Name:_______________________________
Period:_________
Mother Tongue
Amy Tan
After having read the essay “Totem and Taboo”, answer the following questions in the form of a brief paragraph.
Please complete all work in your notebook.
1. How does Amy Tan define language on the first page? Explain her definition and provide an example to
illustrate your understanding.
2. What seems to be Tan’s understanding of America? How is this understanding informed by her mother? If
Fitzgerald presented us with the understanding of the American Dream as involving the removal from the
family, has Tan taken the steps to achieve her American Dream?
3. Which of the characters in The Great Gatsby is Tan’s mother most like? Clearly explain your connection, and
find a quote from the Tan to explain your rationale.
4. Tan discusses the concept of “fixing” or “repairing” things that are “broken” or “limited”. After reading The
Great Gatsby, how do you read this impulse? How does the conclusion Tan comes to in the end of her essay
coincide with the conclusions about the American Dream as presented by Fitzgerald?
5. How do teachers function on page 261 of Tan’s essay? Looking at the description gives, what character from
The Great Gatsby most correlates with the way these teachers function?
6. Tan indirectly addresses the issue of stereotyping at the end of her essay. Based Tan’s ideas, what role does
stereotyping play in the American Dream? Are there moments of stereotyping in The Great Gatsby? How do
the presentations of stereotyping relate between the two texts?
7. ID and unpack 1 quote from each text that engages the relationship between communication and the
American Dream. Go through each step of the unpacking process for each quote. Discuss this relationship in
a brief paragraph using both quotes to support your understanding.
8. Formulate 5 questions for discussion.