At least, 52 million people out of the 320 million living in the United States speak fluent Spanish and millions more have some knowledge of the Spanish language. In The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao the author, Junto Diaz, frequently integrates spanish words and phrases into his writing and demonstrates that Spanish is not a minority language in the United States. Diaz utilizes a technique commonly referred to as Code-switching in order to represent the blurred boundaries of language around the globe.. Diaz successfully proves that every single American, immigrant or not, uses a variety of linguistic registers depending on who they are speaking to (family versus friends versus business). And the amalgamation of diction in the novel parallels
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Typically, in English, italics are used to introduce a foreign concept. Therefore, Diaz’s lack of italics manufactures a sense of familiarity between the reader and the Spanish language itself, even if the reader has no previous knowledge of the language. Occasionally, specifically when discussing a cultural topic or historical event that has a Spanish name, footnotes will translate the event name and describe what occurred. The majority of the time though, a translation is not provided and it is up to the reader to search for a one. The lack of italics also helps display the many obvious similarities between Spanish and English (ex. “tesoro” translates to treasure) which prevents the reader from subconsciously creating a barrier between the two languages …show more content…
When Beli confronts the Gangster’s wife her emotions are in control and she yells, “Còmeme el culo, you ugly disgusting vieja,” which loosely translates to “eat my ass, you ugly disgusting old woman”(Diaz 141). The Spanish phrase has a much greater power than its english counterpart and shows that she was so full of emotion she said the first thing that came to her head which is Spanish, her native language. This reliance on one’s native (Spanish) language also occurs when a Spanish phrase is more accurate or natural for the speaker or narrator. “Chacabanas” and “chabine,” (151) are both used because the Spanish word does not have a direct translation in English. Diaz’s careful melding of the two languages establishes a unique colloquial component of the novel that causes the character’s dialogue to become more realistic and simultaneously isolates Oscar an immigrant who doesn’t belong in the US or the Dominican
Typically, in English, italics are used to introduce a foreign concept. Therefore, Diaz’s lack of italics manufactures a sense of familiarity between the reader and the Spanish language itself, even if the reader has no previous knowledge of the language. Occasionally, specifically when discussing a cultural topic or historical event that has a Spanish name, footnotes will translate the event name and describe what occurred. The majority of the time though, a translation is not provided and it is up to the reader to search for a one. The lack of italics also helps display the many obvious similarities between Spanish and English (ex. “tesoro” translates to treasure) which prevents the reader from subconsciously creating a barrier between the two languages …show more content…
When Beli confronts the Gangster’s wife her emotions are in control and she yells, “Còmeme el culo, you ugly disgusting vieja,” which loosely translates to “eat my ass, you ugly disgusting old woman”(Diaz 141). The Spanish phrase has a much greater power than its english counterpart and shows that she was so full of emotion she said the first thing that came to her head which is Spanish, her native language. This reliance on one’s native (Spanish) language also occurs when a Spanish phrase is more accurate or natural for the speaker or narrator. “Chacabanas” and “chabine,” (151) are both used because the Spanish word does not have a direct translation in English. Diaz’s careful melding of the two languages establishes a unique colloquial component of the novel that causes the character’s dialogue to become more realistic and simultaneously isolates Oscar an immigrant who doesn’t belong in the US or the Dominican