The Powerful Words of Amy Tan, Maxine Hairston, and Mike Rose

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The Powerful Words of Amy Tan, Maxine Hairston, and Mike Rose

The power of words is immeasurable. Words help people to voice their opinions and express their thoughts and feelings. Our everyday lives are shaped by communication and in general language. A persons language can often influence success and happiness. America is viewed as a melting pot for numerous different people and their respective languages. Language is so vital in our society that a person of diverse ethnic background can face many tribulations throughout their everyday life.

Many renowned writers and other professionals have expressed their personal opinion about the value of words over the last few years. Chinese-American author Amy Tan is one of the many writers who understand the importance of the simplest words in the English language. Tan, author of the Joy Luck Club, was born and raised in San Francisco by her Chinese parents. Tan graduated from high school and pursued her college education at five different universities from 1969 through 1976. Contrary to what her teachers had always tried to push on her, Tan steered away from studies in math and science and earned her B.A. in English and Linguistics. She describes that her educational choices were rebellious in nature. In Tans essay she describes the hardships of growing up with a mother who encountered problems with the English language. When I was growing up, my mothers limited English limited my perception of her, Tan explains. She describes situations where her mother was treated rudely and explains that apologies were always proposed when Tan would interrupt with flawless English. Tan also discusses the educational problems that multicultural students have within the classroom today. She ...

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...ven the impression that it would harm her childrens education.

The essays written by Tan, Hariston and Rose all address an issue within our educational system that demands immediate attention. In the land of the free with so many various freedoms for citizens, every student should be proud of their own ethnic background. Never should students be steered away from their goals or looked down upon because of their grammatical abilities. Overall students should be proud of their ethnic background and proud at the same time to be an American.

Works Cited

Hairston, Maxine. Diversity, Ideology, and Teaching Writing. College Composition and Communication 43.2 (May1992): 179-195.

Rose, Mike. Lives on the Boundary: The Struggles and Achievements of Americas Underpreparred. New York: Free Press, 1989.

Tan, Amy. "Mother Tongue". Three Penny Review. 1990.

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