The article, why Chinese mothers are superior, by Amy Chua (2011) explains the superiority of Chinese parents. The source of the article is the Wall Street Journal. The copyright date is 2014. The author is a renowned professor at Yale Law School. Her credibility has been proved over the years because of her several publications in different topics but same subject matter. Also, Chua is an expert in the field. The author clearly stipulates her purpose in the article, which is to provide a contrast between the Chinese parents and the Western parents, expounding on the reasons leading to differences in parenting.

The intended audience is the public or individuals who criticize the parenting behavior of the Chinese parents. It is also for the audience who intend to appreciate the parenting skills of the Western parents. The author has assumptions /biasedness in the text. She constantly asserts, Chinese parents only parent this way. The author uses the mentioned term throughout the text. This creates an assumption that Western parents cannot apply same parental skills as the Chinese parents. Chua (2011) argues “All the same, even when Western parents think they’re being strict, they usually don’t come close to being Chinese mothers.” From the above quote, Amy Chua portrays biasedness.

Regarding the tone, it is manifested throughout the text. The tone is honest. For example, Chua (2011) explains that “As an adult, I once did the same thing to Sophia, calling her garbage in English when she acted extremely disrespectfully toward me.”

The author’s worldview is that the Chinese parenting skills are superior to Western parents.  This is evident in the statement below:

“I rolled up my sleeves and went back to Lulu. I used every weapon and tactic I could think of. We worked right through dinner into the night, and I wouldn’t let Lulu get up, not for water, not even to go to the bathroom. The house became a war zone, and I lost my voice yelling, but still there seemed to be only negative progress, and even I began to have doubts. Then, out of the blue, Lulu did it. Her hands suddenly came together – her right and left hands each doing their own imperturbable thing – just like that. Lulu realized it the same time I did. I held my breath. She tried it tentatively again. Then she played it more confidently and faster, and still the rhythm held. A moment later, she was beaming” (Chua, 2011).

From the statement above, it is evident that the author attempts to prove the skills of the Japanese parents. For example, she states that the Japanese parents teach their children how to endure to become confident and faster.

In the text, language is used interestingly. Chua Interchangeable uses the terms Chinese and Western mothers. The terms are used to categorize mothers and those who want to be parents. In supporting the claims, there is the use of different language techniques including analogy, statistics and hypothetical. Chua (2011) uses analogy in various ways to communicate the message. For example, she states that Western parents think that they are strict, but their level of strictness cannot be compared with that of the Chinese parents (Chui, 2011). Another analogy is on the school performance. Chui compares the expectation of the Chinese and Western parents when it comes to school performance. For the Chinese parents getting an A is of importance while for the Western parents, the most significance thing is children doing their best. This reinforces the subject matter of the article and assists the audience to get the message clearly.

Language is also used hypothetically in the text. For example, it is evident that while Chinese parents could call their children with absurd language, the western parents could not bring themselves to doing so. Additionally, there is a possibility of reaction when children of both Chinese and Western parents come home with different grades. There is also hypothesis on the duration that western parents subject their children to practice. There is also a hypothesis on how things can be. For example, things are usually harder at the beginning (Chua, 2011).  Lastly, Chinese children report home with grade B and state to their parents that it will never happen (Chua, 2011). The author uses the hypothesis to emphasize that there is a difference between Chinese and Western parents and this is further reflected in their parental skills. Additionally, the style emphasizes the fact that Chinese and western children are different on the basis of how they are brought up; hence they exhibit different behavior.  There is also the use of testimony. An example of a testimony in the article is when Chua explains how she subjected her daughter to playing piano until she got the skill right (Chua, 2011). This shows the extent of pressure that Chinese parents put their children on.

Chua also uses statistics in the article. In most cases, statistics is usually used as a way of proving credibility and reliability. Chua applies statistics in her work. She indicates that 70% of the western mothers were of the opinion that emphasizing on the children’s grades was not good while 0% of the Chinese mothers were for the idea. The author further uses statistics on the drilling of children. According to Chua (2011), compared to the Western parents, Chinese parents drill their children ten times more. Use of statistics helps the readers to have a clear idea of the level of the differences between the two subjects. Additionally, it makes the comparison clearer.

On the relevancy, accuracy, and sufficiency of the evidence, there are different effects drawn. Chua applies personal testimony in the article. He also uses hypothetical situations to compare between Chinese parents and Western parents. This evidence is not sufficient. Instead, the author could have used more statistics as this proves that studies have been conducted in the field. Consequently, the author uses her personal worldview to support her claim. Therefore, it is not easy to determine the accuracy of the information provided based on the same.

The author mostly depends on the hypothetical and testimony as to her preferred form of evidence, which has several shortcomings as highlighted above. Using statistics for the purpose of comparison could have enhanced accuracy and made the provided information reliable and credible. Furthermore, the hypothetical could have been combined with figures and statistics.

Logics are important in writing or supporting an argument as it affects how readers will conceive an idea. In the text, there is a problem with logic. Chua makes readers believe in same things and does not provide them with an opportunity to compare and align the information with other sources. For example, the logic that the author draws from is that Chinese parents are better than western ones.

To present her idea, the author uses a mixture of patterns in the organization structure. In the paragraph of the article, there is the use of listing. The author lists the different activities that Chinese children are not permitted to do. This provides the reader with a glimpse of what makes the Chinese children. There is also the use of mixed, i.e. Western mothers and Chinese mothers. Contrast and comparison technique is also applied in the text. For instance, Chua (11), Chinese mothers emphasize more on grades while Western mothers do not.  There is also comparison and contrast technique applied on what Chinese mothers and western mothers can get away with when it comes to parenting. In sum, there is the use of examples in the essay’s structure.  There is an example given whereby a parent refers to her daughter as garbage and the friends’ reaction on the same is also illustrated. Therefore, it is evident that the author’s structure is ideal for the articles objective, which compares the Chinese and westerners mothers parenting skills.  This makes the organizational structure a logic choice for the subject matter. This is because it supports all the evidence that the author presents.

In conclusion, it can be stated that the article is well written and presented. The organizational structure flows well, and this enhances comprehension. Through the use of statistics, examples, and testimonies, it is evident that the author makes an effective claim on the parental skills of Chinese mothers and Western mothers. Additionally, the information is arranged logically for easy comparison. In sum, the article meets its objectives, and use of simple language makes it easier to understand.

Reference

Chua, A. (2011).Why Chinese mothers are superior. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved on April 24, 2017 from https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748704111504576059713528698754

 
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