Talking Points #2

Aria by Richard Rodriguez.

Rodriguez is trying to argue that peoples identities can be changed from there culture in routines in daily society. When he was talking about how family traditons were practically ruined because of how the new routines are for the family. When trying to fit in with the culture of power, the family started to talk less and less because they didnt all speak the same language.Overall Rodrigues believes that a person should have pride in who they are as an individual, and believes the culture of power should change them over time in todays society.
Quotes.
1.- “We remained a loving family, but one greatly changed- No longer so close, no longer bound tight by the pleasing and troubling knowledge of our public separateness.” This quote said how they were a big happy family, until their son had to learn english, and be apart of the culure of power. In doing this he had less and less in common with his parents. It made him notice the importance of the english language and culture, that he was never taught to appreciate his own culture. Over time, he wouldnt talk to his parents, they lost communication. His father would not talk at all because of how he didn't speak good english so, he just stayed silent. "Though his english somewhat improved, he retired into silence." Talking about the father, and how he was told its important to speak english in the household. So when the parents were talking around his they'd have to switch from spanish to english. this made the father no longer to pass on his spanish culture to his kids, because they no longer talked.
2. "At first it was a game... each night the family gathered to practice our english... and we filled small gaps of our sentences with spanish words." This quote i thought was very interesting. To believe that the teachers actually told the family to start speaking more english in their home is to me like invading their privacy. The parents listened to them because they just want whats best for their childs well-being. at the same time, the parents are loosing out on quality family time, because now their children learned english, and doesnt speak spanish anymore around them, and they are the silent family.
3.- "But the special feelings of closeness at home was diminished by then. Gone was the desperate, urgent, intense feeling of being home; rare was the experience feeling myself individualized by family intimates. We remained a loving family, but one greatly changed. No longer so close; no longer bound tight by the pleasing and troubling knowledge of our public separateness."
Rodriguez expressed how tradition and family meant to him, and by loosing all of it, he felt that he also lost his family. Families should do whats best for themselves. If they want to learn english and help their kids, it doesnt mean that they have to in order to help their children. they should do what they want to do, regaurdless of the others peoples opinions. If they didnt learn english they would still be a minority, and wouldnt fit in with the culture of power. but however if they are breaking up a family in trying to do so, than it obviously shouldnt work.They shouldn't worry about just speaking english inside the home, while leave their other culture in the dust.

This article wasnt my favorite, it was kind of boring and i couldnt concentrate. The author tells how trying to fit in with the culture of power can make people succeed in life, yet it can also break up families in the process. For the father, he had to give up passsing down his culture to his kids, just because of how he didnt speak to them anymore because he wasnt that great at english. Rodrigues shows both sides to how it can help, yet hurt. He shows how people work hard and practice to accomplish these speaking skills and how people look at them and notice them differently and more respectively. I probably would be very nervous if a child was in my class that didnt speak english. i would be scared that they would fall behind and be classified as slow learners, just because they wouldnt understand what i would be saying. i'd most likely pull the student aside a couple times a week to work on the improvement in language skills. i would not want them to just drop their first language entirely, but i would want them to become a good bilingual student.