Courtney Martin

Engl 6340
9/18/2014
Learning English: First steps to assimilation as seen through Nicholasa Mohrs The
English Lesson and Bernard Malamuds The German Refugee
Language acquisition is the first step to assimilation for immigrants to the United States.
This both practical and figurative step into a new society transforms an individuals relationship
with the world around her. Learning English is not just a matter of decoding an alphabet,
learning vocabulary, and hearing subtleties of accent. For immigrant students, the seemingly
straightforward taskis imbued with the weight of a social and political complexity that goes far
beyond simply the matter of acquiring a second language (Olsen). The additional context of
social and political complexity that lends further importance to language acquisition creates
difficulty in maintaining ones own identity in the face of a socially enforced and imposed racial
identity (Waters 201). Different languages, and indeed accents, help to impose these enforced
identities. Learning English in the U.S. begins the process of assimilation and changes the
immigrants personal identity. Within Nicholasa Mohrs The English Lesson and Bernard
Malamuds The German Refugee, this struggle with identity and language can be seen in
different contexts.
There is a forced loss of identity in The German Refugee. Oskar knows who he is; at
least he did when he had his career and life in Germany. He continues to wear the clothes of his
past and refuses to change. One sees this when the narrator points out that no matter the heat,
Oskar still wears his German hat and coat (Malamud 40). The war and circumstances in
Germany have forced him to relocate. In the United States, he no longer possesses his German
identity and language, but he has not yet made the transition to English and the American

identity. He struggles with his new surroundings and especially the new language because these
do not match his idea of self. He states to the narrator, I have lozt faith. I do notnot longer
possezz my former value of myself (Malamud 42). Part of his being unable to value himself
stems from his inability to express himself in either language, German or English. He cannot
express himself because he is caught between the two cultures. Oskar states, It is a paralysis of
my will. The whole legture is clear in my mind, but the minute I write down a single workor in
English or in GermanI have a terrible fear I will not be able to write the negst (Malamud 42).
He has lost that which he felt made up his identity and because he was forced to leave it behind,
he has no hope that he will regain it. Neither language will allow him to recapture his identity,
his voice, because he is stuck between the two sides. For Oskar, the great loss was the loss of
language (Malamud 38). His struggle to learn English paralyses him because it forces him to
change his identity. The reality is that Oskar needed to make a choice between German and
American but could not neglect his previous identity in favor of a new one. It is a problem many
immigrants face. As immigrants begin to understand this reality, they face difficult choices.
Being caught between two language worlds often leads to silence, and then an increasingly
frantic determination to learn English (Olsen). Oskars frantic determination to learn English
could not negate his feeling of having lost his voice and led to his final silence.
In The English Lesson, William and Lali too must look at their identities differently via
the lens of learning English. When one speaks a language or is from a particular country or
culture, certain assumed characteristics are thrust upon the person. People are lumped together
by similar features, such as language. Aldo Fabrizi, an Italian, does just this to William and
Diego Torres when he asks, You the same like him, what do you think? (Mohr 32). Though
Diego and William both speak Spanish, one is from Puerto Rico and the other is from Dominican

Republic. William is a U.S. citizen and Diego is not, yet Fabrizi asks William to explain why
Diego does not want to be a U.S. citizen. Because they both speak Spanish, their identities are
thrown together causing each to lose a bit of themselves. In addition, Mrs. Hamma enforces a
society standard within the classroom. She controls the classroom and how the students are
perceived by others and themselves. Like the American culture beyond the classroom, Mrs.
Hammas control over the situation gave her a pleasing thrill (Mohr 24). She enforces her will
upon the class as the American culture seeps into the identities of each of the class members.
Most of the class members seem to worry about fitting in to the American culture: Dios mioI
feel so foolish, and my accent is terrible! (Mohr 28). Lali shows the signs here of a competent
person who questions her own intelligence because of struggles with a new language. Using
English becomes imperative-a protection against the embarrassment and shame of using their
home language. They feel they must either use English or be silent. And facing that choice is a
painful part of the transition to U.S. life (Olsen). For William and Lali, though they feel the
sting of changing identity, they also have each other. This fellowship allows them to hang on to
pieces of themselves and even rejoice in the differences. William and Lali broke into
uncontrollable laughteroblivious to the scene they created for the people who stared and
pointed at them (Mohr 34). But no matter ones strength in the face of cultural pressure, being
stared and pointed at will take its toll on an individuals perception of self.
Identity and language are intertwined, particularly when one ventures to live in a culture
where a different language prevails. Immigrants face many obstacles when faced with fitting in
with the American culture. They start out with hope and determination. They learn
discouragement as they learn English (Olsen). A part of this discouragement comes from losing
a part of ones identity. Laurie Olsen uses her own research material about an Afghani girl

living in the United Sates: My language was part of me. I wanted so much to be American and
to speak English, but I never knew I would lose my language. I feel so sad. I used to think about
maybe going back to Afghanistan after the war. Will I get my language back? (qt in Olsen).
This girl was 13 when she left Afghanistan, yet she has forgotten much of her Farsi language.
She states what many immigrants to the U.S. feel: My language was part of me. If this is true,
then any change in ones language results in a change to oneself.

Works Cited
Malamud, Bernard. The German Refugee. Imagining America: Stories from the Promised Land. Ed.
Wesley Brown and Amy Ling. Revised ed. New York: Perssea, 2002. 35-46. Print.
Mohr, Nicholasa. The English Lesson. Imagining America: Stories from the Promised Land. Ed.
Wesley Brown and Amy Ling. Revised ed. New York: Perssea, 2002. 21-34. Print.
Olsen, Laurie. "Learning English and Learning America: Immigrants in the Center of a Storm." Theory
into Practice 39.4 (2000): 196. ProQuest. Web. 18 Sep. 2014.
Waters, Mary. Optional Ethnicities: For Whites Only?