The Importance Of Bilingual Language

Amy Tan’s essay “Mother Tongue” connects to many of us whose English is their second language specially if one’s coming from a different country than the USA. Amy Tan connects to us in such a personal level in which one starts to relate to her. Coming from a background in where language plays an important role in my life, I indeed started to relate to her in every way. Like Amy Tan, language defines the type of person we are and how it affects our lifestyle on our everyday lives. Although we come to this country and learn an English that is not perfect or “Imperfect English”, doesn’t make one less intelligent nor different from others.

There are both positive and negative aspects of learning a language, but people are likely to equalize two sides and try not to lose the relationships with their family and the society. Amy Tan, in “Mother Tongue” and Richard Rodriguez in “Aria: A Memoir of a Bilingual Childhood” explain how they viewed their private and public languages through their experiences and how they managed these two languages and established themselves in the society. Tan initially felt ashamed of her private language and favored the public language; however, in the end she showed that she could manage the balance between the languages and finally utilized both in public. On the other hand, Rodriguez preferred his private language which made him feel comfortable;

There are numerous bilingual and multicultural individuals on the planet today. For some, decisions of which language they utilize, and how they utilize it, relate to what social or social group they have a place with. Amy Tan, a Chinese American writer, depicts this well in her short exposition “Mother Tongue”. Tan experienced childhood in two unfathomably unique universes utilizing diverse English’s. The primary world, which comprises of her nearby family, she talks what we may call “broken” or “constrained” English. The second world, which is her business and expert world, tan talks and composes culminate standard and scholastic English.

The essays, "Mother Tongue" by Amy Tan and "Public and Private Language" by Richard Rodriguez are recollections of both of the author’s personal encounters and difficulties with the gap that was created between their families by differences in languages. These two writers grew up with bilingual families, in which English was not the primary language. Consequently, they had a hard time accepting and understanding the issues surrounding the different languages they spoke with their families at home, and within society. Because of this, the gap between their public and private languages that had been created through the introduction of a second language slowly grew larger, and eventually impacted their relationships with their family and caused them to view them in a different light. In their writing, Both Tan and Rodriguez reflect on their personal experiences and memories and illuminate the effects that a private language can have on various aspects of life.

In Richard Rodriguez's essay , “ Aria: A Memoir of a Bilingual Childhood ” he writes about how he struggled as a child who only spoke Spanish language but lives in a society where the “public” language is English . He believes that speaking proper English will somehow help him fit into society and find his “true” identity. Throughout the essay he contrast the Spanish language identity and English language identity. As a young boy, Rodriguez finds consolation and safety in his home where they only speak Spanish. He feels that he only has a true identity when he is at home surrounded by those who speak the same language as him . On the contrary , he becomes trapped and disoriented when not being able to speak / understand the English language . He feels as if he is not part of “their world” and has no identity in society. By comparing and contrasting Spanish language identity and English language identity . Rodriguez's essay is an example that speaking different languages should not make anyone choose an identity . In fact being able to speak and understand multiple languages in his case Spanish and English makes the language a part of his identity, but with two different sides .

Richard Rodriguez, son of Mexican immigrants, was born and raised in California. As a result, he was exposed to several languages during his childhood. Rodriguez grew up listening to Spanish at home, but English was a strange and foreign language for him. In his essay “A Memoir of a Bilingual Child,” Rodriguez compares his native Spanish to the English that surrounds him. Through characterization and the tone, Rodriguez gives the reader a better understanding of the similarities and differences he finds in the two languages present in his life.

Language plays an important role in communication by bringing people together and enriching their relationships. Language can also alienate those who do not speak it properly, or at all, from those who do. The essays, Mother Tongue, by Amy Tan, best known for her book, The Joy Luck Club, and Se Habla Espanol, by Tanya Barrientos, delve into the many powers that language holds. These essays reflect how by not speaking a language in proper form and by not speaking a language at all, affects the lives of the subjects of the stories.

In the United States, it is important for a person to speak English fluently because it is the official language in America and everybody communicates in English. Many people believe that English should be the only language in America and that sometimes people may face prejudice when they speak English with an accent. For some parents, the fear of prejudice makes them decided not to teach their children their native tongue. On the other hand, there are many other reasons why some parents want to teach their children their native tongue. Gabriela Kuntz explains in My Spanish Standoff why she did not allow her children to speak Spanish at home. Kuntz’s explanations are acceptable, but some research studies reveal that most young children can

In life, there are many languages that everyone speaks. In fact, after interpreting the passage, “ Mother Tongue,” by Amy Tan, I’ve discovered many different ways language is interpreted as such as localized lingo , my own language Punjbialish, how others interpret their own languages, and how others speak bilingual , trilingual, and multilingual languages in everyday life. After reading the writer's article on her own experiences with languages it has opened my mind to the many different forms of languages everyone uses in this multicultural technological world we live in. First, i have noticed that most people have grown up learning bilingual, trilingual, and multilingual languages in their household.

Growing up as a bilinguist or even as another race in America can lead to a common worry -- to which culture do I belong, which language can I call my own, or do I even have a language to which I can do so? Such persons often perceive themselves as two individuals, causing them to feel isolated -- unable to fully belong to a culture or language, yet most would rather not sacrifice one of their identities over the other. Gustavo Perez Firmat successfully captures this vague, burdensome yet grateful feeling a bilinguist often experiences through his poem “Bilingual Blues.” Firmat shows the burden of a bilingual by revealing the speaker’s feeling of isolation that originates from such a characteristic. Throughout the poem, the speaker switches

Being a native speaker of two languages is great, but not without its practical difficulties…This is most present in the poem “Bilingual Blues,” by Gustavo Firmat in 1995. Gustavo was originally born in Cuba then moved to America when he was 11 years old. He earned a Ph.D. in Comparative Literature in two American Universities, and now is a teacher at Columbia University in the Humanities. Becoming a bilingual speaker himself, he wrote a compound of English and Spanish literature. Bilingual speakers are represented in the poem "Bilingual Blues," by Gustavo Firmat, through the communication in English and Spanish in order to demonstrate their frustration.

For this investigative assignment, I interviewed three of my closest friends about their perspectives on bilingual education in the United States. One of my friends, who I will call “A,” said that bilingual education is important for students because it helps them broaden their perspectives on the world. Students are exposed to learn different cultures and respect them, promoting multiculturalism in our country. “A” said that if students were only exposed to English-only classroom setting, they would most likely be ignorant of other cultures. She also told me about her experience when she was in an ESL program during her middle school year. She described the program as useless because she and her classmates learned broken English from each other. She somehow managed to get out of the program and put herself into the mainstream English class. My other friend, who I will call “B,” stated that bilingual education is helpful in developing a wider cultural perspective and cultivating a person suitable for the globalized world. As a foreign-born American and working as an international student coordinator, she emphasizes the importance of acknowledging and respecting different cultures. She believes that bilingual education can help students to achieve better knowledge on growing multiculturalism in our country. My last interviewee, who I will call “C,” also believes that bilingual education is important to cultivate young minds by helping them to respect not only their own but

Do you ever wonder why some people adjust their language they speak between different parts of their lives? These three American authors help understand more on how we change our languages between our different part of our lives. One of them is Amy Tan author of Mother Tongue, her story is about her mother and the world around her. Another is Richard Rodriguez, who wrote a Public and Private language, He tells about his childhood on his two languages, his private language, Spanish and his public language English. Gustavo Pérez Firmat poem name Bilingual Blues, he expresses that he doesn't have one true language. By their experience, it helps us understand how bilingual people adjust their languages for different parts of their lives. The reason is, people adjust their languages to assimilate the environment they are on.

The microcourse “Language Matter: Essays and Arguments” contains the essays of Martín Espada and Richard Rodriguez. Each author depicts their definitions of bilingualism. Espada portrays it as the right to speak multiple languages, including keeping and developing a passion for it: “Defending the right to use the tongue of their history and identity creates in me a passion for Spanish itself”(4). According to Espada, in order to maintain a language, people must fight for the right to speak it. On the other hand, Rodriguez defines bilingualism as assimilating a private language with a public one, consequently causing a necessary loss of intimacy between struggling English speakers. In the essay, Rodriguez explains that his

There are many bilingual and multicultural people in the world today. For many, the choices of which language they use, and how they use it, correspond to what social or cultural community they belong to. Amy Tan, a Chinese American novelist, portrays this well in her short essay "Mother Tongue." Tan grew up in two vastly different worlds, using different "Englishes." The first world, which consists of her close family, she speaks what we may call "broken" or "limited" English. The second world, which is her business and professional world, Tan speaks and writes perfect standard and academic English. Having to "shuttle" between these two communities with very different languages has had many different positive and negative effects on