Question

Consider Tan’s essay “Mother Tongue” and what you learned about code-switching. Do you ever employ any forms of code-switching when you communicate with others? Write a one-page reflective essay discussing code-switching. Do you think code-switching represents a barrier or a bridge to communication? Your essay should contain a logical introduction, a body, and conclusions. To improve your essay, try brainstorming, outlining, and revising your writing drafts before submitting your final version.

Answer 1

If you are fluent in two languages, and have ever spoken to someone else who is also fluent in the same two languages, then you can likely talk about a personal experience in which you both used elements from these two languages within your conversation. For example, I speak both Spanish and English, and often talk to my friend who also speaks Spanish and English. We will primarily talk in English, but will switch to Spanish for certain words or phrases that are better expressed in Spanish, like when using the verb "to know" (there are two verbs for "to know" in Spanish--conocer and saber--which have different meanings and are more descriptive than the English verb "to know").

In regard to the second question, you could argue that code-switching represents a bridge to communication, because it's patching together different languages to send an even clearer message to someone else. Since both speakers would have to be fluent in the same languages in order to code-switch (by definition), then there should be an equal understanding between the two.

Answer 2

Code-switching is to know which expressions and words you should use according to the situation. I switch codes. I generally use different codes when I am at college. If I am at the college cafeteria, I mix up my mother tongue and the native language when I am with my friends. They are immigrants like me. However, I do not use code-switching when I ask for my order at the cafeteria. This may be because I would not like to be segregated. I also use the native language when I am in class.

I think code-switching represents a bridge to communication, too. If an immigrant   learns how to turn the code of the country's language according to the context, he/ she will be able to communicate with different social sectors and he/ she will also make conservative language users reflect upon  the differences. The immigrant, however, who can switch codes is a learned immigrant. This is an immigrant who has been able to access to high levels of education.

A learned immigrant will be able to keep the warm an intimate communication with the members of his/ her community. He/ She will not be  rejected by them. Sometimes, this learned immigrant is segregated by their own peers since these think that high education has made him/ her too native and too high-class. Therefore, the code-switcher may avoid this from happening since ,when at home, he/ she will use the proper code. This situation will change completely when this learned immigrant is in a public context. For example, he/ she will know perfectly well the proper code he / she has to use to pass an exam or to apply for a job. Nevertheless, there may be  sharp differences between an educational context and a labour context. When at school or at university, a few teachers - I cannot say "all"- will certainly respect the immigrant 's language variations, which, as a result,  will help him/ her strenghten his/ her identity. However, when applying for a job, the employers will not be so open to the differences and they may take the language variations as a signal of ignorance. Code-switching, then, will lift any communication barrier and will also protect the immigrant from being discriminated.

To sum up, code-switching represents a bridge to communication as long as the immigant is learned. Although this immigrant may belong to a minority, his/ her experience may reach the  field of conservative language users. Amy Tan has become a famous writer and she has been able to make language variation debatable. The higher the learned immigrant goes up in society, the more possibilities there will be for the conservatives to change their minds. They will have to undertand that communication is related to the 'difference'. This will only be possible if a code-switcher teaches them a lesson.