I have chosen to interview my mom. I think she is such an interesting person, and I believe that I will learn a lot more about her history by choosing her for this assignment. Even though I know her very well, I often wonder about all the things in her life that happened before I existed.
I haven’t exactly chosen a topic to write about yet, so here are some generic questions:
1. What is one specific event that happened in your past that remains vivid in your mind? Why does it remain that way?
2. What moment in your past would you take back and re-do? Why?
3. What do you consider to be the most important part of your life?
4. What’s your take on how society has changed from 50 years ago?
5. What is a life lesson you learned when you were young that you have kept with you?
Growing up, I have always thought of my dad’s mother as my favorite grandma. I always thought she was nicer or something. She is very religious and very kind. My grandpa died two years ago, and during his illness, I was always so sad to see her the way she was. I guess I wanted her to be happy, the way she always was before. I honestly don’t have much else to say about my grandma’s experiences, since I don’t know many of them at all.
I am responding to “Mother Tongue” by Amy Tan. A quote that really grabbed my attention was “I was ashamed of her English. I believe that her English reflected the quality of what she had to say. That is, because she expressed them imperfectly her thoughts were imperfect. And I had plenty of empirical evidence to support me. . . “ I chose this quote because I feel that it is a huge statement and realization of Amy Tan. She didn’t realize when she was young that her mom did have important things to say, even if she couldn’t communicate them perfectly. It is very important to the whole essay as well. If Amy had never made this realization, today she would not have the same perspective and surely wouldn’t have written this essay. It also relates to how she hears her mother clearly now. I believe that the writer’s thesis is how she uses different types of English such as how she speaks with her mother, her husband, and how she speaks when she gives speeches to large groups of people. An example of how Amy Tan supports her thesis is when she is giving a speech to a large group of people about her book, The Joy Luck Club, and she sees her mom in the room. She realizes that she uses totally different language in her speeches. She was using perfect English, something her mother probably didn’t understand too well. But to Amy, her mother made complete sense and was very clear.
I am responding to “The Purpose of Education” by Martin Luther King Jr. To tell you the truth, this whole essay really grabbed my attention, but I guess I will have to choose just one thing. A quote that stood out to me is “We must remember that intelligence is not enough. Intelligence plus character-that is the goal of true education.” I found this passage important because it brought my attention to a point that I have never considered before. I know I have learned of real, well educated people being very biased or prejudiced against a certain issue, but the thought that the combination of character and education earlier in their life could actually change the kind of person they grow up to be never entered my mind. I think it’s kind of sad that more people these days don’t make this realizaton.
While reading this essay, I got the idea that the thesis is about how a lot of young people who are in school just think they need an education to further themselves in the race for power and nobility. They forget that they need to learn how to think for themselves and that they need to have morals in their lives. I believe the writer supports his thesis by giving an example of a so-called “educated” person, Eugene Talmadge. King went on to explain how Mr Talmadge was a member of Phi Beta Kappa, a prestigious academic honor society. Maybe Eugene Talmadge was an extremeley intelligent man, but he obviously wasn’t well-educated enough to realize that all ethnic races are equal.
I am responding to “Desecration? Dedication!” The quote that most received my attention was “The problem is that most native-born citizens probably can’t pass the test. Americans are remarkably casual about their citizenship, not voting in sufficient numbers, not following the critical political issues.” I believe that this quote is very important to this essay, because it pretty much sums up the reality that US citizens face. We, as US citizens, take our citizenship and freedom for granted. We sometimes don’t realize how much better off we are than if we were to live in another country. I actually took the citizenship test in school a few years ago and failed miserably. It goes to show that foreign people have to know more about our country to become a citizen than we have to know just to take a political position and vote. I think the writer’s point in writing this essay was to compare how much is expected of people wanting US citizenship and how much is expected of gay or lesbian couples. If someone is gay or lesbian, then people will expect that their relationship is more stable or “true.”