Analysis Of Pat Moora's 'Immigrants'

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With the rapid economical development, more and more people try to immigrate to America and trying to learn English. Some parents would like their children just speaking English. However, there are some parents tend to keep their native language and teach to their children, in order to keep their culture alive. And in my opinion, parents should keep their old language alive. To function in a new country, the immigrants have to learn the country 's language. This is why the parents in Pat Mora 's "Immigrants" focus on speaking to their children in "thick English" (line 7). They do not think it is necessary to teach their children their own native language, instead they "whisper in their dark parent bed" (lines 10-11). They do this to make …show more content…

Lorna Dee Cervantes said that: “the children run to me, laughing, spinning me blind and silly. They call to me in words of another language.” (lines2-4) I can feel her loneliness through her poem. Because she doesn’t feel she is American or Mexican, even though she doesn’t know who she is. The Native Mexicans call her a prostitute because she gets the influence from America for a long time. Cervantes thinks isn’t her fault, is her ancestor’s fault because she can’t control that. So that’s why I think immigrants should keep their “old language” alive. If we learn English and don’t know our own language, we won’t be able to communicate with our cousin. Even when we came back to our home country, we can’t communicate with other people. I don’t want to feel like I am a stranger in our home. …show more content…

We can see that many Chinese families would like to send their children to America not only for getting better knowledge but also expect they can master English. It 's very important because when they graduate and come back, they have more choice for their job. Even though they continue to stay in America, American companies focus on trade and business with many countries. They need more people can master bilingual or multilingual, in order to maintain the good relationship with other companies in a different kind of countries. “In today 's global economy you really have to understand the way business is done overseas to maximize your potential. A second language equips you for that,’ says Alister Wellesley, managing partner of Stamford, Conn.-based recruiting firm Morgan Howard Worldwide. ‘If you 're doing business overseas, or with someone from overseas, you obtain a certain degree of respect if you 're able to talk in their native language .” (Andruss). Also, people who are bilingual or multilingual can earn more money that those people just speak their native language. According to the report: “Children with immigrant backgrounds who only speak English and don 't retain the secondary language spoken at home make between $2,000 and $5,000 less per year than their balanced bilingual

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