Gloria Anzaldua discusses challenges dealing with “wildness” in language in her essay, “How to Tame a Wild Tongue.” She poses the question of what it means to tame a wild tongue, how to train it to be quiet, and how to make it lie down. Based on her writing, it can be concluded that Anzaldua feels that her language has been silenced and seen as primitive in a country like the United States. She would get in trouble for speaking Spanish, or simply correcting her teacher on how to pronounce her name properly. Anzaldua feels that language is strongly tied to her culture and plays a significant role in her identity. I agree that in order to actually “tame” a wild tongue is to strip individuals of their culture and silence expression. Some words and phrases that are used in other languages do not exist in English, and there is no way to “tame” a wild tongue without essentially assimilating individuals. I would argue that simply speaking a language that is not English is not “wild” (but rather natural), and that there is no need to “tame” a wild tongue. Culture and identity deserve to be expressed, and will always end up prevailing.
elina chen
I agree with your claim that simply speaking a native language should not be considered “wild.” It could even be said that it’s “wild” to be forced to give up your identity in order to assimilate.
I agree that not being able to speak your own language correlates to having to strip apart one’s identity. Also, as you mentioned many words used in Spanish have no translation in English and it creates difficulty when trying to express yourself. I myself tend to switch between English and Spanish because words or phrases are better in its original language.
I as well agree with your claim. It should not be “wild” to speak your own mother tongue. A persons identity is what makes them who they are, there is no reason to hid her true identify by trying to take it away from her.