Essay on Microaggressions in Anzaldúa, Cofer, and Gates Jr. Works

This essay examines the concept of microaggressions as depicted in three literary works: "How to Tame a Wild Tongue" by Gloria Anzaldúa, "The Myth of the Latin Woman" by Judith Ortiz Cofer, and "Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Black Man" by Henry Louis Gates Jr. The essay analyzes how these texts portray microaggressions related to language, ethnicity, and race. Anzaldúa's work highlights the shame and oppression caused by language barriers and cultural expectations. Cofer's essay addresses discrimination faced by Latin women due to their ethnicity, including workplace and societal biases. Gates Jr.'s piece focuses on racial abuses and the challenges faced by Black men in high-profile positions, emphasizing cultural dissemination and the impact of race and class. The essay concludes by asserting that the selected works effectively illustrate the societal issues that give rise to microaggressions based on language, ethnicity, and skin color.

Running head: ENGLISH ASSIGNMENTS
English Assignments
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1ENGLISH ASSIGNMENTS
The aim of the following essay is to determine the concept of micro aggressions in the
different writings. The writings that will have to be considered in this essay for analysis are How
to Tame a Wild Tongue by Gloria Anzaldua, The Myth of the Latin Woman by Judith Ortiz Cofer
and Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Black Man by Henry Louis Gates Jr.
The first text to be analyzed is How to Tame a Wild Tongue by Gloria Anzaldua. In this
piece, the author is mainly concerned about the borders of cultures, classes, genders, nations and
others. The behavior of the characters in the piece has portrayed how the use of languages can
make them feel ashamed (Anzaldúa, 1987). Their use of bad language and use of Spanish
language at excess had caused the narrator to be hit on the knuckles by the sharp ruler. The
notion that well-born and bred girls do not protest became a myth and anyone who did was
labeled as a micro aggression. Critics have argued that the art of answering back or protesting
against injustices is the right of every boy or girl (Anzaldúa, 1987). Thus getting abused for
speaking in native language has brought out micro aggression through this essay.
The second piece of text is Judith Ortiz Cofer’s The Myth of the Latin Woman. The issue
of discrimination on the basis of language and ethnicity has been the source of micro aggression
in this essay (Cofer, 2004). The Latin people (especially females) had been oppressed because of
their ethnicity as Latin among the natives of United States. Latin women in the essay faced many
micro aggressions at their workplaces or schools. Women from Puerto Rico were considered as
criminals or second class citizens. In the essay, Cofer has given reflections on the ways she had
been treated in the society (Cofer, 2004). Apart from that, Cofer has also expressed that Latin
women are treated as sexually expressive as terms like ‘sexual firebrand’ has been tagged at
them. Thus, micro aggressions have taken place in this essay.

2ENGLISH ASSIGNMENTS
The third essay to be discussed in the light of micro aggressions is Thirteen Ways of
Looking at a Black Man by Henry Louis Gates Jr. The racial abuses in the society are very
important factors to be noted in this essay (Gates Jr, 2011). The oppression of the black people
because of their skin color has been the main proposition of this essay. The problems that black
men face in high profile positions in the society have been portrayed in this essay. The cultural
dissemination between the native people of US and African-American black people has been put
up as a part of the micro aggression (Gates Jr, 2011). The ways the class, race and personal
experiences of high profile black artists shaped their lives have been the main issue of micro
aggressions in this essay.
In the concluding section, it can be stated that the three essays have brought out the
concepts of micro aggressions very effectively. The various issues in the society to assault
people based on their language, ethnicity and skin color have been said to be the primary reasons
for the micro aggressions.

3ENGLISH ASSIGNMENTS
References and Bibliography
Anzaldúa, G. (1987). How to tame a wild tongue (pp. 2947-2955). na.
Cofer, J. O. (2004). The Myth of the Latin Woman. Race, Class, and Gender: An Anthology,
337.
Gates Jr, H. L. (2011). Thirteen ways of looking at a black man. Vintage.
Pérez Huber, L., & Solorzano, D. G. (2015). Racial microaggressions as a tool for critical race
research. Race Ethnicity and Education, 18(3), 297-320.