Comparison Between 'Paper Menagerie' and 'Mother Tongue' by Amy Tan

Thematic Analysis

“Mother tongue” is an essay about the struggles of the author because of her linguistic identity. Her mother is Chinese and so she does not know how to speak English but after coming to America she had to learn English so her English is broken and very simple. This essay talks about her mother’s “broken” English and the mother daughter relationship. It shows how both of them faced prejudice because of their identity. The society thought these people were lesser than them and did not give them any respect. The language became barrier for her mother and she was looked down upon because of it.

“Paper Menagerie” is short a story about a boy named Jack and his Chinese mother. This story brings out the themes of identity, relation, culture, language, resentment, struggles, prejudice, and love. Jack faces difficulties in fitting in with other Americans because of is Chinese background. Jack shares a very special bond with his mother when small but as he grows this connection is lost solely because he is ashamed of his mother’s identity and that she cannot speak English. As a child Jack loved his mother’s art and it brought him so much happiness and any problem that Jack encountered with the origami was resolved by his mother. But in his teenage this connection is lost as he wants to fit in with the society. In the end his mother’s letter makes him realise the struggles his mother had to face and he feels connected to his mother for the first time since he was teenager.

The essay and the story have the common theme of language barrier and language considered to be a classification to test a person’s knowledge. Amy tans mother was taken seriously by others because of her broken English because people thought she is uneducated. However Tan mentions how her mother use to read the Forbes report , listen to Wall street week, converse with her stockbroker daily and reads all of Shirley MacLaine books. This proves Tan’s point of society’s misconception and generalisation of people with different language backgrounds. Similarly in the story Ken shows how people use to disrespected Jack’s mother because of her identity but her work of origami was exceptional. She had the amazing artistic but others fail to acknowledge it. This shows how people stereotype the knowledge and talent a person has on the basis language and origin.

The essay and the story portrays the relationship of a mother and child. Amy Tan considers her mother to be very important reason why she became a known writer because she tried to capture her mother’s passion, her imagery, the rhythms of her speech and the nature of her thoughts. In her growing days her mother’s limited English made her feel ashamed of her. She thought English reflected the quality of what her mother use to say. Jack lost connection with his mother because of the same reason. He never bothered to know who is mother actually was , he made his own perceptions about her because she could not speak English.

Significance of the Title

Both the titles show the connection of the child with her/his mother. ‘Mother tongue’ is about the two different ‘Englishes’ that the author speaks one of which is her mother’s English. This English connects her and her mother. So that is her mother tongue and not Chinese. In the story she talks about how this English has shaped her personality and has formed her identity.

‘Paper Menagerie’ is story about the relationship of a boy with his mother and the paper toys that his mother makes for him shows their connection. In the end their lost connection is revived by the paper menagerie. Jack realised his mistake after reading the letter and it revives the love that was lost because of societal pressures.