Five Themes From Andalzua Essay Essay Sample

Communication

The five themes that can be drawn from the essay of Anzaldua are racism, cultural imperialism, low self-esteem, and self-belongingness or identity formation. 
This article has focused on acculturation which has become a violent and cruel process for non-Americans. There are two sides in acculturation process namely, Hispanic and Anglo side. The Anglo side demands that there must be a sense of urgency in the adoption of the culture. This can be illustrated when there are persons who decided to migrate to the U.S, they are expected to embrace the American culture and use the English language to get the approval of the community. On the other hand, the Hispanic side composed of Mexican families with parents who send their children to the U.S. to get education and live the American Dream. To be able to successfully blend with the community, they are expected to speak the proper American English language. In the case of Andalzua, she wanted to be recognized as a Chicano since she believes that Chicano’s must be able to identify themselves as distinct group of people (Andalzua 2948). She wanted to encourage every Chicano to be able to have the freedom to speak in Mexican Spanish language or their dialect since it is the language that they feel most comfortable in conversing.
Some Chicanos become victims of racism in the U.S. because they are being judged in the way they speak. The people around them have often misunderstood them if they do not speak straight English.
In the essay of Andalzua, she defended their race, identity, culture, and fought for her sense of belonging when she used Pachuco, as a way to express her thoughts (Andalzua 2949). She believes that by speaking in her native dialect, she was able to make their identity known to the community. It was a language she learned when she was young and it was her way to institute rebellion of the English language. It was a deviation from the strict straight English that she was expected to speak. The author relayed her disgust and outrage on how her culture Chicano was being oppressed by the Anglo community. Furthermore, the author considered her race, the Chicanos for being orphans in their language and how they are being deprived of their freedom of expression. The author also focused on the effect of oppression that caused their low morale and self-esteem.

Work Cited:

Anzaldua, Gloria. “How to Tame a Wild Tongue?” Borderland/ La Frontera: The New Mestiza.
San Francisco: Aunt Lute, 1987. 217. Print.