Language = Personality?

1049 Words3 Pages

Since English is essential in getting by in America, people are more likely to judge a person by his/her English mastery. If you speak English well and fluently, you are quite respected. In other words, if you speak “Broken” English, they may subconsciously think of you as less intelligent than people who speak Standard English. However, does a person’s language mastery reflect complete personality? Since it has not been officially approved that language reveals complete personality, it is inaccurate to judge a person by his/her language mastery.

The dangers of linking one's worth to his/her language mastery are obvious as it promotes racial discrimination and the loss of identity. Racial discrimination, which actions against equality and the fundamental human rights of another simply because of race or other factors of identity, is by far the biggest issue result from the linkage between language and personality. Since English becomes essential worldwide, people who don't speak English well are often discriminated against by people who do. An example is Chang-Rae Lee’s mother, from the article “Mute in an English-Only World”. As a Korean immigrant who only speaks a little English and mostly Korean, she goes through a huge humiliation and embarrassment because of her "Broken" English. While she goes to a market to buy oxtail, she acts like a mute because she doesn’t know how to speak “Oxtail” in English. Because of that, the male server acts rudely and impatiently to her, which makes her furious and go mad later in the parking lot. However, at the end of his article, Lee indicates that his mother is an enthusiastic English learner who keeps studying English till she dies of cancer. She turns out to be a person th...

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...e a person? The true judgment comes from interaction. By interacting with individuals, you will acquaint their behaviors and content of their characters further. As for language, there is little that it can reveal about a person. Thus, in order to make our multinational society more acceptable, we should avoid the linkage and be understanding in any circumstance.

A person's language mastery does not reflect complete personality. A person’s accent, tone and style do not really tell a great deal about him/her. We can’t learn much about a person just by talking to him/her for a few minutes. Despite it is Standard English or not, it’s time to be a bit more open-minded. Hopefully, there will be the day that people would not think something negatively when they hear someone’s “Broken” or “Limited” English. Instead, would give them a kind hand

and smile.

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