Page 74 - The Language of Composition 4e Teacher Edition Sample.indd

Topics for Composing
4
TRM Rubric
A rubric for these prompts can be found in
the Teacher’s Resource Materials.
Copyright (c) 2023 Bedford, Freeman & Worth Publishers. Uncorrected proofs have been used for this sample chapter.
DIFFERENTIATION
Scaffolding
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Composing Q3. You could also have your
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students complete the 2016 AP Language
Synthesis prompt, about the value of
monolingualism.
DIFFERENTIATION
Connections to Text
Composing Q6. Students might also be
interested in reading Crying in the H Mart
by Michelle Zauner (of the band Japanese
s memoir focuses on her
eakfast). Zauner’
Breakfast). Zauner’s memoir focuses on her
Br
relationship with her Korean mother and
discusses food as shared language. Stu-
dents could examine the Englishes that
Zauner uses in her memoir.
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1. AP FRQ Rhetorical Analysis. Like many of her essays, Amy Tan’s 2003 “Mother Tongue”
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Identity features the narrator’s mother and the influence she had on Tan as a writer. The essay’s long-
lasting popularity suggests that it holds interest beyond the life and times of Amy Tan. Read
paragraphs 18–23 carefully. Write an essay that analyzes the rhetorical choices Tan makes
that might explain the essay’s broad appeal.
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2. AP FRQ Argument. In “Mother Tongue” (2003), writer Amy Tan makes the following
assertion: “Sociologists and linguists probably will tell you that a person’s developing
language skills are more influenced by peers. But I do think that the language spoken in the
family, especially in immigrant families which are more insular, plays a large role in shaping
the language of the child” (par. 15). Write an essay that argues your position on whether a
person’s language is more influenced by peers than by family.
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3. AP FRQ Argument. The anecdote in “Mother Tongue” (2003) about Amy Tan’s mother’s
inability to resolve her banking problem illustrates the monolingual nature of American culture.
Write an essay that argues your position on our country’s unspoken rule that fluency in
English is required not just for success but for managing everyday life.
4. Connections. Keep an observational journal for several days, noting the judgments people
make on the basis of how a person speaks or writes, what Tan calls “fractured” or “broken
English” — a description that suggests something is damaged and needs fixing. Consider
your peers, a business environment, or the media. Then write an essay explaining the
relationship you have observed between language, power, and community. To what extent
does someone’s facility with a language (or, in some contexts, with bilingualism) confer
power? Did you observe situations where one’s position of authority makes his or her
language acceptable? Did you note anyone who “code-switched,” or shifted their way of
speaking to accommodate a different audience or community?
5. Argument. Write an essay that takes a position on the extent to which speaking a
nonstandardized English (through grammatical differences or an accent) limits possibilities for
people in the United States today. Use evidence from “Mother Tongue” as well as your own
experience and observations.
6. Connections. At the end of the essay, Tan says that she “began to write stories using all the
Englishes I grew up with” (par. 21). Read Tan’s short story “Two Kinds” or her novel The Joy
Luck Club, and analyze where and how she uses different “Englishes.”
7. Connections. Tan argues that her novelist’s perception made it difficult for her to do well
on SAT-type questions because they were too limiting. Write an essay in which you
describe some skills or kinds of knowledge you have that could not be assessed by a
standardized test.
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chapter 4 / Identity
1/20/23 7:43 PM