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The Silence of a Lesson Learned Judging the character of a person because of their ability to speak is a mistake everyone is guilty of. Even Amy Tan, the author of Mother Tongue changed the way she perceived her mother as a result of harsh attitudes others displayed against her. Tan knew her mother could express herself very well in her native tongue, but was ashamed of her translation of it. Although, she saw her mother’s intelligence, she let the bias reaction of others make her ashamed. Tan falls prey to the prejudicial attitudes around her for many reasons. The first is for acceptance. Tan feels that her mother’s English is a bad reflection upon her. In order for her to be accepted by her peers she has to “fit in” and be respected by them. She accomplishes this by disassociating herself from her mother. Her mother holds a trait that Tan does not want to be known for, broken English. So by giving in to the views others hold, that broken English makes a person unintelligent, she has acceptance from others and they look beyond her mother’s English, because she by holding their viewpoint has not made her mother an issue. Another reason for Tan’s tainted perception of her mother is because she wants to m