Review of Coming into Language by Jimmy Santiago Baca
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The review of Baca’s poem “coming into language” explains how language empowered Baca throughout his life. In paragraph four, Baca was unable to express himself whenever he encountered strangers. Due to this capability, he felt humiliated and endangered. The language Baca used to express himself was humility and the strangers could understand the state of Baca from the humility he expressed. In this paragraph, he came into language through rebellion as he rebelled whatever he was told in a humble manner.
In paragraph five, Baca was imprisoned for murder suspicion because he could not explain the deep cut in his forehead. While in the cell awaiting trial, Baca heard fellow inmates narrating poems with a lot of noise that signified freedom. From the language of inmates, Baca realized that he could transform to another person because initially he was feeling vulnerable and endangered but now he cannot compare the freedom the inmates have with the one outside the cell. In this paragraph, he learned through isolation because at the cells, he knew no one. He also learned through rebellion because the unexplained forehead cut led to his imprisonment.
In paragraph six, Baca learned his own language when Chicanos closed their books. He was empowered through learning of the new language using the Chicanos language he knew. He compared the two languages.
In paragraph sixteen, Baca can now express himself orally and in written form. He narrated his life experiences when he was vulnerable, humiliated, scorned and endangered. His rebirth ended when he could comfortably express himself. In paragraph thirty-four, Baca continued his writings on the way he learned the language in view of his life experiences from his hopeless state to the hopefulness See Santiago (1992). Baca’s rebirth process of understanding the language goes through the stages of rebellion, isolation and finally the expression both orally and written. He can now feel part of the society and not endangered.