Reading journal 3 - sample essay PDF

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1. What did you like most about the style and form of this essay? What did you like least about its style and form? Do the formal and stylistic choices compliment the type of material being conveyed by the author? I felt a lot of passion in this essay not that there wasn’t a lot in the other essays, but in this one it just felt like there was a stronger connection between the author and the purpose of the story. I believe the overall tone of this essay is passionate and inspirational. Her purpose of the essay is to show people that they should not be ashamed of their native tongues, and they should embrace their culture. Throughout the essay, there is defiantly a bitterness in her tone as she goes through her memories of being punished in school for speaking with a Spanish accent. This is also accompanied by a bit of disbelief because of the harsh, oppressive stance that the school has against others native languages. At the same time there is an informative tone towards as Gloria uses different Spanish phrases and the importance of accepting all different kind of language and cultures. I really appreciate the sentence structure within this essay. The use of Spanish words and phrases to emphasize the pride that Gloria has in her native tongue. It's very inspirational to see that even though someone was teased, punished, and oppressed they managed to stick to their guns and fight for what they believed was true. This had a huge impact on the ‘Chicano’ Students in schools, and if you think about it, language would probably not be the same if people like Gloria didn’t stay loyal to her beliefs.

2. Pick one paragraph from the essay that you found especially interesting. What did you learn from it? What makes this particular “paragraph” successful for the author? What is its interest for you? “Attacks on one's form of expression with the intent to censor are a violation of the First Amendment. ElAnglo con cara de inocente nos arranc6 Ia lengua. Wild tongues can't be tamed, they can only be cut out. Overcoming the Tradition of Silence Ahogadas, escupimos el oscuro. Peleando con nuestra propia sombra el silencio nos sepulta.” Translated this whole paragraph says, “Innocent we got the tongue. Wild tongues cannot be tamed, They can only be cut out. Overcoming the Tradition of Silence Drowned, we spat the dark. Fighting with our own shadow silence buries us.” These few sentences felt specially powerful to me. What exactly does it signify? Well, personally i think it signifies how deeply Gloria has her heritage, culture, and language ingrained in her. She says that she will not back down and she will stay true to her language until the day she dies or until the day she gets her tongue cut out. Her language is her identity, it is her self-esteem, and if that gets taken away then she is nothing. Her heritage is who she is, and that is true for everyone in some way or another. It moved me in a way that is rare when I read essays like this; I feel like everyone should just step back and think to themselves, and know in thier hearts that even if your culture and your heritage

may not be favorable for everyone in the end it is yours, your heritage is you, and you should never be ashamed of that....