Richard Rodriguez- Aria

Premise:
-Different languages such as classroom language
-language used at home
-outside of school language
-Advantage-ness of the english language
-disadvantages of non english languages
-teachers
-students
-priviledge
-kids becoming mute from not knowing the english language

Argument:
-Rodriguez argues that even though being an American you should speak the 'American' way which is English, bilingual children should never forget their backround and they should still keep with the spanish or whatever language to keep their heritage in their genes and pass it on to their kids. It's part of who they are so they should not lose that.

Evidence:
-Because i wrongly imagined that English was intrinsically a public language and Spanish an intrinsically private one, I easily noted the difference between classroom language and the language of of home. At school, words were directed to a general audience of listeners. Words were meaningfully ordered. And the point was not self-expression alone but to make oneself understood by many others" (34). There is a difference between language at home and language at school but if children arent taught the proper english at a young enough age, then they are going to be lost once they go to school.

-“I did not realize that they were talking in Spanish however until, at the moment they saw me I heard their voices change to speak English. Those gringo sounds they uttered startled me."
The Spanish language is unfamiliar to english speaking people because it can be intimidating to others who are not familiar with the language.

- "My mother! My father! After English became my primary language, I no longer knew what words to use when addressing my parents”. Being that both parents speak both spanish and english it can probably get frustrating not knowing the primary language at home.


Comments:
I think that if someone is a spanish speaking person, they should definetly learn how to speak english because when they go to school it will be alot easier to talk to other kids and teachers and better learning opportunites, However they should never forget their original roots and never stop speaking the spanish language becuse its part of who they are.

This makes me think of the kids i teach at the prov. school because 95% of them can speak both english and spanish and they speak english at school and sometimes at home, but they never forget their original roots.