Writing About Writing
Jose Guardado
Professor Ahrens
English 101 (1335)
26 July 2015
Comparing Communication
In the United States, people have different languages because of the many different races that live here. It is a problem in our society because it is difficult for people to understand what the other is saying. Even if it is a problem, people should not be ashamed of the language that they speak. Writers, like Amy Tan “Mother Tongue”, Manuel Munoz “Leave Your Name at the Border”, and Deborah Tannen “Sex, Lies and Conversation: Why Is It So Hard for Men and Women to Talk to Each Other?” essays talk about their experiences in communicating with other people. Even though Tannen, Munoz, and Tan show many differences about the impact of language on their lives, they are extremely similar in their writing styles, in their approaches, and in their overall theme.
One area of similarity of Tannen, Munoz and Tan’s essays is in their styles of writing. The first writing style that these three authors share is descriptive. All of the writers share their story using the descriptive approach telling their story with great detail. An example of this is when Munoz describes the gate agent in his essay “The gate agent, it turned out, was Mexican. Well-coiffed, in her 30s, she wore foundation that was several shades lighter than the rest of her skin” he helps you picture the character. Also, Tan uses the descriptive approach when describing her own character “and I was sitting there red-faced and quiet”. Another writing style that they have in common is narrative. This is shown in that they all started their essays with an anecdote as their introduction and they also all started their essays in a story mode. All of the writers use “I” to represent that they are telling their own story. An example of this is when Munoz says, “When people ask me where I'm from, I say Fresno because I don't expect them to know little Dinuba”. Tan also uses narrative, “I am not a scholar of English literature. I
Professor Ahrens
English 101 (1335)
26 July 2015
Comparing Communication
In the United States, people have different languages because of the many different races that live here. It is a problem in our society because it is difficult for people to understand what the other is saying. Even if it is a problem, people should not be ashamed of the language that they speak. Writers, like Amy Tan “Mother Tongue”, Manuel Munoz “Leave Your Name at the Border”, and Deborah Tannen “Sex, Lies and Conversation: Why Is It So Hard for Men and Women to Talk to Each Other?” essays talk about their experiences in communicating with other people. Even though Tannen, Munoz, and Tan show many differences about the impact of language on their lives, they are extremely similar in their writing styles, in their approaches, and in their overall theme.
One area of similarity of Tannen, Munoz and Tan’s essays is in their styles of writing. The first writing style that these three authors share is descriptive. All of the writers share their story using the descriptive approach telling their story with great detail. An example of this is when Munoz describes the gate agent in his essay “The gate agent, it turned out, was Mexican. Well-coiffed, in her 30s, she wore foundation that was several shades lighter than the rest of her skin” he helps you picture the character. Also, Tan uses the descriptive approach when describing her own character “and I was sitting there red-faced and quiet”. Another writing style that they have in common is narrative. This is shown in that they all started their essays with an anecdote as their introduction and they also all started their essays in a story mode. All of the writers use “I” to represent that they are telling their own story. An example of this is when Munoz says, “When people ask me where I'm from, I say Fresno because I don't expect them to know little Dinuba”. Tan also uses narrative, “I am not a scholar of English literature. I