Language, More than Words Analytical Essay

This paper explains that linguistic experiences of children in class rooms and of foreign individuals, growing up in the U.S., shape an understanding of the culture and break down barriers. Next, the author analyzes Deborah Tannen's essay "Gender in The Classroom", which examines the problems of students learning in a coed environment. Richard Rodriguez' "A Memoir of a Bilingual Childhood" explores a Spaniard growing up in the United States and struggling to choose between his culture and the American dream; whereas, Gloria Anzaldua, in "How to Tame a Wild Tongue", says that the true purpose of language as a form of expression. The paper concludes with Amy Tan in "Mother Tongue", which shows, through Tan's relationship with her mother, that a language is whatever you make it.