Gloria Anzalduas How To Tame A Wild Tongue - 1895 Words

Identity as the â€Å"condition or character as to who a person or what a thing is; the qualities, beliefs, etc., that distinguish or identify a person or thing† (Dictionary.com). This could refer to name, gender, sexual orientation, one’s profession, race, ethnicity, and the list stretches beyond. Is it birth, by choice, or by evolution of events? In Gloria Anzaldua’s â€Å"How to Tame a Wild Tongue†, Jhumpa Lahiri’s â€Å"Teach Yourself Italian†, and Zadie Smith’s â€Å"Speaking in Tongues†, each author writes about their experiences with languages and all have lived through different events which has led them to their definitions of identity. What they all have in common is that they define identity not as something defined by birth, by determined by†¦show more content†¦Chicanos are unique to their place, and their surroundings. Their culture is slowly built up from their surroundings, and who they encounter. For A nzaldua, she proudly displays her heritage and her Chicana identity despite the negativity she has received. However, in comparison to Anzaldua’s definition of identity through her heritage, Zadie Smith’s concept of identity is rooted in her concept of voice, as seen in her piece, â€Å"Speaking in Tongues†. She writes, â€Å"We feel that our voices are who we are, and that to have more than one, or to use different versions of a voice for different occasions, represents, at best, a Janus-faced duplicity, and at worst, the loss of our very souls† (Smith 133). Unlike Anzaldua who held onto her identity as a Chicana, Smith’s voice changed from Willesden to a voice from Cambridge. Though the change in her voice was not one that was expected, she has realized it has also become her identity. And while she admits she has lost the voice she was born with and regrets not keeping that voice alive, it is difficult to say that she has completely lost that part of her identity. Being able to once speak in that voice, is what allowed her to travel to that crowded New York bar even in her fancy outfit. Having a voice or being part of that cultural voice, is part of one’s identity. While Smith and Anzaldua may define identity through a culture or a voice, Jhumpa Lahiri, herself, had a different experience. Rather for Lahiri, she helps the readerShow MoreRelatedGloria Anzalduas How To Tame A Wild Tongue1020 Words   |  5 Pages(Marilyn vos Savant). Within the short text â€Å"How to Tame a Wild Tongue,† this idea is explored in numerous ways as the various groups of people attempt to gain more rights within their community and society as a whole. They come to the realization that the ways in which they are treated is in an unjust manner. Others treated them as if they are insignificant and powerless. Therefore, in Gloria Anzaldua’s â€Å"How to Tame a Wild Tongue,† she confronts how many Hispanic minorities, especially women, areRead MoreTame A Wild Tongue Summary1113 Words   |  5 Pagesanalysis of â€Å"How to tame a wild tongue â€Å" Activist, Gloria Anzaldua’s narrative excerpt â€Å"How to tame a wild tongue† She Goes into depth of ethnic identity, While knocking down walls of linguistic and identity down. How one would identify themselves while broadcasting the struggles any person with culture has felt. She uses ethos, pathos, and logos alongside all 5 senses making the reader feel they witness the struggles she went through if not witness then actually experienced. Anzaldua’s purpose isRead MoreTaming Anzalduas Contact Zone Analysis984 Words   |  4 Pagesgroup has its high and low points, and it is just as important to learn about the low points as it is to learn about the highs. Gloria Anzaldua’s essay, â€Å"how to tame a wild tongue†, focuses on the ideas of losing an accent or native language to conform to the dominant culture. Anzaldua grew up in the United States but spoke mostly Spanish, however, her essay discusses how the elements of language began to define her identity and culture. She was living in an English speaking environment, but wasRead MoreThe Negative Impact of Bilangual Education1216 Words   |  5 Pageshave lasting impacts on individuals, hence, Richard Rodriguez, in his book â€Å"Achievement of Desire†, addresses his struggles as a young boy, trying to adapt to a bilingual education and how that education alienated him from his uneducated Mexican parents. Additionally in the excerpts â€Å"How to Tame a Wild Tongue,† Gloria Anzaldua, while she mainly focuses on the language of â€Å"Mexican† people in different aspects, also mentions her strife as a bilingual student. Although these two stories are differentRead MoreAnalysis Of How To Tame A Wild Tongue1713 Words   |  7 Pages In â€Å"How to Tame a Wild Tongue† by Gloria Anzaldua, she speaks from personal experiences she grows up with while living as a Chicana in the United States. Throughout her life she was subjected to being oppressed because of her native language. From a very young age she felt as if she was not allowed to express and acknowledge herself while speaking Spanish. Anzaldua believes that â€Å"If you want to really hurt me, talk bad about my language. Ethnic identity is twin skin to linguistic identity – I amRead MoreBecoming Members of Society: Learning the Social Meanings of Gender (Devor1029 Words   |  5 Pagesof ethnic identity as unfortunate by-products. The Xicano (Chicano) was able to evolve and retain their cultural identity and ethnicity by creating a border dialect or language (a Patois) which supports the view of the essayist Gloria Anzaldua’s â€Å"How to Tame a Wild Tongue.† This dialect is viewed as sub-cultured jargon in their homeland (Mex ico) where Standard Mexican Spanish is spoken and the Working Class English is demanded by their adopted host north of the border, America. Ultimately, the appropriationRead MoreAnzalduas Struggle with Language1502 Words   |  7 Pagesâ€Å"How to Tame a Wild Tongue† Gloria Anzaldua, the author of â€Å"How to Tame a Wild Tongue,† expresses a very strong tie that she has to her native language. Anzaldua grew up in the United States, but spoke mostly Spanish. She did not speak the normal form of Spanish though; she spoke Chicano Spanish, a language very close to her heart. The text focuses on the idea of her losing her home accent, or tongue, to conform to the environment she is growing up in. From a very young age, Anzaldua knowsRead MoreHow A Wild Tongue By Gloria Anzaldua1236 Words   |  5 Pagesslowly developing a more accepting attitude toward differences, several minority groups continue to suffer from cultural oppression. In her essay â€Å"How to Tame a Wild Tongue,† Gloria Anzaldà ºa explores the challenges encountered by these groups. She especially focuses on her people, the Chicanos, and describes the difficulties she faced practicing her mother tongue. She argues that for many years, the dominant American culture has silenced their language. She claims that by forcing them to speak EnglishRead MoreReading Response For A Wild Tongue970 Words   |  4 Pagesresponse to â€Å"How to Tame a Wild Tongue,† by Gloria Anzaldua. In Gloria Anzaldua’s 1987 article, â€Å"How to Tame a Wild Tongue,† she expresses some of the cultural struggles and lifestyles of the central American culture that Americans do not think about, let alone know about. She starts off illustrating an experience she had at the dentist office which triggered many thoughts and feelings about her culture. The Dentist claimed her tongue was â€Å"strong and stubborn,† in other words, â€Å"you need to tame your tongueRead MoreEssays: Spanish Language1643 Words   |  7 PagesChildhood we see how the author struggles to find his public identity and in Gloria Anzaldà ºas, How to Tame a Wild Tongue we see how the writer shows that a person should not be viewed any less of because of the language they speak. In the end, a bilingual person often loses part of their identity when coming to a new country because they are slowly losing their form of communication Often the language you speak can bring people together. Rodriguez, in his essay, talks about how speaking Spanish