Education’s worth
Education is hailed in man novels and pieces of literature as being the only way through which a person can become independent and the only way through which a person can integrate into the new society. But Rodriguez presents also the ‘’dark side’’ of education, that is the fact that education is what in many cases in immigrant families ended up tearing families apart. Rodriguez points out that the reason why he as well many other immigrant children ended up feeling as if they didn’t belonged anywhere was because the education they receive alienated them from their original culture.
Against bilingual education
Rodriguez is a peculiar person in the sense that he came from a Spanish family and he only spoke Spanish for the first six years of his life. Despite this, he advocated on numerous times against bilingual education. This is considered as being ironical especially when the reader takes into consideration the fact that Rodriguez would have had a better life and it would have been easier for him to make friends if he were to go to a school that spoke his language. Despite this aspect, he made it clear that he was against bilingual education.
The one to blame
Rodriguez admits that he felt uncomfortable growing up because whenever he heard someone speak English, he would feel for some reason threatened. He blames his parents for this because according to him, they created a perfectly safe environment at home and thus created the impression that everything that is outside is bad and dangerous. This is ironical considering how Rodriguez described his family and the positive way in which he portrayed them.
The opposite effect
The people and the officials that pushed for a bilingual educational system hoped that this will help the immigrants children connect better with the people born in the country they lived in. Ironically however, Rodriguez notes that the bilingual education system did the complete opposite because the children developed a sense of ownership over the language they were thought and thus became more resilient to accept another culture.
Not so proud
Rodriguez notes that after he comes home after spending some time in England, his parents were more distant towards him. Instead of feeling proud that their son got the chance to learn and better himself, they let it be understood that they were frustrated that he was capable of succeeding and capable of achieving things they were unable to achieve.
