“How to Tame a Wild Tongue” Annotation

Author: Gloria Anzaldúa

Important Vocabulary: Bridle. The headgear used to control a horse, consisting of buckled straps to which a bit and reins are attached. Ahogadas, escupimos el oscuro. Peleando con nuestra propia sombra el silencio nos sepulta. Drowned, we spat the dark. Fighting with our own shadow the silence bury us. Patois. The dialect of the common people of a region, differing in various respects from the standard language of the rest of the country. Braceros. Laborer. Pocho. The pocho is an anglicized Mexican or American of Mexican origin who speaks Spanish with an accent characteristic of North Americans and who distorts and reconstructs the language according to the influence of English. Argot. The jargon or slang of a particular group or class. Cordite. A smokeless explosive made from nitrocellulose, nitroglycerine, and petroleum jelly, used in ammunition.

Questions: At what age did the author recognize language as a vessel for cultural discrimination?

Initial Reactions: How interesting of an experience this is. I simultaneously am pleased to understand her Spanish words, so easily intertwined with English, and yet also feel uncomfortable, almost as if I to want her to tame her wild tongue.

I identify with the embarrassment that the author speaks of. Even when spoken to in Spanish, I rarely respond in Spanish. I think mostly I try and fight against an expectation of me. I’m brown so I have to know Spanish?

It is clear that I struggle with racial and ethnic identity, so reading works like this help me to see how others put their experiences with this into words.