Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior Analysis

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Social Intellectuals “Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior” is a segment of the novel Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother by Amy Chua, author and professor at Yale Law School. “Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior” was printed on the Wall Street Journal and caused a great deal of controversy. When mentioning “Chinese mothers” Chua refers to mothers who are remarkably strict in the way that they raise their children; regarding their academics and extracurricular activities. Contrastingly she also refers to “Western parents” who Chua believes are greatly more lenient with the way that they raise their children. The controversy came about because there was a great deal of disagreement with the way Chua admits to treating her children. People really disagreed …show more content…

Her daughters need to experience socializing outside of the classroom, and outside of the safety of their home with their parents. David Brooks, a columnist for the New York Times, said in “Amy Chua Is a Wimp”, in regards to “Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior”, Practicing a piece of music for four hours requires attention, but it is nowhere near as cognitively demanding as a sleepover with 14-year-old girls. Managing status rivalries, negotiating group dynamics, understanding social norms, navigating the distinction between self and group—these and other social tests impose cognitive demands that blow away any intense tutoring session or a class at Yale. (269) Communication skills cannot be learned by sitting in-front of a book for hours and reading about them. That is something that has to be learned with practice, which could be done on play dates or at sleep overs, but are things that Chua did not permit her daughters take part in. Life, both personal and vocational, is much more than where you went to college and whether you had brilliant grades or not. It is also about the relationships you can form with the people you encounter every …show more content…

I think adults tend to forget that kids, although physically smaller, are people and their feelings and opinions are valid. Nearly the only category in which the U.S beat the other countries in was self-regard. Even when American students were outperformed by so many students; no other country thought they performed as well as the Americans did. Western parents seem to be doing something right, now they just have to find a way to make the confidence the kids have in their academic proficiency be reflected in their grades. I believe that with both encouragement, and a little bit of a rough hand, we can raise confident and social intellectual

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