Tiger Mom

Jeff Cha

ASA 2 (A02)

Blog 9

I love my “tiger mom,” similar to Sophia Chua-Rubenfeld in her response to her mother’s essay, “Why Chinese Moms are Superior.” Parenting is a difficult task where being too strict or too relaxed can both affect the lives of their children negatively. I am fortunate to have a mother who is a balance of strict and calm. I understand that my mother wants what is best for my future so she encourages pursing education to find a stable career. My mother may be strict with regards to doing well in school, but she is still a caring mother. She may restrict video games during the schooldays but understands that weekends are for relaxing. She may be upset when I score a low grade on a test, but I know that she just wants me to do better. She believes that anyone has the potential to do well if the right amount of effort was put into it. However, others may only notice the strict parenting as too controlling of their children’s lives or even abusive. It’s important to give children choices to be individuals but also to be a guide for the realities of the world. Understanding the balance with parenting will help with understanding the perspectives of “tiger moms.”

Is modern society, or specifically Westerners, too sensitive towards the idea of strict parenting? Or is it fair to say that “tiger mom” parenting is harmful?