Language and people

 Jennifer Burton

Geog 101

2/16/2021

Response paper #5

Language and people

Gloria Anzaldua, in the article “How to Tame a Wield Tongue,” has many interesting thoughts that I had never considered in quite the same way. She lives a life of someone who is struggling to find her place in the world  because she lives between two cultures, her Mexican culture and her American culture. Both cultures did not accept her for who she was. In her American culture she was not able to speak Spanish and considered less then others.  In her Mexican culture she was looked down upon because her Spanish was a little different from others. She feels she does not fit in either culture.  Many people from many different cultures find themselves in  a similar circumstance in the United States.

This is an example of what we learned in chapter five. People have a period of time when they come to a new culture where they try out different cultural ideas and then keep some and leave others behind. Cultural simplification occurs when parts of cultural traits are implemented and others are modified. This is important for a people to adopt new ideas, and use new techniques and approaches to their advantage in their new land. 

I, along with Anzaldua, think that she and people like her are an important part of our society. They bring more instead of taking away. We as Americans should be celebrating our differences and the amazing ability humans have to adapt to new ways of living. She and people like her are building a new culture with a new language.  I think and I hope that as globalization continues, that people are able to see these differences in other cultures as good and as a source of spice and diversity to life.  I also hope that people will become more accepting of themselves and others.  When we see each other for who we are and use those differences to make our world a better place, we become better together.