"How To Tame a Wild Tongue" by Gloria Anzaldúa

1. What is Anzaldua's purpose and how do you know? 

Analdua's purpose is to reassure the importance of embracing one's native tongue. She emphasizes the benefits of expressing your native culture and language by expressing her own personal culture or dialect and through her own experiences. 

2. Much of this essay is written in Spanish or a variant of it. In some instances, Anzaldua translates into English, though not all the time. As a reader, how do you react to the passages written in Spanish? How does your level of fluency with that language affect your response? Why do you think she does this?

When reading the passages written in Spanish, it does make the reader feel as though those sections are only meant for certain individuals and creates an initial confusion. However, it brings the attention that she is a part of both cultures and that she does not need to be characterized into one of them. 

3. In paragraphs 14-17, Anzaldua draws on her personal experiences to  illustrate the eight languages she enumerates. Explain why you think that this focus makes readers feel excluded or included. Then discuss whether Anzaldua’s personal experience interwoven throughout the essay strengthens or weakens her argument.

By explaining the different dialects or languages she can speak, Anzaldua allows for some of her audience to relate to her and for some to feel excluded. People who utilize multiple languages in their life may relate and agree with her argument. I think that her personal experiences strengthen her argument because they encourage the reader to feel sympathetic and appeals to pathos as they attempt to view her struggles. 

4. Why is English a “neutral language” (para. 25), according to Anzaldua? In what situations that you have observed or read does English become neutral ground for those who speak different languages? Do you agree with Anzaldua that it is a “neutral language”? Why or why not?

Anzaldua declares English to be a "neutral language" because it how many individuals' who do not share a first language communicate. I have observed this occurring when business men from different countries are relocated to the same country and ultimately end up communicating in English. Although it is not the most common language in the world, it is very well known in many countries, and therefore, I would agree that it is somewhat of a "neutral language".