Hunger of Memory : The Education of Richard Rodriguez

I liked the book... my class not so much. This review is more for the teachers who want to teach the book. It is very relatable for my students, but it is so wordy. I actually had a student say that he mentions the same thing multiple times in different ways. But I enjoyed it. I will continue teaching it. I found a great unit pack on TPT that made teaching this SOOOOO easy.

When I started this book, I was not expecting him to take the stance that he takes on bilingual education. Richard has some very unique and valuable personal insights into the matter, as well as the beginnings of affirmative action in the education system. His writing style is vulnerable and honest, making it easy to find yourself sympathizing with him as he tells his story.

Great book, I am Mexican American and had to read this in college for an English class. Rodriguez is a very opinionated person and there may be things you don't agree with him, but over time throughout my college life I began to see his points, which I will spare the details. I recommend you read it because it gives a view on language barriers between Mexican Americans and white Americans here in the U.S as well as other topics that you may come across in classes in college and its a great reference to go back to.

This book explains the struggle of straddling two opposites. I can relate in some ways and as you read you can visually see the author going back and forth about who he is.

They say that English is one of the hardest languages to learn. However, it is much harder to navigate the language of culture, which Richard Rodriguez mastered well. Rodriguez's story plays out the same as way many second-generation Americans; he begins his educational career in parochial school, where he only knows 50 words of English. He is forced by Nuns to assimilate to American culture and learn the language, in doing so he leave some of his own Hispanic upbringing behind. His parents feel the pressure by Nuns as well, who insist that the Rodriguez's speak English at home. Rodriguez succeeds in school, goes to Stanford University, and begins a teaching career. He doesn't make himself visible in the Chicano studies program nor is he a supporter of Affirmative Action, which he feels designates persons of color as needing preferential treatment because they can't compete because of their race. Throughout his life he struggles to master remaining true to his roots, but understanding how his education leaves him out of touch from other Hispanics who never had the breaks Rodriguez had. As a first-generation college graduate I can relate to the struggles Rodriquez experienced, walking the line of relevancy of where you came from to realizing how distant you are from it. This book was an okay read, but left me wanting more.

Rodriguez peppers his autobiography with controversial political and religious claims, but his half-hearted attempts to appear objective make his view uncompelling. Consider the following: "There are people who tell me today that they are not religious because they consider religion to be an evasion of life. I hear them, their assurance, and do not bother to challenge their arrogance of a secular world which hasn't courage enough to accept the fact of old age. And death."Rodriguez at once wastes his excellent education and insults the secular world by evincing no argument to substantiate this extraordinary claim. He is saying, in other words, "I get you, atheists, nontheists, and antitheists, but you are not only wrong, but arrogant." Really? An ad hominem fallacy from an intellectual?Now, who is arrogant?Likewise, Rodriguez's evaluative claims about bilingual education and affirmative action are backed by little to no evidence. He cites an ill-defined distinction between "private" and "public" languages and magically pulls out other sweeping generalizations:"It is not possible for a child--any child--to use his family's language in school. Not to understand this is to misunderstand the public uses of schooling and to trivialize the nature of intimate life--a family's 'language'."Here, he takes it for granted that we know know his idiosyncratic use of the terms "private" and "public", that we know how they somehow warrant another startling universal claim, i.e., bilingualism in school is misguided and that "no child" can speak her family's language in school. And, of course, to Rodriguez, *anyone* who disagrees with his view on bilingualism does so on the basis of a "misunderstanding" of a concept that is to him implicitly too obvious to be defined.To be sure, Rodriguez writes in his prologue that his book is "necessarily political." As such, we as readers expect him to give less rhetoric and more substance unless he is to abandon the political arguments. Rodriguez's editor would probably agree with us. "'Why do you spend so much time on abstract issues? Nobody's going to remember affirmative action in another twenty-five years. The strength of this manuscript is in the narrative. You should write your book in series--not as a series of essays. Let's have more grandma.'"Rodriguez's attempt to fuse the political with the autobiographical was ambitious and commendatory, and I do not claim that it can't be done. But if the author could write only one but not both, then yes--let's have more grandma.

A beautifully written book by a sad man alienated from his family, his past, and ultimately, himself.The son of immigrants, Rodríguez believes that the only option for minorities is to "assimilate" (that is, live up to the majority's expectations and standards), and he thinks the only way to do that is by turning away from one's past and heritage. He also seems to think that racism (at least towards brown people) is mostly a matter of class and education.I disagree with all of his conclusions, but I admit that I enjoyed his writing and sympathized with his sorrow.

This book was introduced to me by one of my English Teachers. Rodriquez offers a fascinating perspective that some of us non-native American speakers can relate to. This experience has a hidden but major impact on Rodriquez's life and occurs between the time of transition from his Spanish speaking life into the public language of English. As Rodriguez's progresses through his life, he makes us contemplate the effect of the public language into his Education and how it distanced his intimate relation with his parents.

I bought it for a friend's birthday present. I haven't read this but I admire the writer.