Mother Tongue

The author's attitude toward her mother in the passage can be described as

• remorseful but angry

• concerned and admiring

• condescending and critical

• censorious yet understanding

• sentimental yet loving

The function of the sentence "Lately, I've been giving more thought to the kind of English my mother speaks" (par. 8) is to...

• provide a transition from the mother's point of view to the daughter's

• offer additional evidence to support the point made in the previous paragraph

• appeal to the emotions of the readers

• introduce examples that will illustrate a central point the author is making

• analyze an exception to a general belief

What figure of speech is Tan using when she refers to her mother's "impeccable broken English" (par. 13)?

• metonymy

• personification

• oxymoron

• pun

• simile

The author's attitude toward her mother in this passage can be best described as...

• remorseful but angry

• concerned and admiring

• censorious yet understanding

• condenscending and critical

• sentimental yet loving

Which of the following quotes best hints toward the lesson (theme) of the story?

• For Christmas Eve that year, she had chosen all my favorite foods.

• My relatives licked the ends of their chopsticks and reached across the table...

• You must be proud you are different.

• I fell in love with the minister's son when I turned fourteen.

How does the narrator’s point of view affect how the events are described in the passage?

• She is nervous to have the boy she likes over for Christmas dinner, and so the text focuses entirely on the boy’s reactions.

• She is bored with her family’s old Chinese traditions and wants to try newmodern customs, and this affects how she focuses on being more “American.”

• She is excited to have the minister’s son over for Christmas, and this excitement causes her to criticize every little detail of her mother’s cooking.

• She is embarrassed by her family’s Chinese customs, and this shame influences how she describes the food and her family’s behavior.

What is the main idea of the personal narrative called "Fish Cheeks"?

• A girl who is in love with the minister's son but cannot date him

• A girl who is embarrassed to have guests over for dinner due to her cultural differences

• A girl who moved to the United States from China

• A girl who feels left out because she is Chinese

What is the primary theme of the essay 'Mother Tongue' by Amy Tan?

• The complexity of language and identity

• The importance of cultural heritage

• The challenges of immigration

• The role of family in personal growth

In 'Mother Tongue,' how does Amy Tan describe her mother's English?

• Perfect and fluent

• Broken but clear

• Impeccable broken English

• Fluent with minor errors

What literary device is used in the phrase 'impeccable broken English'?

• Metaphor

• Simile

• Oxymoron

• Hyperbole