Summary Of If Black English Isn T A Language

In If Black English Isn’t a Language, Then Tell Me, What Is?, written by James Baldwin, the author speaks about the importance of common language and how it change to fit the circumstances. As a small example, the author talks about six different location who can all speak the common language of French, but cannot understand each other. This was made to show that language is more than just spoken words, it is also the way those words are spoken. Baldwin then use this idea with the English language and it’s sub-categories Standard and Black English. He suggest that black people are forced into conforming to the white standard of the English language and have their Black English meaning reformed into something completely different. “A language

It starts with a conversation with her mother before she leaves for college and from the beginning it is noticeable that the author and her mother speak in different styles of English. It delves later into the author’s experiences at Stanford University and how the classes affected her view on people. She noted later in life that when giving a speech she was criticized for how she spoke and her body language by her white female peers. She state that the reason people assimilate into one language is because listening to different languages and speeches are too difficult for

It begins with a belief that the author has that people must either hide their original habits of words or lose our voice. While teaching a class about Black culture with a majority of Black males and females, the author, while reading a passage from The Color Purple, learned that nearly all of her students believe the dialogue was grammatically incorrect and did not know the existence of Black English. Having her students engaged in the concept of Black English, the class was able to create rules and guidelines on how to use the language. In the midst of things, we are introduced to Willie Jordan, a student who had a promising future in the study. Tragedy struck ann Willie was unable to follow the course. Seeking justice, the class soon find out that Black English would doom their quest as the language is