The Insanity Defense

By Allison Kelly & Jesse Shuter

Time to Make Your Own Life Choices

A Comparison between the Taming of the Shrew and Coming to America

Social justice is a thing that most people strive for. This includes everything from equal rights among different races to equal rights among different genders. The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare is the story of two different couples going down very different paths to find love. One man needs to fight other men off to win his future bride, while another has to fight his own bride off to earn her respect and adoration. It was written during and about a time where men were thought of and treated as superior beings to women. Since then, times have evolved and so have love stories. Coming to America (1988) is a story of a prince fighting tradition and attempting to find a mate who loves him for who he is on the inside. It is a story of love, deception and comedy. It also displays a strong female lead who knows what she wants and isn’t going to let her father stop her from getting it. Women no longer feel like they need men to be their whole world. This is evident by examples such as those present in the movie Coming to America. Many traditions that used to exist are no longer valid. Even men have more say in their relationships as the parents have a smaller role than ever before. As shown by the differences between Coming to America and Taming of the Shrew, over time, women’s and men’s control over their own lives have become more equal.

The main character in Coming to America is Prince Akeem, played by Eddie Murphy. As the movie opens, Prince Akeem is about to be married to a woman he has never met and is very distraught about the situation. Instead of following tradition and marrying this woman, he decides to take his friend and servant Semmi to America where he can find and earn his bride. However, he believes that any woman that knows who he is will act insincere because of his fortune.

In this early scene from the movie, Akeem and Semmi arrive in the “strange” land of America and realize immediately that they do not fit in. Akeem wants people to see him as a regular person and knows that his current attire is not the way to do it. He decides to put on a charade where acts as a poor person so that the person he falls in love with will love him for who he is. It is for this reason that I compare Prince Akeem to Lucentio from The Taming of the Shrew. Both are trying to earn their way into their future brides’ hearts by acting as commoners. This shows how traditions have evolved, giving kids more power in their own lives. Prince Akeem showed how times have changed by finding his own bride in the dating world. Lucentio, despite putting on this game, still had to have his servant interact with Baptista, the father of the girl he wants to marry, as at that time, the father played an unbelievably large role in the marriage process.

The girl that Prince Akeem will eventually find and fall in love with is Lisa McDowell. Lisa is the character with the most wide-ranging personality in the movie. When she first meets Akeem, she is romantically involved with another man named Darryl Jenks. Darryl is a rich man, but he is insensitive, slightly abusive and an all around obnoxious person.

In this scene Darryl is trying to charm his way into Lisa’s life. I would compare Darryl to the character Petruchio from The Taming of the Shrew. Both characters are very wealthy and use this wealth to try and control their mates. Another big similarity is that both characters feel the need to lock down their girlfriends or companions because of their beauty and wealth. However, at this time, both of their counterparts do not want marriage, so Petruchio and Darryl each lied to the respective fathers saying that they and their girlfriends agreed to get married. They both say this without their girlfriends’ (Katherine and Lisa, respectively) consent, but each is met with a much different result.

In the Taming of the Shrew Petruchio announces that he and Katherine have agreed to be married to which she responds with a lot of anger and sadness.

“Petruchio: ...And to conclude, we have ‘greed so well together that upon Sunday is the wedding day.

Katherine: I’ll see thee hanged on Sunday first.” (Act 2, Scene 1, Lines 314-316)

Despite Katherine’s obvious and severe protests to this potential marriage, no one seems to care. This is mainly because she is a woman at a time where they received little to no respect. Meanwhile, in Coming to America, Darryl announces the same thing about Lisa. At first Lisa is so upset that she storms out of the room, but when she talks to Darryl next she tells him off and breaks up with him saying that they will never be married. Her father supports the potential marriage because of what Darryl has to offer as a caretaker but Lisa does not care. This shows a huge evolution of the female character in a relationship. They have evolved from people that gets no say in their own lives and are forced to stay with whatever men will have them because they cannot provide for themselves, into real people with real rights who can take care of themselves.

Another aspect of relationships that has drastically changed is dating. As evident by the sudden marriage of Petruchio and Katherine, back then, as long as the father was on board, the woman got no say. There was little courtship of the woman, and a great deal courtship toward the father. In The Taming of The Shrew this very tradition occurs, or so Katherine is meant to believe. Despite the fact that it is not true, Petruchio tells Kate that her father agreed to marriage between them and there is nothing she can do about it. While cruel, this was not only possible, but common during this time period.

Petruchio: “Thus in plain terms: your father hath consented that you shall be my wife, your dowry ‘greed on, and will you, nill you, I will marry you. Now Kate, I am a husband for your turn...Here comes your father. Never make denial. I must and will have Katherine to my wife”. (Act 2, Scene 1, Lines 284–295)

In Coming to America the father figure is Cleo McDowell, an upper middle class restaurant owner and father of two daughters. Throughout the movie McDowell is trying to ensure that his eldest daughter, Lisa, not only ends up with the right man, but also ends up with a wealthy man so that he won’t have to worry about her future. It is for this reason that he pushes Darryl on her, and reject Akeem as a potential suitor (until he finds out he is a prince).

In this scene Akeem is shown working at Cleo McDowell’s restaurant as a common janitor. It is for this reason that McDowell rejects him as a suitor, he wants Lisa to have someone who can take care of her and doesn’t care about how she actually feels. This is quite similar to The Taming of The Shrew where the father figure, Baptista, is trying to find the right man for his desirable daughter (Bianca) and any man for his shrewish daughter (Katherine). Baptista talks with suitors seeing who can offer the most to his daughter Bianca, not caring at all for her happiness, and wants to make sure she has a rich husband to provide for her. Here Baptista explains his rules about selling off his daughters, he wants to unload his less desirable daughter before the bidding for his very desirable daughter can begin.

Baptista: Gentlemen, importune me no farther, for how I firmly am resolved you know— that is, not to bestow my youngest daughter before I have a husband for the elder. If either of you both love Katherina, because I know you well and love you well leave shall you have to court her at your pleasure. (Act 1, Scene 1, Lines 48-54)

The two fathers are very similar in both their tactics and their desires for their daughters. The key difference between the two stories is the result. Because of the social convention at the time, Baptista is completely allowed to sell of his daughters like cattle and they would have to do what he says. Meanwhile, during the time of Coming to America McDowell can push whoever he wants to push on Lisa, but she doesn’t need to rely on a man the way that she would have had to in a different time period. She is free to choose whoever she wants, and even be alone if she so chooses.

Tradition has changed quite drastically as time has went on. Coming to America and The Taming of The Shrew are examples of two love stories with the same basic types of characters, goals, and plot lines and yet they are two stories with such different outcomes. Civil rights have made such a huge difference on the way that people act and think in the 21st century. Thankfully women’s and men’s control over their own lives have become more equal.

Works Cited

Coming to America. Dir. John Landis. Perf. Eddie Murphy, Arsenio Hall, Shari Headley and James Earl Jones. Paramount Pictures, 1988. Online Movie.

Shakespeare, William. The Taming of the Shew. New York: Penguin, 1977. Print.

Analytical Essay:

Many people believe that change is something that you can avoid. They believe that if they try hard enough they can go their whole lives and not make any significant changes to the way that they deal with life. However, there are some situations where this is not the case. The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien is a perfect example of this. O’Brien’s book is about war and includes himself as a character going through changes in that type of an environment. It teaches a lot about what war is like and how there is no way to avoid it. People tend to avoid change when they can, however, there are some environments that people cannot escape in life, it is in these environments that these people cannot help but change. The change could be physical, but it could also be mental.

The beginning of Tim O’Brien’s story in The Things They Carried starts when he is alerted through the mail that he has to join the army and go to war. The feeling O’Brien describes is one of the least desirable most painstaking feelings one can have. The feeling of shock, surprise, and hopelessness combined. O’Brien knew that his life was about to change is a monumental way, he was scared for his life. He even thought about fleeing the country to get away from this change. At one point he even says, “I felt something break open in my chest. I don’t know what it was. I’ll never know. But it was real, I know that much, it was a physical rupture-a cracking-leaking-popping feeling…..I remember packing a suitcase and carrying it out to the kitchen, standing very still for a few minutes, looking carefully at the familiar objects all around me” (Page 46). At this point, O’Brien’s shock and fear has turned to determination, he says that if his life is going to change it is going to be on his own terms and he flees to Canada. However, the fear of disappointment and shame from his parents and all those that know him is enough to overpower this fear of change and war that he is hiding from. He is eventually willing to come back to the United States and fight in the war. O’Brien was trying to get away from a change that could ruin his life. A war is an inescapable environment in which change is not only common, but even expected.

Later in O’Brien’s story he starts to reflect on how his life had changed from the war. At this point O’Brien had been in the war for quite some time and was starting to notice some changes in himself. Upon discovering these changes O’Brien was disappointed that he let the war change him this way. He explains, “I’d come to this war a quiet, thoughtful sort of person, a college grad….all the credentials, but after seven months in the bush I realized that those high, civilized trappings had somehow been crushed under the weight of the simple daily realities. I’d turned mean inside” (Page 200). At this point of the book the character Tim O’Brien was trying to get revenge against another character named Bobby Jorgenson. After a while he realizes that he acting rashly and not quite like himself. He concedes that the war is changing him, and he does not like what he is becoming. Change is scary for O’Brien along with most people, but sometimes you can’t help but change. The change that O’Brien is describing undergoing is a completely mental change. His body isn’t just changing, and neither is just is situation. The war changed the way O’Brien thought and felt and made him into a person he didn’t want to be. This is why people are scared of change, especially in such drastic situations like war, they do not want to become something that they are not. It is hard to overcome a situation like this, because first you would have to leave the environment you are in. If the environment is not escapable, like war, than you might have to embrace the changes.

Certain changes can come about when an environment takes a mental or physical toll on a person. War is a perfect example of such an environment because one is not able to escape war, and it takes a heavy mental and physical toll on those involved. Tim O’Brien the author recalls such times when war was a hard place. “’Well, yes, I dedicated the book to my characters,’ Mr. O'Brien said. ‘After all, I lived with them for five years while I was writing. In Vietnam people were being rotated constantly, so men you served with you would know six or eight months. These characters are the people I know best’”. O’Brien dedicating his book to the characters within it, or the people he knew is heart warming, but also understandable. The reason that this quote is so important is that it shows another element of change in war. The people that you are with and have your back at all times continuously are changed. This had to be tough on a soldier and even depressing at times. These soldiers do not want this change, most likely if it were up to them they would get to stay with the same soldiers throughout the war so that they know who they are working with and who they can trust. However, it is not their decision war brings on changes that are unavoidable and can be challenging to overcome.

Change can be one of the hardest most emotionally tolling things a person can go through, and while many people attempt to avoid change in their lives there are some environments that people cannot escape and some changes that they cannot avoid. There are various reasons for not being able to escape. Sometimes there is a pressure on a person that is too great that they can’t help but break. Sometimes, as in The Things They Carried there are certain expectations placed on a person that they want to live up to. Some changes affect one in a physical manner, while others can affect them in a mental way. War is one of the rare and scary example of place that can change both your mental and physical state which is why it is so undesirable.

Works Cited:

Bruckner, D.J.R. "A Storyteller For the War That Won't End." The New York Times. N.p., 3 Apr. 1990. Web. 7 Jan. 2014. <http://www.nytimes.com/books/98/09/20/specials/obrien-storyteller.html>.

O'Brien, Tim. The Things They Carried: A Work of Fiction. New York: Broadway, 1998. Print.

Narrative Essay:

Change is one of the hardest things in life. That being said there are many hard things that can occur in one’s life, the thing that makes change so unique is how unavoidable it is. I personally have dealt with change many times in my life, and while there are times that enjoy the adversity and the benefits that can come with change, there are others where the change is just completely undesirable. Sometimes I find that the change can be hard, but the result can be great. Many times change is unavoidable due to the situation that you are in, but you just have roll with the punches.

There was a time in my life when I was much younger that I liked to keep to myself. Even in elementary school my focus was to get good grades. Because of this, I was left out of much of the social experiences that come with being a fun loving, outgoing child. I was always happy with my life and my small core group of friends, but never truly satisfied. I didn’t expect my personality to change as I got older, I even feared the possibility of a change because of the effect it might have on my accomplishments in the classroom. However, that didn’t stop me.

By middle school the time came where I started to notice how much of the world I was missing by keeping to myself. I tried to put myself out there, but it was hard when your knowledge of what is “cool” is limited, and I faced a large amount of rejection early. I started playing team sports which helped a lot, not so much because I wanted to, but almost because I felt as though I needed to. It wasn’t until later that I felt something break in my head. Not in a negative way, it was almost as if my confidence was trapped in a cage, only pouring out slowly and then all of sudden it rushed out. My inhibitions were gone, I became a much more outgoing person. I still felt that same type of fear that I had know all of my earlier life, but I was able to ignore it and do what I please. I was scared of change, but it happened anyway and I couldn’t be more thankful.

Another example of a change happened to my friend Rob. Rob and I were best friends and we would hang out on quite a frequent basis when we were very young. However, Rob had a very unique situation when it came to the careers of his parents. Rob’s mother worked for the mayor and she was continuously changing locations of the office she was working at. On top of this there were some other unforeseen circumstances that made Rob’s life hard. When Rob and I first met we lived ten minutes away from each other. Out of nowhere, disaster struck for Rob and his family when his house burned down for an unknown reason. Rob lost all of his possessions, clothes, and memories.

“Mom, what happened to my toys?” Rob would inquire.

“They are gone honey, a fire came and ate them up, but don’t worry we will get you new ones”, his mother would often reply.

The change was very hard for Rob, he had to leave his home and move in with his grandmother. He couldn’t help the change, it just came out of nowhere and his life took a hit.

Later his parents found a new place to live, it was an apartment in the city. Rob’s mom needed to be closer to a different office, so she moved to the city and again Rob’s life changed. City life was very different for him, we now lived at least forty five minutes away from each other and began to see each other less and less. On top of that he went to a whole new school and had a much smaller place to live than he was used to. Rob eventually got used to his new life, but it wasn’t long before change struck again.

Rob’s mother was offered a higher paying job for the mayor, the catch is that she had to move again. This time it was way out to Oxford, PA. Now Rob lived two hours away, and we were lucky if we got to hang out two or three times a year.

“Where are we going mom, we’ve been driving forever all I see is trees!” Rob exclaimed on his journey.

“We are almost there, our new house is a little bit out of the way, but trust me it’s worth the drive”. His mom would answer.

The good news for Rob is that his home was enormous. It had four floors including a basement that was all completely Rob’s room. The bad news for Rob is that he lived in the middle of nowhere, he had to commute an hour to get to school, and he didn’t get to see his friends as much. It was hard for Rob to adjust to this new lifestyle, especially after finally getting used to being in the city, but after a while he finally did, but then things changed again, and it was the biggest change yet.

Rob’s mom got a call that a high paying job was available and she was first on the list for possible candidates. She was very excited, but there was a catch, and not a small one at that. The job was all the way in Memphis, Tennessee. After ironing out a lot of details, fighting with her family and watching her son shed many tears, she convinced her family that this was for the best and that they wouldn’t have to move anymore once she took the job. So, Rob moved all the way to Memphis. This was four years ago and I have seen him twice since then. I have kept in touch and I was there for him throughout the process of his move. He had a hard time with such a drastic change in his life, and I’m sure if it were up to him he never would have left Philadelphia. That being said he couldn’t stop this change from happening, he was simply in an environment where changes like this were unavoidable.

The week leading up to Sunday September, 14th was possibly the worst one in the history of the NFL, and could even be considered the worst week for a national sports league in all of history. The nadir of the situation came when star NFL running back for the football team the Minnesota Vikings, Adrian Peterson, was indicted on charges saying that he physically abused his four year old son. Legally Peterson is being indicted of parental abuse, but should he really be convicted? The fact is that sometimes what seems like parental abuse is simply discipline. The Vikings organization and the NFL, do not have the right to punish Adrian Peterson because parents have the right to discipline their children as they see fit.

Peterson is being charged with parental abuse. This came about because he was caught beating his son with a switch, which is a flexible branch or rod used to whip or discipline. He was caught when a doctor examined the four year old and decided that the lacerations on his legs and back were, in fact, brought on by parental abuse. Now Peterson is being looked at very negatively by those in the NFL community. His fans, coaches, and teammates are all shocked and appalled and left reeling after learning what he did. The Vikings even deactivated him until the situation is legally resolved.

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Services, “any nonaccidental physical injury or harm” is considered physical abuse under the United States official federal law. Based on this understanding it would be obvious that Adrian Peterson did in fact commit a crime. That being said, there are many exceptions to the rule that make Peterson’s case not as clear. The Department of Health and Services also reveals that, under the U.S. federal law, in 16 states (along with the American Samoa and the Mariana Islands) physical discipline. as long as it is within reason, is an exception to the law. The main issue here is what is considered within reason. What Adrian Peterson did may or may not be considered within reason depending on who is the one reflecting on his actions. It is because of this that it is impossible to determine if he broke the law until a judge officially decided if he was “within reason”.

Another very important exception comes with being in the state of Texas Peterson’s home state, and where the act occurred. In Texas, Physical injury is classified as, “injury that results in substantial harm to the child or the genuine threat of substantial harm from physical injury to the child...excluding an accident or reasonable discipline by a parent, guardian, or conservator that does not expose the child to a substantial risk of harm” (Fam. Code § 261.001). This means that, when a child is injured by their parent or guardian, and the cause is due to parental discipline, then it may not considered unlawful abuse, as long as it is determined to be within reason. Adrian Peterson is from Texas. It was there that he was caught disciplining his son. In accordance with the law he may not be so guilty after all.

Unfortunately, other events in the NFL have had major contributions to the extreme criticism of Peterson. Another player from the NFL, Ray Rice of the Baltimore Ravens, was caught on camera, punching his then fiancee and knocking her out in an elevator in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The NFL originally gave Ray Rice only a two game suspension, a mere slap on the wrist. Fans everywhere were absolutely outraged. Then, after the video was released that explicitly showed Rice in the act, the NFL and its commissioner, Roger Goodell, took the opportunity to correct their mistakes and suspend Rice indefinitely. Goodell claimed that he had not previously seen the video, however there is a lot of evidence that makes it seem like the NFL did in fact have prior knowledge of the recording. Fans felt as though they could not trust the NFL, and that the commissioner deserved to be fired. It was because of the events with Rice that the punishment for Peterson was so harsh. The only reason that the court of public opinion is reacting so strongly to the Adrian Peterson situation is because the NFL handed the Rice situation so poorly and wanted to handle this correctly from the get-go. Former star basketball player and current sports analyst Charles Barkley came to Peterson’s defense in an interview with Jim Rome, saying, “Listen, we spank kids in the south...Every black parent in my neighborhood in the South would be in trouble or in jail under those circumstances”. Peterson is not alone in his actions. This is how many people from the south are raised: their given households often believe that this is the correct way of discipline. All parents including Peterson simply want their children to be the best that they can be. Peterson is not a child abuser, his charity the All Day Foundation even goes to help at risk children.

Adrian Peterson’s actions, while wrong in the eyes of the NFL, do not call for serious punishment. Peterson does not deserve to be punished for something everyone does just because the NFL is going through a hard time. Parent’s have the right to discipline their children “within reason”.  Although parents everywhere might not think that the decision regarding Adrian Peterson's case matters much, its influence goes beyond the NFL and its players. It also greatly influences the laws pertaining to child abuse and what is acceptable parental discipline.After all discipline is something parents do simply to make their children the best they can be. Parent’s that only want the best for their child do not deserve to be punished as long as they remain in accordance with the law. The law does not explicitly say that discipline is against the law, it is somewhat vague. It is the parents in the world that ignore their children and show no love towards their children that deserve to be punished.

Works Cited

Chase, Chris. "Charles Barkley Defends Adrian Peterson's Use of Corporal Punishment." For The Win. N.p., 14 Sept. 2014. Web. 07 Oct. 2014. <http://ftw.usatoday.com/2014/09/charles-barkley-adrian-peterson-video-ray-rice-cbs-nfl-today>.

"Child Abuse Law." - HG.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Oct. 2014. <http://www.hg.org/child-abuse.html>.

"Definitions of Child Abuse and Neglect." Definitions of Child Abuse and Neglect. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Oct. 2014. <https://www.childwelfare.gov/systemwide/laws_policies/statutes/define.cfm>.

Definitions of Child Abuse and Neglect. S.l.: Bibliogov, 2013. Child Welfare. Web. 2 Oct. 2014. <https://www.childwelfare.gov/systemwide/laws_policies/statutes/define.pdf>.

The Influence of the Police

by Jesse Shuter

“I would like to begin this story Doctor by telling you that murder is a crime. It is not to be laughed about, made fun of, attempted, or even discussed by those not in a position to deal with the fact that it is a crime.”

“Tell me the whole story Steve, from the beginning.”

“It all began last July, or was it August, no wait it was May. Yes I’m certain it was May because it was springtime. I was doing my usual paperwork when I came across a very peculiar file. This file was especially peculiar because it was marked Top Secret from the date January 12. Usually the files that are brought to me at the Police Station are not marked in this way. Anything that is marked Top Secret is to be brought to me immediately. So as you must also be wondering, why was this file not brought to me earlier? Why was a file that is supposedly urgent from January being brought to me now in May?

So I open the file, and I read the thing that gets police commissioners all across America more apoplectic than anything else. A murder. I was especially frustrated because I had previously worked so hard to keep the streets of Philadelphia clean of murder and yet here one was. Then the weirdest feeling of deja vu overcame me. I felt like I had heard this case before before. Yet I was adamant that it was new. It was because of these mixed emotions that I was not prepared for, nor was I in a position to deal with what was to come in the next few days.

The next day, I officially sent out a warrant for the arrest of whoever murdered the man. I decided to take a look at the body in our analyzation lab. The body was on an examination table, yet there was no one in the lab examining the body. I quickly slipped on some rubber gloves and began taking a look for myself. It was a man, he appeared to be  in his late thirties to early forties. He was a white man, handsome, he had short brown hair that reminded me of my own. He seemed like the kind of man I would be friends with, and here he was in front of me dead with a bullet hole through his chest. I could have sworn that I knew the man, there was a feeling of longing, both for the knowledge of who this man was, and also who killed him. It was crazy that we couldn’t find him in the system. To be honest, it was this attachment to the man, that drove me to make such rash decisions about this murder. Finally, an officer, Jenkins was her name, came to me with news, regarding the man’s killer. Apparently two men came to turn themselves in. The interesting thing is it was the same crime. Both of these men were claiming to be the murderer of the same man.

I did the only logical thing to do in this scenario, I decided to interrogate both the men and see what each of them says about the murder. The first man was named Jack Jordans. His file said that he had graduated from UCLA and was now working as a successful architect. The file also said that he had a wife but no kids and that he currently lives in New York City. He was 34 years old. I decided to take a look at this guy wondering why he would commit a crime if he is as successful as his file says he is.

I started by examining him through the two way mirror. He was young looking for his age. He was a black man, strong looking. He was tall and had short hair. He looked up at the mirror and it almost seemed like he was scowling at himself in the mirror. I stepped into the interrogation room and asked Jordans who this man was that he killed and he said that he was a client of his named David Read. I asked him questions about the murder and why he did it. He wouldn’t give me much of a straight answer until I got in his face. I began raising my voice and asked him why he killed the man, he said that he didn’t know why, he just had to. I turned around and began walking away after getting all of the information I could from him. Then he spoke again, in a lower register, I heard him say “I killed him because he was a punk, like you”. I quickly spun back around, and yelled at him asking him to repeat that. He looked at me frightened, saying he didn’t say anything. I stormed out furious, the nerve of that man. He definitely seemed like the kind of guy that would want to kill, in more ways than one. After the interrogation I looked up David Read in our system, however, no one existed under that name.

The next man to claim that he was the killer of “David Read” was a man named Chase Stefano. According to his file he was a lawyer who graduated from Michigan University. He was just as successful as Jordans, it was almost uncanny how similar they were financially and otherwise. He too had a wife but no kids. It was weird that these men with seemingly great lives turned themselves in for a crime. I asked him a few basic questions about his family and his job, nothing I didn’t already know the answer to, but then I got to the juicy stuff. I decided to come out of the gate by asking him why he turned himself in. He said that he couldn’t live with the guilt. I looked at his face and he looked sad, also he wouldn’t make eye contact with me. I noticed some of his features, he was white first of all, he had blonde hair and green eyes. Despite the looming despair of the situation his held himself well. He answered all of my questions in a mature manner. I respected him, he seemed like a guy I would vote for to be president. He was well spoken and seemed to be telling the truth at all times, but I knew something didn’t seem right he didn’t seem like the kind of guy that would kill. He had a great life, why would he throw he it away. I even heard him whisper under his breath, “why am I here right now?”. That cinched it. The guy didn’t even think he should be here, clearly he was innocent.

After interrogating both men it was clear to me that Stefano was innocent while Jordans was lying for some reason. So I told everyone that Jordans was clearly the murderer, and that Stefano should be released. That was how it seemed, I heard this guy Jordans say horrible things, while Stefano admitted to not wanting to be here. It makes sense if you think about it Doc, most of the bad guys out there, the killers, are black guys. Haven’t you noticed that in the news. I hate murderers more than anything, and murderers are usually those African Americans that think they are too cool for the law. White guys stay clean. So I released Stefano and gave Jordans the chair for murder after a sentencing by the judge.

So Doctor what do you have to say to that, it all adds up, so why am I here. Just because I was diagnosed with some disease, doesn’t mean that I am crazy. Everything I told you was true, so why did the judge sentence me to come to sessions with you?”

In today’s society people and their social groups are widely identified by language. There are many parts to a type of language, and some are easier to identify than others. There are different pronunciations throughout the world, and even just throughout certain countries. There is a also a difference in the actual language spoken throughout certain social groups across the world, these specific words or phrases can only typically be identified by the group or multiple groups that created the term along with many of the local groups that interact with them. These terms are called slang and are an integral part of the different dialects throughout the world. Today there is a term called code-switching. Code-switching is when a person changes how they speak based on who they are around. Code-switching is becoming more and more common and has an influence on communities everywhere. People use it to feel more comfortable throughout different societies in their lives, and they use it to stay connected to all of these parties at once.

Today code-switching has become very popular. It is an integral part of society, because it pertains to so many different people in society. To understand code-switching, it is important to understand language and the role that it plays in society today. Language is something that connects people to their groups of friends, and their communities. There are many parts of language, and these parts can be used to identify a person, who they are, and where they are from. The pronunciation of speech is an important part, and also is possibly the most distinguishing part of language. Different pronunciations can be found because of your location (Philadelphia; Boston; Texas; etc.), or your background (Black; White; Jewish; etc.). Another factor in understanding speech, is dialect. This can also differ based on location or background. A component of dialect is slang. Slang is when different communities and social groups create or change the meaning of certain words. These words can seem well known to the group of origin, but to someone across the country or even across the state, can make no sense at all. In the documentary “American Tongues”, language is analyzed to better determine what types of language are spoken where, and what kind of Slang exists in these places. Throughout the documentary it becomes evident that some people truly have no idea of the definitions of certain words created by certain groups. Code-switching is when someone changes their language based on who they are with, typically to fit in better with that group.

There are many reasons why people code-switch. People switch their pronunciations of words and their dialects around to better fit in with a certain group. An example of this would be if someone is at work and needs to talk professionally around their co-workers, but later after work when they meet up with their friends, they change their speech. In this situation the person may change their grammar so that it less professional. Another reason a person might code-switch is not for themselves or their personal security at all. There are times when people code-switch to make the people that they are with feel more comfortable about being around them. For example a person would typically change their language when around children so as not to scare them, and also so as not to teach them bad or vulgar language.

Since code-switching is becoming more and more of a popular thing to do in today’s society, it is being incorporated into many parts of our society. This is because code-switching is becoming more and more practical. While many people in society today agree that it is a beneficial idea, many disagree. Jacomine Nortier of Multilingual Living writes, “People who switch back and forth from one language to the other are considered careless, thoughtless, clumsy, not interested or disrespectful towards their languages”. (http://www.multilingualliving. com/2011/05/19/codeswitching-much-more-than-careless-mixing-multilingual-bilingual-know-rules/). While this may be true in certain circumstances, it is important to understand that people do not necessarily switch languages because they are being careless. They may have a very good reason to switch their language around. This is because people respond better to what is familiar. One man who understands this is current president of the United States, Barack Obama. Back in January of 2009, president elect Barack Obama went to get lunch at Ben’s Chili Bowl. Ben’s Chili Bowl, is a famous restaurant in a historically black neighborhood. After paying for his food, the cashier asked the President if he would like his change, to which he replied “Nah, we straight”. Even a man famous for his politically correct speech and grammar, the same man who was trusted enough to be given power over our entire country, understands the importance of code-switching and making people feel comfortable around you.

I code-switch, on a daily basis. I can even remember when it began. After my first summer at overnight camp, when my language began its transformation from a younger language to a more teenage language, I had started using more words that I had not used in the past. Some of these words were more vulgar than accepted today in public on a regular basis. So, my first experience with code-switching was hiding my newfound language from my parents and teachers. Now I have many different ways of speaking. I speak different ways with my parents; teachers; boss; school friends; school acquaintances; outside of school friends; boy friends; girl friends; strangers; and many more. My language, as with most kids my age, changes at least a little bit with almost everyone I talk to. The comfort level with that person changes. It does not matter whether I am the one that is uncomfortable or they are, but language is something that is meant to be manipulated for the best communication possible.

Furthermore, I believe that code-switching is a fundamental and even vital component of the human language. There are both social and professional benefits to changing the way in which you speak based on who you are speaking with. This is why code-switching is becoming more common throughout the world. It is important for people to feel comfortable throughout all of the different groups in their lives, and code-switching is they a way to stay connected to all of these groups at once.

Works Cited

Alvarez, Louis, and Andrew Kolker. "POV - PBS American Tongues." PBS. PBS, n.d. Web. 31 Oct. 2013.

Dem, Gene. "How Code-Switching Explains The World." NPR. NPR, n.d. Web. 31 Oct. 2013.

Nortier, Jacomine. "Code-switching Is Much More than Careless Mixing: Multilinguals Know the Rules!" Multilingual Living RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Oct. 2013.