ethos and logos throughout the essay. This makes her point lack a backbone due her lack of credibility and proof. With the lack of these two rhetorical tools she fails to convince her audience of her point. In failing to do these objectives for rhetorical pieces, essay loses meaning and it’s message.

Within this Essay the author Amy Tan about the stereotypes that Asian Americans face in everyday society when it comes to English in the sense of an overall sense of the language and how the way the speak it is regarded as “broken” or “limited”. In the story she talks about the life she had in her childhood with her
For ethos, or credibility, Tan makes personal references to her mother and factual events, as well as a description of her own accomplishments, which give credibility to her and her work. Her mother proved to her that she could understand people when they spoke perfect or regular English as well as when she read in English. The logic behind this validates her point that if she can comprehend English perfectly while still speaking in broken English, then perhaps other people who are treated as if they cannot understand actually do. Pathos, or emotion, is demonstrated through the depiction of the struggle of Tan’s mother with broken English. The story brings out emotions of sympathy toward her and her family as well as awareness, and almost anger, towards the people who are ignorant towards the people who have had to make a major change in their lives and try to speak a second language although it isn’t always perfect. Emotions of pride and happiness, even if it is not for you, are felt at the end with the success of Tan’s novel and the fact that her mother did in fact understand it. It is somewhat fulfilling when reading although it does not directly impact you in any