Public and Private Language: A Bilingual Experience

“Mother and Father; Ma, Papa, Pa, Dad, Pop (how I hated the all-American sound of that last word especially)—all these terms I felt were unsuitable, not really terms of address for my parents. As a result, I never used them at home. Whenever I’d speak to my parents, I would try to get their attention with eye contact alone. In public conversations, I’d refer to “my parents” or “my mother and father.” (Rodriquez, 15)

Public and private languages have their own identities and uses, and vary according to lifestyle and background. For those who are bilingual and do not share the American culture, public and private language become even more distinct and clearly separated. Furthermore, both the distinguishing factors and the uses of public and private language are determined by the individual which means that the public and private language of one person will not be used in the same way as another person. Culture, lifestyles, and upbringing all play a role in the use of public and private language.

The first language a child learns is private language. This is the language spoken within the household among close family. The private language is the first defining language of an individual. As children develop, the language spoken within the household becomes imprinted into their own language. Siblings speak and behave in similar manors due to the private language that they learn, however they are never exactly the same. The reason for this is that everyone has different ways in which they learn and develop. While viewing the same thing, one person’s perspective will be different from the second person’s perspective and that perspective will be completely different from the third. Even though the object being viewed by all three is the same, the way that it is interpreted and seen is transformed into three separate entities. Therefore private language is capable of having multiple uses and personalities based upon the individuals that use it.

Public language is a completely different form of expression and communication than private language. When children attend school for the first time and are exposed to public life, they begin to learn and develop their own public form of speaking. Public language is initially derived from private language yet is molded by the private languages of other individuals. At the same time, children begin expressing themselves as themselves, meaning that they begin forming their own identities that are separated from their family’s identities. Public language is built upon the foundation of private language and is shaped by personality, culture, and environment.

The American culture is a strange phenomenon. Multiple cultures are exposed to one another yet they do not combine. Instead the various cultures attempt to push their own agendas onto the other cultures. Some mixing of language does occur, yet the individual never fully gives up the characteristics acquired through private language. The amount that an individual absorbs and regurgitates of another culture is dependent upon personality and character. Yet at the same time, what an individual absorbs and shows in public is still going to be entirely different than what is seen at home. Although a child has obtained a new public identity, when the child returns home it is automatically replaced with the original private self. Parents play a key role in this public to private transformation. Since parents are the original teachers and source of their children’s heritage, the children feel compelled not to show them what they have learned through public language.