I no speak the English - An Opinion Column

Language is a form of communication that humans, and even other organism, use in order to interact with one another. English is the one of the world's most significant language, a global language that is used by people from all corners of the world. They say that knowing the English language increases your opportunities to succeed life. But what about not native English speakers? Does that mean they have a higher chance to fail in life than native English speakers? Not necessarily. 

Just like Amy Tan, my parents also speak in broken English and there were times when I was younger where my siblings, all fluent English speakers, would giggle whenever my parents, particularly my mother speaks English. Sometimes they would get offended, but sometimes they would also laugh along. This is because she knows and accepts that her English is bad, and that they are not well educated in terms of the English language.There were times where I would be studying alone and my mom would come in the room and say, "Why don't you ask for help from us? Just because we are not educated in English, doesn't mean we are not educated entirely". But this is not the case at all. I just enjoy studying independently but the fact that there were times my parents would say that is truly heartbreaking. Why do they say this? Stereotypes. 

The ability of one unable to speak a language does not determine their entire education. Just because English is a language widely spoken in professional activities such as schools and jobs, does NOT mean that every single individual should understand the language in order to be considered smart . For instance, I have family members, all non native english speakers, who majored in pharmacy, law, engineering, etc. This proves that people are still able to be educated despite them not knowing the English language because they are still able to learn in other languages that are just as good as English. In addition to that, there are still native English speakers who are considered to be uneducated. In my opinion, if what you are trying to say is understood or eventually heard by everyone, or at least a group of people, then it is not a big deal at all. Yes, numerous of non native English speakers would find difficulties to adapt to the English language despite living in English speaking communities, though children would find adapting easier as they are still in the phase of learning about themselves. That's just how it is, but they are still trying their best to do so and people shouldn't be looking at them less because of that. What's unfortunate is that non native English speakers are forced to face this kind of situation where they are judged by society based on stereotypes which is totally unfair because they work just as hard as everyone else but apparently, out of anything else in the world, society and stereotypes are holding them back to reach their full potential in life. 

To conclude this piece of writing, yes, English is a global language that is continuously spreading across the globe so everyone is encouraged the learn the language, but is completely irrelevant to your entire education. Understanding and knowing English does not determine your level of smartness, but sadly, stereotypes say the opposite. 

Comments

  1. good use of logos, to appeal to logic by relating to how your family got degrees in law, etc. without speaking proper English. It was newsworthy, however lacked some hard facts which would make the memoir more authentic. You challenged your audience a lot especially when you said "English is completely irrelevant to your entire education". Can tell from your personality that you respect your parents and family for achieving so much and always offering to help you. Instead of using the word stereotype so much, you could have explained it more or given more examples.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The James Lange Theory

Paper 2 Outline

Coriolanus: Caius Martius