Comments on the Singularly Strange Story of English ...

Once again I enjoyed reading this article -- I think it has a lot of information! I like the historical approach and I like learning about history so that could be why. One of the most important points I think Dr. Alicia Pousada makes is how in general Puerto Ricans are both interested in leanring English and yet resistant to doing it too well -- to protect the Spanish language and culture. And how this is tied to Puerto Rican identity. I see this all the time in my classes where some students don't want to be seen speaking English too well or to seem too interested in learning it. And I can understand that feeling -- so much of who we are is in our language! My daughter says I sound like a different person in Spanish and I sure feel like a different -- and definitely a less intelligent person.

Yet Pousada's article also points out the long history of contact and relations with the US before the invasion and take-over in 1898. I think that is interesting to me especially in terms of English-speaking migrants (Puerto Ricans moving back and forth). For example, we know many escaped enslaved Africans from English islands came to Puerto Rico -- and may have spoken any number of languages incuding English, English-Creole, French, French-Creole, or various African languages. Even after slavery ended in the English islands and intensified in Puerto Rico, there was movement of people from areas like the Virgin Islands over to Culebra and Vieques, and then to the big island. And she did not talk very much about a very important movement -- which is Puerto Ricans from the States to the island who are English dominant. That is very common and causes its own issues in terms of Puerto Rican identity as we have heard students in this class testify to. There has been a lot of mixing too - like in my family - where one parent is English dominant and another is Spanish -- and kids get both at home -- though Spanish has tended to dominate.
At the end she talks about the invasion of the Puerto Rican home with Cable TV in English and I too wonder how that will work out. Somedays I think it is shifting young people to English - yet other days I see that Spanish popular culture is so much stronger and vibrant and relevant to young people -- like with reggeaton music.

I would like to find out what young Puerto Ricans think about this, and to hear what they found out what is going on in different communities. I would also like to look to hear what everyone thought of the Singularly Strange Story of English in PR.