Mother Tongue by Amy Tan
4 Summaries ( for 4 different articles) Desсrіption: Summaries should be no more than 5 sentences and should focus on the author′s main ideas. Make the summaries in point form.
Answer
Summaries
Mother Tongue by Amy Tan
The central idea Tan in "Mother Tongue" is to express the themes of two worlds. When
Tan is with her mother, she communicates using simple English. When she is out in the
world, she changes her English into a formal and acceptable language. In the article, Tan
relates the story of her mother to a gangster who needed adoption in her Chinese family
because of the status quo (Tan 1266). Tan also writes about discrimination and awareness
about people who speak broken English as compared to those who speak Standard
English. In "Mother Tongue," she quotes the speech presented by her mother to
demonstrate "broken English." The main idea was to look at her mother's grammar.
Overall, the "Mother Tongue" is used as a reflection of the population that is
misinformed about the English language as a measure of intelligence. Tan allows readers
to evaluate her mother's lack of formal education and as a Chinese woman facing
difficulties in speaking Standard Education.
In the Beginning was the Word by Christine Rosen
The main idea presented by Rosen, "In the Beginning was the Word," is how technology
is affecting people negatively.
Rosen argues that technology is talking, taking away the importance of books despite the
tremendous progress in other areas of life (Rosen 206). The author also explains how
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people have become extremely attached to their electronic devices that create many
distractions.
Besides, Rosen presents the idea that technology has pushed people to consumerism,
primarily through electronic devices. Thus, people have neglected writing because
technology has limited their creativity and imagination.
She also claims that reading experience has changed due to the use of technology and her
emphasis on why people select what is convenient rather than what challenges and
motivates them.
Overall, she claims that the digital age is of no importance in improving writing skills and
standardized tests.
Writing for Audience by Linda Flower
In "Writing for Audience," Flower claims that many writers have issues attempting to get
their audience to understand their opinions and perspectives. In that regard, Flower
presents the differences between the writer and the audience.
Another idea presented by Flower in the article is to make the writers think at the
audience's point of view to allow the audience to understand the article.
Besides, Flower claims that writers should analyze the needs, attitudes, and knowledge of
the audience (Flower 139). She argues that the writer must determine what the audience
knows or doesn't know and prepare them to under easily.
Overall, she claims that different people have different backgrounds and attitudes.
Therefore, people will think in a different way when writers present their ideas.
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Writing to Change the World by Mary Pipher
The main idea presented by Pipher in "Writing to Change the World" is the importance of
perspective in writing. Pipher's point of view about writing is that the world is in a bad
way, and only writers can restore and rescue the world.
She argues that writers can tell stories to connect the audience with their planet (Pipher
123). The article is also used as a paean that can transform the power of words into a
potent force that can change the world.
Overall, Pipher argues that people think they are different from others, and they feel their
way of life is the best. Thus, it is the role of a writer to present stories that connect
readers to people. As a therapist, she claims that writing is a psychotherapy that can
create connections and foster changes on earth.
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Works Cited
Flower, Linda. Writing for Audience. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2000: Pp. 139-141. Print.
http://sites.psu.edu/fonash/wp-content/uploads/sites/5930/2013/09/Writing-for-an-
Audience.pdf
Pipher, Mary. Writing to Change the World. New York: Riverhead Books. 2006. Print.
https://universitas.uni.edu/archive/fall07/pdf/pdf_milambiling.pdf
Rosen, Christine. “In the Beginning was the Word”. A Journal of Technology and Society,
2009:Pp. 204-209. https://www.wilsonquarterly.com/quarterly/fall-2009-the-future-of-
the-book/in-the-beginning-was-the-word/
Tan, Amy. “Mother Tongue”. A Mosaic of American voices, 2014: Pp. 1265-1268.
https://www.lcsnc.org/cms/lib/NC01911169/Centricity/Domain/1120/Mother%20Tongue.pdf
