Author: Katherine (Page 6 of 7)

My experience with the English language is similar to Amy Tan’s experience. One quote that I could relate to is “when I was fifteen, she used to have me call people on the phone to pretend I was she”. I relate to this quote because I come from an immigrant family and the first language spoken is Spanish, due to my mother’s lack of knowledge in English I often would call pretending I’m her also.  I try to have her call and translate to her, but it is easier to pretend I am her because when I translate English to Spanish, I sometimes twist it or don’t know how to explain it in a way she will understand. In immigrant families where only the children know English, they become a translator for their family members from a young age. In Jamila Lyiscott’s video I can relate when she said “ so I may not always come before you with excellency of speech but do not judge me by my language and assume that I’m too ignorant to teach cause I speak three tongues: home, school and friends”. I relate to this quote because in past experience’s people judge me because my first language is Spanish and assume that I am not able to write and/or read like them. A lot of people would judge us immigrants just because we came from a different country, not knowing it is an advantage to speak two languages and have two different cultures. When I am working, I speak professional English, when I am with my friends I speak “hood” English and when I am at home, I mostly speak Spanglish. I believe my language switches up depending on the audience, situation and surroundings. Many people can relate to this because we speak differently to family members, friends and co-workers .

In the essay Mike Bunn writes about how “you are already an author” because on a daily basis we write about something. For example, for school you will have to write essays or discussion boards and unknowingly that already makes you an author. I use words on a daily basis when I send texts or when doing homework. I try to write more formal when is for school, than when I’m texting my friends. I tend to use the word “and” a lot when writing a text to friends, but when writing for school I try to avoid using it so much . When the author was speaking about how difficult it is to read in the dark and how often one would have to reread the sentence due to distractions, I can relate because when I’m reading a book before I go to sleep I get distracted a lot or don’t understand a sentence or paragraph and would have to go back to get some clarity. Some of the books that I’ve read make me question why the author used certain words to describe the setting. Something I noticed in bunn’s article how he writes formally and used uncommon words, like the word “antiquated” to describe the outdated fire-safety laws. I would like to try this in my writing because this is a good way to get the readers attention by using unusual words.  The expertise that will help me in college is reading everyday because it will help me learn new words which will improve my writing. Writing on daily basis, will get easier for me to write my ideas out without struggling. For example, right now it is hard for me to put my ideas into words for the reader to understand what I’m trying to convey. Another way is by taking notes while reading and asking myself questions about the authors choice of words and the purpose of writing the piece.