Solsen  Analyzing Literary Pieces “Class”

            The short story, “Class” from Sherman Alexie’s “The Toughest Indian In The World” illustrates his feelings towards diversity in ethnic class and social class. There appears to be a theme of substance behind one’s desires and attempting to become satisfied when you reach what you thought were goals, instead finding dissatisfaction and a sense of not belonging. The comparison of being biracial is difficult in finding oneself in not only identifying with a culture, but in the basic ways in which one looks and behaves in accordance with societies ideals and with your desire of appearing accepting.

            The details from the physical appearance of Alexie’s characters in this story to the ways the audience can identify with the simple yet powerful descriptions of the various social classes demonstrates the struggles the main character, Edgar Eagle Runner, has. The story begins with the smallest of details full of actions, emotions and language used among the various characters became evident of the comparison of the multiple social classes. The comparison first starts with his view on his appearance and what his equal would be, that is why he always approached the tenth most beautiful woman at any gathering, because as he stated, “I’d always made sure to play ball only with my equal.” Then the comparison was with heat and cold with love and affection. The wedding symbolized the happiest times and it leading straight into an affair in just one year. Ending in the story with a comparison of what he thought he was looking for and what he actually had the entire time.

            Edgar is a modern middle-class American Indian who definitely struggles with his heritage, not only his ethnicity. There are parts of the story for which he seems proud of his physical difference from the mainstream of his professional legal office in a predominately white suburb in Washington State. Then he expresses he may seem to have everything one would want, a nice home, a nice job, nice car, lots of events and outings; however, this could not be further from the truth. Was his sorrow in the fact he had an absentee father who was an alcoholic, a mother who was proud he had married a blonde haired blue eyed white woman in hopes that continual breeding would eventually erase all of the appearance of the brown skinned Indian? Could he be looking for something else with the search for an Indian prostitute or attempting to have sex with an Indian bartender a way to find him ethnically, or was he looking for a place to belong since the marriage for which he believed was ideal for him a sham once discovering the infidelity of his wife?

            This story expressed the multiple differences in being biracial and bicultural. The diversity was never the weakness, as the main character discovered, it was the strength. Though one may think the grass is greener on the other side of the pasture, having the choice is the ultimate prize, and once he realized this, he was able to be content and rejoin his wife and continue with his life.

Language and Identity Politics (Ramsdell)

Lea Ramsdell began with the phrase, “Language is identity and identity is political.” This was the assumption she formed after researching three autobiographical writings from Richard Rodriguez, Ariel Dorfman, and Gloria Anzaldua. After reading the chosen works by all three, she realized that the described language heritage was brought together by their family and each ethnic history. She asserted that the chosen language choice for each writer was a political act for which they were using for self empowerment. For each writer, the language they identified best with is what they chose to write, therefore a means to inform anyone who reads their works that this is who they are regardless if you agree or not.

For Richard Rodriguez, he chose to write in English as a means for what he expects would bring him success in America. Out of the three writers, he is the one that is farthest removed from his original Spanish speaking culture. In his writing, he described his origins as a happy memory with his Spanish language and total immersion into that culture. The change for him came when school officials informed his parents that if he did not master English, his education would be shortchanged. This caused his parents to encourage English, rarely speaking their native Spanish, which caused for some sadness for the comforting language and culture he had known his whole life. This sadness went away when after a few weeks of not speaking Spanish, he had volunteered an answer in class, which to his surprise created a sense of him finally belonging in that environment, which was told to him and his family would indeed be the best for his future. This was the cause for his writings in English.

Ariel Dorfman whose maternal grandparents fled the Ukraine in the early twentieth century settled in Argentina, where his mother eventually forgot their native Yiddish for Spanish. His paternal grandmother was multilingual for which she spoke Russian, German, and French fluently and worked as a translator; although his father never forgot his native Russian and was able to grasp and recall the Spanish he learned as a child. Dorfman has been influenced by multiple languages as a child and came to the realization if it were not for Spanish, his parent would not have been able to communicate when they met, for his mother of a Jewish background and his father Russian. He was a displaced European in South America. He heard English for the first time while he was hospitalized briefly for a few weeks in New York. It was then when he came to the conclusion that you speak the native language of where you are. This realization caused him to not want to speak Spanish while they were in New York, and he did not have the desire until he was a teenager when his family relocated to another South American country. This enforced his believe that it is only proper that you speak the language of where you are for acceptance, therefore his love and developed respect for Spanish, although knowing English is the preferred language .

Gloria Anzaldua is vastly different from both the previous writers. She never hesitates to take pride in both her language and heritage. She expressly never diverts from her means to invoke a message to anyone who reads her works, that she is not one to conform. She finds a home with her Chicano style and writes in a mixed hybrid of both English and Spanish which can be termed as Spanglish. She maintains compartmentalization of a language will only limit from the variety of expression only hybrid languages have to offer. She believes it gives language legitimacy, and does not agree with academia dictating what her expressed language should be, and her message is that she will not surrender to pressures by a dominant group to use a language that suits them.

The works by the three authors read by Ramsdell, all highlighted how critical a role of language is. The purpose not only to express themselves in their true fashion, but to identify their political stance of various forms of displacement, yet avenues of communication for which they each identify with and are free to choose in the language which resonates with their self-hood.

Solsen Summary of “La conciencia de la mestiza: Towards a New Consciousness.” Borderlands / La Frontera: The New Mestiza

Gloria Anzaldua's writings in the chapter of Borderlands/La Frontera shows a unique blend of various ways of writing and useage of both English and Spanish to immerse the reader into what seems to be her experience of a woman of chicana background along the border of Texas and Mexico. The ideology behind her words document not only the cultural differences between race and way of life, but also for gender and sexuality. There are apparent struggles not only physically for her, but a mental anguish as well. Her view point seems to stem for a quest for change not just for tolerance and acceptance but a change of the norms for those that travel well beyond the borderlands.

Her method of study is by observation and through her own experiences as well as those family members for which she accounts for in her childhood memories as she narrates in the third person. She uses much symbolism to describe emotions and outlook for not only her future but for those in her culture. As descriptive as her story unfolds not only past struggles but she foretells of current and future struggles for not only success but for a livelihood. Unfortunately, her struggles only mentions that of a divide of gender equality for her subculture of immigrant farmers and not of others that may be in the same culture of Mexican-American heritage along the borderlands, which would include other trades or skills to tell the entire story of why certain struggles remains.

On page 109, she brings up the question about blending and what can get lost without an insight of what could be gained. There is a hybrid message that seems to reconstruct the thought of oneself rather than the expansion of the culture as a whole. Her writing does provide a substantial history as to why some things are the way that they are and the consequences of intolerance of both the outsiders and those within her subculture to prosper having to know the pains and have scars both on the inside and out. The only hope is in using the farm lands where even in the dirt where it seems nothing will grow, with actions and hope another growth is imminent even though it may not be how one imagined.

My questions are still, how does one prepare to read the works in this book? Is a knowledge of some of the culture and history  required as well as a dictionary in order to understand the direct approach of the writer since she uses cross blending of both English and Spanish?

Living in El Paso, I have come to some of the ideals and descriptions she had written, but if I had not, would I have the same level of consciousness of her message?

ENGL1313: Bartholomae and Inventing the University

ENGL1313: Bartholomae and Inventing the University: Solsen Bartholomae Summary As a Professor of English and former Director of Composition at the University of Pittsburgh, David Barth...

Bartholomae and Inventing the University

Solsen Bartholomae Summary

As a Professor of English and former Director of Composition at the University of Pittsburgh, David Bartholomae is an expert in the field of composition. Inventing the university is a means overcome any discourse between the writer and the audience. As students learn to write, they begin with a particular topic. If that topic is unfamiliar to them, they must research in order to learn the language that topic would use in order to gain understanding from the reader as to what is written. There are various methods to invent the university according to this essay from Bartholomae.

Learning to speak the language is a way to ease the discourse between an inexperienced writer and academic professionals at the university. Whether it is a subject matter such as Economics or Mathematics, one would need to understand the basic vocabulary in that particular field or subject, and appropriate arguments and know how to evaluate any statements made by the writer. Some students may pretend to know the language using words or phrases that may not seem appropriate, and would be obvious to those more experienced in that subject matter. This type of assumption to speak the language can be considered carry off the bluff, as if they writer is full of knowledge on the main points or ideas.

In his method of collecting various sampling for both experienced and inexperienced writers, Bartholomae discovered some keen similarities yet obvious differences between the two. He noted that while they both show discourse on the range of topics, they both may not have understood the audience as well as they should have. Although with the experienced writers, he did acknowledge that they did profess a privileged style of writing for which they became the subject matter expert or drew in the audience to perceive such. There is an importance to connect the two worlds of both the reader and the writer for the message to be concise of the message and for it to be understood as it was intended.

As the student writer becomes more experienced, they will be able to take on more technical discussions or presentation of the concepts used in his or her writing. A commonplace is where alike members have similar interpretations based on their shared or similar experiences which causes their understanding. This is advantageous in writing because the writer can enforce the material in which they are writing about as it could possibly relate to their intended audience. Finding a commonplace would provide the most basic point of reference which could explain the general nature and specifics to more experienced writers.

The major difference between expert writers and the novice would be that an expert is more adept to convert their writing with similarities the reader can relate to and interpret responses. Manipulation of the audience and writing from a position of privileged discourse is a skill learned with experience, for which expert writers have and students set to achieve. Setting the foundation of commonplaces and attempting more scholarly projects will enhance a student’s ability in becoming more expert of a writer.

Intro

INTRODUCTION

My name is Sheila Olsen and I am a student at University of Texas at El Paso studying Business Administration with a minor in Accounting. The purpose of this blog is to maintain my information and discussion relating to materials from my ENGL1313 course.

I will attach information I obtain from my course so that discussion or thought material relates to the subject matter. There are various websites with additional materials and possibly other links from my blog as well. As I research not only for materials for this blog, but I will include my research or ideas pertaining to my course work. 

My writing experience is limited to technical writing obtained from my prior job as a court reporter, but I hope to gain insights and additional experience to broaden my writing and reading. If you have any insightful recommendations, please address them to me.