Jordan.

Jordan is a poet, playwrite, essayest, and a prof. of English at the U of California, Berkley. She is a talented writer with experience in teaching black English. She uses her talent to combine two stories. Her comunitive power and clarity of black english sets a great foundation for Willie Jordans story.

In the beginging of the story Jordan makes a reference to black english sticking out like a sour thumb in a country of standard english. By making this reference she is tring to get the reader to understand how awful it must feel for something so close to a person (their language) to alienate them.

On page 162 Willie is introduced he is a great student, does an independent study project, he goes above and beyond for the class. Next she goes over the rules of black english and how to inforce them. Then she gives alot of samples of student writing. Then the class finds out what happened to Reggie, Condolences are sent to the family. The class debates wether to use black or standard english. The Letter is ultimately written in black english... and is rejected. Some of the main issues in this paper are: should black english be taught or used, and racism is very real.

The author ties two stories together and ends the story with a bang. The story is told in first person, and there are many examples of student wriing. By using a class in school, and focusing on language the reader can associate and get personal with the story, She takes an activist role.