American society is a melting pot of different cultures, races and languages. Living in America does not mean that someone is a born American or a perfect English speaker. Many people who immigrated to America face discrimination due to their inability to speak correct English. In her essay "Mother Tongue," author Amy Tan examines the various struggles she faces with her identity through language and the perspective American society has on Asian-American immigrants. Throughout the essay, Tan studies the development of the different Englishes he uses in different contexts. When in the presence of his mother, he uses broken English as the best way to communicate with her (621). When outside his family, Tan speaks perfect English, but Tan's different forms of English cannot occur simultaneously in his conversations. Tan writes about her childhood memories, when she often translated for her mother, as her mother's English was not the best. Tan expresses a tone of regret because she felt embarrassed by her mother's “fractured” English. She often felt “flushed and calm” when her mother spoke imperfect English in public because of the responses she would receive, but now she realized society's mistreatment of her mother. Due to her inability to speak proper English, Tan's mother is often ignored and disrespected by the people she meets. Tan's mother is an intelligent woman and often "reads the Forbes report, listens to Wall Street Week, converses daily with her stockbroker, [and] reads all of Shirley MacLaine's books with ease" (622) but her only flaw remains the inability to speak correct English. Tan's tone of regret highlights the mistreatment Asian Americans often face. Tan of… half of the paper… language has shaped the way he thinks and expresses himself. Although, Tan's mother faces many injustices due to Due to her inability to speak English properly, Tan realizes that those language barriers have made her who she is. Tan achieves her ultimate goal of being able to write stories that her mother will be able to read through developing the various forms of English that she uses. Even though we live in a country made up of different languages, many people are not entirely accepting of those who use improper English. Mistreatment of people who don't speak proper English, like Tan's mother, is widespread in America. This mistreatment is not only directed at immigrants, but it is also directed at their children. Works Cited Tan, Amy. "Native language." Write analytically with readings. Second ed. Boston: Wadsworth Cengage Learning, 2012. 621-625. Press.