Superman and Me Summary and Response
Superman and Me is a story about an Indian boy, Sherman Alexie, learning to read by looking through Superman comic books. I think it is important to note that Alexie learned how to read just by acting out the scenes in the comic books. This experience is similar to the story of Frankenstein’s monster, where the monster learned how to read and communicate by looking at others. Language is incredibly important in shaping a young, undeveloped mind. Alexie loved books from a young age because of his father’s love of books. Alexie has learned to appreciate the things that he is given and tried to exceed everyone’s expectations of him. Indians and non-Indians taunted Alexie because he was an avid learner in class. Alexie ended up becoming a writer and has inspired other students to try their best.
Mother Tongue Summary and Response
Mother Tongue is written about the author’s mother and talks about the different type of language or tone that is spoken to others. The author, Amy Tan, realized that she speaks differently in a more professional setting than with her family. Her mother speaks in broken English (Chinglish if you will) and only a certain number of people are actually able to understand her. However, the way her mom speaks makes her unique and her own person. Tan then emphasizes that the language spoken in the family heavily impacts the language of the child. I thought that this was interesting because it coincides with Alexie’s story of how his father’s interest in books has ultimately made him become a writer.