¿Son los intelectuales hombres críticos o servidores del poder establecido?

Growing up from a different culture, Richard Rodriguez looks back on his experience on how he faced the situation as the child of Mexican immigrants. According to his 1982 memoir, “Hunger of Memory”, Rodriguez uses his own observation “to argue that if the children of immigrants are to succeed in the United States, they must separate themselves from their home culture and immerse themselves in the English oriented atmosphere of the American school” (980). In “Aria”, Rodriguez has created an autobiographic essay of his childhood. In his essay, the author is against bilingual educators, who believe that children in their first years of school should be educated in their native language. According to Rodriguez this education method is wrong, it won’t be helpful, therefore children should be knowledgeable in the same language as the public one. The author’s main point is to strongly motivate children of immigrant parents to adopt English as their primary language in order to comprehend public society and have a better future.

First, Rodriguez develops ethos in the area of authority, which is the author’s ability to demonstrate a command over a subject matter and to offer an informed persona. Although Rodriguez initially struggled with his adjustment into the American society and speaking English, he did not let that limit his capabilities of being a successful in the classroom. “Rodriguez’s article appeared in The American Scholar magazine at a critical time in the debate over bilingual education models” (Robinson 236). The American Scholar magazine

Rodriguez argues in his essay, whether bilingual education is appropriate for school. Rodriguez states that “It is not possible for a child, any child, ever to use his family’s

Rodriguez builds a formidable case against bilingual education with his bilingual childhood experiences. Rodriguez grew up speaking Spanish, but then learned how to speak English later in life so he knows what effects bilingual education has on bilingual kids who grew up speaking a private language at homes. When Rodriguez first came to the United States in Sacramento, California he understood “about fifty stray English words” (Richard Rodriguez “Aria: A Memoir of a Bilingual Childhood”). He was a Mexican immigrant whose family only knew how to speak Spanish. The neighbors of Rodriguez’s family didn’t like them, so when they were out walking they would tell Rodriguez’s parents “Keep your brats away from my sidewalk!” (Rodriguez 571). Rodriguez loses the “special feeling of closeness at home” when he learned English (Rodriguez 577). Personal experiences are what makes him a credible author. Rodriguez used strong ethos and pathos appeals, but he didn’t use strong logos appeals. He didn’t use facts or reasoning in his memoir to prove his points against bilingual education.

The idea that information is “deposited” from a teacher into a student fits the majority of Rodriguez’s educational experiences. As a young child, Rodriguez feels that “books were going to make [him] educated” (Rodriguez 578). He never questioned what he was told by his teachers or what he read in any book. He didn’t develop ideas of his own or any critical thinking skills. Rodriguez says that he was “a great mimic; a collector of thoughts, not a thinker; the very last person in class who ever feels obliged to have an opinion of his own” (Rodriguez 581). This type of education helps us to understand the relationships Rodriguez had with his “mentor” Richard Hoggart, as well as his school teachers and parents.

Hispanic and Asian immigrant try to take advantage of this opportunity, these young immigrants are given the chance for a free education. The traditions and customs in the different households create an act of behavior for school. “Parental demands, fear of failure, competition and pride are fueling Asia's academic ascension” (Breitenstein para.7). This signifies that Asians are giving high pressure to do well in school which creates a base for the stereotype that Asians are above intelligent than other common races. Hispanics are not seen as highly academic compared to other races. These Hispanic immigrants are grown amongst the responsibility of taking care of their families. Work is the only route in order to create a source of money towards the payment of house needs and wants. Education is seen as optional rather than mandatory in this culture. “Students did not fail; schools failed students” (Acuna para.1). Through education, Hispanics are not seen as potential candidates for academic success. Hispanics are educated in order to fit the standard stereotype of being of a lower class and only having the ability of labor work. Stereotypes of Hispanics and Asians create the idea of how society interprets these two cultures which can create dramatic affects in race

“Language is power. If you cannot understand or be understood you have no power. You are at the mercy of everyone.” – (Rudat, 1994, Stow, Dodd 356) Should Americans be required to learn Spanish as a second language? The construction of our nation stands on documents written in English, however English is not our official language nor has it ever been. America is a “melting pot” in which English is the most prominent language, followed closely by Spanish. Requiring Americans to learn Spanish is a great controversy; I strongly believe that it should be a requirement, because it improves academic achievements, career success, and cultural and social understanding. The controversy has great counter arguments such as the double standard Americans are held to, and further division of the country. Regarding the counterarguments, I still firmly believe that it should be a requirement because the integration of a second language in our schools is more beneficial to our country’s success as a whole.

In Telling the Truth About History, three historians discuss how the expanded skepticism and the position that relativism has reduced our capacity to really know and to expound on the past. The book talks about the written work of history and how individuals are battling with the issues of what is “truth.” It likewise examines the post-modernist development and how future historians

They should empower individuals in the learning of what is particularly Latin American: "Urban communities battled for power. It likewise let us know the unsuitable repercussions of nationhood crosswise over Latin America. How they ought to make a Latin American culture for and by Latin American. Marti unequivocally trusts that the American individuals ought to be taught in the political expressions to make a solid establishment of information that would better prepare them to tackle political issues. Jose had a dream of peace and solidarity. The "common man" that Marti is so profoundly worried about is something that is important in the administration of our country. On the off chance that our political pioneers don't have a strong foundational

This paper will be addressing the differences between American and Latino culture. American culture is an individualistic culture in which everyone tries to be unique from one another and more successful. Success in the American culture typically means being wealthy. Americans make decisions based off of their own personal needs unlike Latino culture. Latino culture is based off of collectivism where the family is the most important aspect in their lives. Latinos are more likely to make decisions based off of the best interest of their families not necessarily themselves. The primary language Americans speak is English whereas Latino Americans typically speak Spanish. One thing that both cultures share is the importance of a good education.

According to Marta Tienda and Faith Mitchell in the book “Hispanics and the future of America” another problem may be teacher’s perceptions of their student’s abilities.

In America today, we are faced with several different minority groups arriving to the United States. The most common of all minority groups are the Hispanics. America is known for their language being English, but as the year's approach, that language has faded and a new face in English language has taken over, it's called Spanish. We as the people of America have become controversial over this major change, and due to that major bilingualism and political movements that have occurred from the government to the education departments. In this paper, I am going to talk about the four most common Hispanic groups in our country today and the political, social, linguistic, economic, religious, and familial conventions and/or statuses that they

Ignorance is not bliss when it comes to the modern world, but history still affects the way people think today due to the close-minded nature of uninformed citizens. In Castro’s “On Becoming Educated,” she accepts the fact that ignorance is overwhelmingly prevalent in today’s society; however, she works to fill “the academy’s blind spots” (Castro 270) by pushing others to recognize all sides of an argument and be curious about historical events and changes that affect them. Throughout her many journeys with literature courses, Castro found the choice of books to be rather narrow-minded. In retrospect, she “[realizes] that these small incidents were negotiations of power” (Castro 268), and conserving socially accepted positions on issue was more important to certain professors than challenging those beliefs. Historically, the process of shying away from debating and acknowledging other’s opinions has always been a norm. Castro acknowledges this connection between present day life and the past by broadening her perspective through words and generally referring to the what has already occurred in history. Overtime and with teaching experience, Castro has “learned not to back down” (Castro 269) when presented with opposing opinions. In regards to welcoming students with different

Juan Gonzalez uses Chapter 12: “Speak Spanish, You’re in America!: El Huracán over Language and Culture” of his novel Harvest of Empire: A History of Latinos in America to introduce a truly polarizing argument that has plagued the Latino community in the United States of America. Gonzalez is quick to point out that English is the common language in this country, though he is quicker to note that it should not necessarily be so. This author is so incredibly biased in this chapter that it is nearly impossible to disagree with his opinion without feeling like one is completely shutting out the entire Latino community. However, speaking as a member of this community, perhaps it is this unique insight that allows for not only a contending opinion, but also the framework to make the opinion relevant. Gonzalez makes brash claims with little supporting evidence and relies heavily on argumenta ad passiones to manipulate the reader’s emotions instead of focusing on rationalism and sound judgment. Quite possibly, it was the abundance of this logical fallacy that made it difficult to sympathize with his argument; though, it lays the basis for this chapter analysis.

It is observed that the historical happenings have a great negativity on the face of the society, which is yet to be fixed. And so, the belief behind, digging up the past, is all about ‘’telling the story of human