Thoughts on "How to Tame a Wild Tongue"

Clearly what the author was "talking" about.

     What I find so confounding about this piece is that it is completely different in form compared to other works we have read in class. It is not artistic poetry nor is it descriptive fiction; I would classify "How to Tame a Wild Tongue" as a non-fictional documentary or a personal reflection. That's not to say the story doesn't contain basic literary elements; there are plenty of metaphors and allusions which are common devices found in fiction. Still, it is interesting how Gloria Anzaldúa portrays her information. She uses emotional appeal, language reference, and educational and dental metaphors to relate the "prejudice" her tongue receives. I found most of the writing to be fairly positive, Gloria is proud of her language and the people who speak its variations. Whether or not this pride is constructive or destructive is open to debate but no one can argue against the vast amount of languages this woman knows. It's one thing to be able to write and speak multiple languages from different parts of the world but the author is actually capable of deciphering several different dialects originating from Spanglish (along with basic American English and Mexican Spanish). She lists many dialects which I have never heard of including Chicano, Tex-Mex, and Pachuco, truly some colorful names.
     The composition of this piece is special in that it reflects the overall theme of speaking Spanglish. While most of the text is written in English it is frequently sprinkled with Spanish words. Some readers may find this confusing, even irritating but it does add some flavor to the story. I happen to be proficient in basic conversational Spanish so many of the Hispanic terms were familiar, making for an easier read. Like I said above, I was also able to learn some new vocabulary such as the langages I previously listed.
     Finally, the piece on "Linguistic Terrorism" offered excellent insight into the harsh judgments the author received simply for her multilingual ability. It was interesting to hear how other "Chicanas" were so prejudiced that they could not even find comfort amongst each other. Clearly, discrimination of Spanish dialects in the U.S. will soon be seen for its true foolishness since Hispanics are the largest minority group in this country. When a masses of people speak a language, prejudice does little to affect their culture, obviously a good sign. Moreover, I think the author best sums up her story in these sentences: "So, if you really want to hurt me, talk badly about my language. Ethnic identity is twin skin to linguistic identity---I am my language."