Essay 'The Wife-Beater' By Gayle Rosenwald Smith

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After reading “The Wife-Beater” by Gayle Rosenwald Smith, I immediately related her essay to “Mother Tongue” by Amy Tan. Both essays focus on the power of language which made me reminisce the ways I have used my terminologies. As I was conversing with my mother in our native Spanish tongue, she brought up the word “maje” (pronounced mah-eh) a Nicaraguan slang term that can be used to call someone a friend; however, it also has a negative connotation that refers to someone being dull and foolish. The negative connotation of “maje” affects more women than men in Nicaragua because the term is mainly used by men who are male chauvinists that refer to their wives as naive or “majes.” Since Nicaraguan males tend to use “maje” to insult