ABSTRACT

This essay based on what language meant to me and how I can relate it to my and everyone else’s lives. It’s about a moment in which language impacted my lives and I decided to write about how a special person was able to change my view on a learning a language. I also had to correlated to a boarder audience by I used a reading from the FIQWS class.

    My journey with Arabic

            Language is such an integral part of a person’s life; it is a form of communication that one must use. Language has a variety of rules and structures, it is something that we hear from the moment we are born. Language can teach a person values, traditions, and the way of life. It teaches you to speak and write and most importantly it teaches you literacy. There are so many memories of when I came to realization of when I felt that my need of wanting to learn a new language and seeing the outcome if it, can affect my literacy development. One specific memory that I hold dear to my heart is when I went to Egypt and had taken Arabic classes for two whole months. The result it would have during the next Eid would be life changing for me.

The summer of 2018 is also the summer that I had commenced my journey with my third language. The language that I still find difficult but beautiful. I remember my parents had hired a young Arabic teacher, who would teach first graders the original dialect in Arabic. Her name was Shimaa, and she was very patient with my brother and I, who at the time was 13 and 16, respectfully, since we went to Egypt, not knowing how to speak a word or understand a word in Arabic. It was quite challenging at first because she did not know how to speak in English, so communicating with her was difficult. But she gave it her all, she first started with the alphabet in Arabic. Then went on with using words that started with each letter in the alphabet and she would quiz us every day with it. She taught us how to read the words she would write in Arabic and then make us write it multiple times, then she would quiz us on that, as well. I remember that I genuinely liked learning the language, so I tried my best at succeeding on the quizzes. I knew that two months would never be enough to learn the language and I knew that if I did not take advantage from what was being taught to me, then I can never progress.

            I was desperate to understand Arabic, so much so that I thought by having a few classes I would be able to understand most of the conversations. But as we all know, to learn a new language, it takes time and determination to complete the learning. It is not an easy course and it needs passion to continue. The classes had gone all throughout the summer and during those classes, Shimaa would also teach us Arabic using parts of the Qur’an. At the time, I was never truly taught about my religion or the Holy Book that almost 1.8 billion people read. I had always felt left out because of my ignorance towards the religion. Which is why I was pleasantly surprised to see that she would incorporate religion with learning a language and I guess it makes sense. The Egyptian dialect is very different from the Arabic written in the Qur’an, the dialect is seen as slang for many, and it is. As a result. Shimaa had technically been teaching my brother and I, two languages. We learned the Al-Fatiha which is the first chapter towards Allah (God), and we would spend most of class time just repeating the same words repeatedly. She would make us read it at the same time, so that we can be familiar with certain words. It was the first time I was taught anything about my religion, and I felt like I was getting closer to my faith and to the people who follow it as well. I did not expect to use it later unfortunately, because my family is not as religious as other families.

            As time went on and we were already settled back in America, I had thought that I had forgotten everything that I was taught. Until the end of Ramadan came, and the first day of Eid had come. I remember I had a friend that would go to Astoria Park with her family to join the morning prayer for Eid. It is part of the religion and culture to go to the first morning prayer of Eid, well dressed and with family. Unfortunately, since my father is not as religious, they could not come with me to the prayer. I asked her if I was able to join her and her family because I wanted to be a part of the tradition. Even though I had gone the entire month of Ramadan fasting, I was not praying, which could be not participating the correct way. That is because to participate in Ramadan you must fast all from down to evening, but also you must pray the five prayers during the day. In the end, we all went, well dressed and we waited for the prayer to start by sitting on the rugs that had been put by others.

            When it had begun, and I saw everyone stand and commenced to recite the Qur’an, I realized that everyone was saying the Surah Al-Fatiha. I remember getting nervous the moment the first words were spoken over the microphone, what I did not expect was that I was able to say the Al-Fatiha. Not just that but I was able to comprehend what was being said. I remember feeling so happy that I was able to speak the language and to speak the language to God. As I was on my knees and bending further down so that my head could touch the carpet, I felt a huge smile coming from within me. It was all because I was able to speak with Allah in His language and it was a beautiful moment. I remembered all the times I would feel frustrated when Shimaa would make us recite the Al-Fatiha and I would forget a part or mispronounce a word. But that all felt in vain because I will never forget how ecstatic I was at being able to understand what I was saying and that I was able to say the words as it was being spoken on the microphone. I knew what I was saying and as I was reciting it, I was able to remember how most of the words looked, from all the times Shimaa had made us read the Al-Fatiha. 

            This moment led me to want to pursue a great need of learning Arabic, I had bought books that are meant for young children and continuously studied the language in its written form and oral form. I learned how to write my name and many other objects that I was not able to do before. I can make out the letters in a word and try to understand what is being said. I have the Qur’an that has an English and Arabic translation that helps me understand what I am reading and saying. I can say that my literacy in Arabic, has greatly improved ever since that fateful day in Astoria park. I wanted to keep that hopefulness and happiness that had transpired when I was able to pray. It was not just the fact that I was able to remember it, it was the fact that the language stuck with me. That all the teaching had left an impact on my memory and it was surreal. I could finally be a part of a group of people who speak the language. It is something that I have wanted for a long time because I live in a heavily populated area that has many Arabs. I always see the girls in groups talking among themselves in Arabic. I wished to be a part of that and to be able to have people who come from similar cultural backgrounds. There is hope for me still and I know that one day if I continue doing my readings and speaking with my father in Arabic, I will be able to be a part of a much larger group.

            I know many people have gone through the same experience as I have. I have met many people who cannot speak in Spanish, and they always tell me how they feel left out in the family gatherings, how they wish to be a part of the Latino community. Those people make me want to help them out because it reminds me of who I used to be and who I am now. My Arabic is not at a fluent speaker level, but I am able to try and carry a conversation. I want to inspire those who are struggling with their own home language, that if you continue and give it your all, there is hope. Language is fluid, it is not impossible to learn a certain language. It all depends on the person and how determined they are to gain that knowledge. Arabic is my challenge, and it is a challenge that I want to conquer. To monolingual people any foreign language can be challenging. If they put in the work and the effort to even gain a basis in the language they are trying to learn, they will get that basis. Society, nowadays, tends to see people who are trying to learn a new language, as open-minded. There is not much of a negative connotation towards those who are trying to gain a new perspective in a language. Being proficient in another language makes you a more desirable candidate in some positions when you are seeking employment or other opportunities, because you can communicate with more than one community.       

            My moment and progression remind me a lot of Amy Tan’s mother and her development with English in the personal essay named, Mother Tongue, by Amy Tan. The thing with Amy Tan’s mother was that she was able to understand English, she was able to speak it in a way that would not be considered fluent, but it was. Tan’s mother was the kind of woman who would be independent, and she would have a hard time understanding why others did not see her as someone who would understand English. As stated in the passage, “You should know that my mother’s expressive command of English belies how much she actually understands. She reads the Forbes report, listens to Wall Street Week, converses daily with her stockbroker, reads all of Shirley MacLaine’s books with ease-all kinds of things I can’t begin to understand.” (Tan, pg.10) Tan’s mother may have an English that is not considered as good but her reading knowledge and understanding is at a much higher scale. Which brings me back to where I am with Arabic. I want to be able to reach Tan’s mothers’ level when it comes to reading in a language that is not the mother tongue. I believe that because Tan’s mother was an advent reader, she was able to learn to speak English and that can also lead to her working on her English-speaking skills. This gives me hope that I can better my Arabic and be able to comprehend even the toughest of words. It will let me stay in a country where Arabic is mostly spoken and be able to survive, just like Tan and her family have been able to do.

To this day, I am still striving to read more in Arabic and have a deeper understanding of my language. There have been times when I felt like giving up because I had a difficult time understanding a word or pronouncing it. Thankfully, I had family and friends who continued to push me forward and helped me out. I want to continue my studies on the classic Arabic and the Egyptian dialect. I believe that it would be beneficial because I will finally feel complete. I will finally be able to complete the missing piece of the puzzle on who I am. There is so much significance to learning the language that one of your parents grew up speaking and being able to communicate in their mother tongue is something that I strive for.

Works Cited

Tan, Amy. “Mother Tongue.” Threepenny Review 1990; 1989

Cover Letter

Dear Professor Miller and Professor Nagales,

            In this essay I have written about my experience on learning a new language. I had learned along the way when writing my essay that using the rhetorical situation and always having the purpose in mind, had impacted my writing. I was able to find the deeper meaning into what I wanted to portray to my audience. I wanted to let them know that it is okay to start your journey with a new language, no matter the age or the circumstance. Being able to use my purpose to convey what I wanted to share, had made me think twice on what I find helpful for others to know.

I was able to “identify and apply the fundamental concepts of the field of language and literacy studies.”. Determination and passion are key concepts to achieve a new language and to develop my literacy. Language has a huge part in creating a foundation in learning more about a culture and its traditions. It has a part in creating groups of people to come together and rejoice in their language and literacy. I have learned that having an accent or just being able to communicate with someone in a language that you have not grown up with, is okay. I was able to see this when reading Amy Tan’s personal essay, Mother Tongue, and it was interesting to see her struggle with language.

Sincerely,

Yara Abdelrahman