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Post by JaNyiah Lawler on Sept 1, 2023 10:51:24 GMT -5
When Anazuldua uses the term "switching codes", she is referring to code switching with language; she speaks certain languages with certain people depending on what would seem appropriate and proper for the moment. I have done the same thing, with my dialect as well as my general behavior. For example, if I am at a job interview, I'm not going to use the same words that I'd use with my friends at school. The same goes for clothes. At school I'm dressed mostly however I want, because it's not as improper to wear a hoodie and sweatpants there, but at work, the norm is business casual, so that's likely what I would wear. Code switching also doesn’t have to be from casual to formal. I have been in situations where it just makes more sense to be less informal, because it either didn’t fit the atmosphere or I was just more comfortable being casual.
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Post by Zachary Alexander on Sept 1, 2023 20:07:13 GMT -5
Anzaldúa uses the term "switch codes" in reference to her adjusting the language or accent she speaks with in accordance with her environment. The primary reasoning for these switches is to prevent being shunned by the people around her for using different or foreign languages. She is told to avoid using Spanish in her school by the staff, but is also told by her family to avoid using English at home. Even more, she is most familiar with Chicana Spanish, but feels that people who speak more traditional Spanish will shame her further. My own experience with switching codes. The difference between being in an academic or formal environment as opposed to a casual environment. In school I'll refrain from using what some may describe as vulgar language as it's not very appropriate and can cause discomfort to my peers. However, I don't feel the need to filter myself when I'm hanging out with friends because I know they are not unsettled by it. Of course, this is much less severe than Anzaldúa's situation as her language as well as her identity is being frowned upon.
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emma
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Post by emma on Sept 1, 2023 21:03:02 GMT -5
In the essay "How to Tame a Wild Tongue," by Gloria Anzaldua, Anzaldua uses the term "switch codes" to explain the many languages she speaks and "switching codes" when she is around different people. Between how she speaks or the language that she uses when she is with her siblings versus her parents or older relatives to being the language that she is using when talking to someone who is chicana. I find this similar to me in the sense that the way i talk and act with my family can be very different from how I am with my friends. How i am with people I am just meeting and people that I've known for a really long time can also tend to be very different, we just have a little different meanings to the term "switch codes," while for Anzaldua, it means completely switching the language she is speaking, for me it just means changing the way that i am talking or how i am acting.
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cavan
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Post by cavan on Sept 1, 2023 21:38:07 GMT -5
When Anzaldua uses the term "switch codes" she means to switch your language, the way you talk to people. You have to be able to read to the room and read the people and whats appropriate to say and what's not. I switch codes a lot in my day to day life, when it comes to how I talk to my friends, and then how I talk to my family. Although it can get even deeper, because I even switch my codes when I talk to different friends, because I know which of my friends are sensitive, and I have to be careful around. Yet I know which of my friends are tough, and can take some jokes. One specific example is when I was with my brother and we were joking around, speaking very new "slang", and then we went to eat dinner with my parents and had to completely change how we spoke, we had to speak more "proper", and more politely.
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Post by mollylocke on Sept 1, 2023 22:14:23 GMT -5
The term "switch codes" means to choose between your choice of language based on situation and context. In the essay she code switches by using the abundant selection of different languages she knows when talking to different groups of people that she knows. Although the context is different for when I code switch versus when Gloria does I have been in a few situations when I have done that. One example is when I am at my job versus when I am at home. I coach youth soccer so I am constantly around kids with ages ranging from 2 years old to 7 years old. This means I have to choose my words very carefully so that these children can comprehend what I am saying. When I am working I do not curse, use big words or say long-winded sentences. I keep it simple and kind so that the kids can process what I am saying. When I am at home I am surrounded by people around the same age as me or older. This means I don't have to watch what I say as much. I think a lot less when I am speaking at home because I know the people that are I am talking with will understand the longer sentences with big words and I can curse around them because they understand the meaning and what I mean when I use them.
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Post by Imani Hobson on Sept 5, 2023 11:51:47 GMT -5
In “How to Tame a Wild Tongue” by Gloria Anzaldúa, Anzaldúa uses the term “switch codes”. The term means switching how you talk or your language based on who you are talking to or who is around. I have grown up hearing this term all the time from relatives and friends. When my mom is working she says she uses it and puts on her work voice which is her professional voice. She uses different diction and changes her tone. I even do it when I am talking to someone who is superior to me like a teacher or manager. I have heard many people of the BIPOC group say they put on their “white voice” and I think it is good to use proper grammer and be respectful when talking to someone superior to you but I think it is wrong to associate that with just white people which is implying that BIPOC are not professional etc. People of that group should not have to change the tone of their voice to “sound more white” to be accepted by society or so people think they are educated.
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Post by khanielsmith on Sept 5, 2023 19:30:26 GMT -5
Anzaldua refers "switch codes" to the act of shifting throughout different languages in a conversation, she uses this to smoothly transition from one code of language to another based on the context of conversation and who shes talking to for numerous amounts of reasoning like to not be judged or to avoid misunderstandings while speaking to someone in a language she may not be as confident in. As someone who is a poc I feel the constant need to code switch, coming from primarily white demographic neighborhoods, going to a private school for about half of my life, and coming from a higher educated family brings out a lot of stress with expectations from all different kinds of people. From going to private school with a mainly white demographic and not leaving the school until 6th grade to then move to a completely different city with not knowing anyone and to then be going to a primarily black demographic school was essentially, pretty hard. Throughout my whole life I have been called "white washed" and even been somewhat bullied/judged for the way I act, spoke, and the things I had whenever being around someone who was not "culturally" from the same background as me and with that brought a lot of struggles for me as a young person and trying to find my way. In middle school I went through a lot of different phases to "fit in" with different groups of people, some good and some bad. I felt constantly looked down upon no matter how I act, spoke, or treated people (not in a negative way but my demeanor towards how people would talk about me) and it seemed to never be a way to get away from any of the complains of the people around me about myself and identify. Sometimes I still feel unclear about myself and who I am and worry about how I present myself to others, with that I would say I feel very impacted on the writing to how anzaldua expressed herself throughout the essay.
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Post by zanderligman on Sept 6, 2023 8:40:14 GMT -5
When Anzaldua used the term "switch codes," she is talking about switching the language or dialect that she is using. While the instances of me having to "switch codes" definitely aren't as distinguishable, I have some times in my life that I have to switch codes just like her. One example of this is me switching codes around different groups of people. With one friend group there are certain lingo that we have and can use, that my other friend groups don't understand. Or when I'm talking to older people I have to speak differently so that they can understand me. While definitely not as drastic as completely changing lanuages it's definitely changing codes. Another time when I do this is when I'm playing video games. This might sound a bit dumb but for every different game that I play there are different countrols that I have to account for. Causing me to have to change codes. How I hold the controller, what buttons I have to press, what I think about when I'm playing. After playing a game a lot it just becomes second nature but when playing something for the first time it does take some getting used to.
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Post by Imani Hobson on Sept 6, 2023 19:57:28 GMT -5
When Anzaldua uses the term “switch codes” she is using codes to refer to languages, meaning that she wants to speak in whichever language she would like (even if that means interweaving a few) without having to translate for others to understand what was said. This term isn’t new for many BIPOC people since we must know when specific codes/dialects are appropriate to avoid certain stereotypes becoming associated with our character. As mentioned, switch codes can also refer to switching the dialect that one uses depending on the people that they are around, which is a common occurrence that I find myself having to run into as I do not want to be seen as improper or less educated for speaking in a manner that may not be as formal as it could be around certain people, such as people at my workplace or even people at school. To be honest, we shouldn’t have to feel responsible for other people’s thoughts about how intelligent and capable we are, but what else can someone believe when those thoughts seem to be a symbol of their worth? I completely agree with this. It is almost expected for BIPOC people to talk a certain way when talking to people of authority or that are superior to us. It is not even just about the diction you use but also the tone of your voice. I do think that in certain situations it is okay to change how you talk because the way I talk to my friends is not how I would talk to my boss or my teachers and when I email my teachers I use different diction and grammar then I would when texting my family and friends. We should not have to use a different tone of voice when talking to people so you are accepted by them or to sound professional. Your intelligence should not be measured by how you talk and you should not change yourself based on what you think people will think of you. We are not responsible for other people's thoughts and we should not change ourselves to be accepted by someone who thinks that way.
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