Insensitive Tongue: How American English Mocked Cultures Into Language
An Investigation into Borrowed Words, Power, and Prejudice
Introduction — The Language of Power
• The paradox of American English: enriched by immigrant and minority languages, yet often dismissive of them.
• Everyday phrases that feel “normal” but have mocking or colonial roots.
• The central question: Can a language built on insensitivity become more just?
Part I — The Mocking Origins of Common Phrases
Chapter 1 — “No Can Do”
• Origins in mocking Chinese immigrants’ English.
• The context of 19th-century anti-Chinese sentiment (railroads, exclusion acts).
• How it became normalized slang.
Chapter 2 — “Long Time No See”
• Early use in caricaturing Chinese and Native American speech.
• Reinforcement of stereotypes of “broken English.”
• How humor encoded prejudice into daily talk.
Chapter 3 — “Gung Ho”
• Taken from Chinese (工合, “work together”), then repurposed by U.S. Marines.
• Transformation from cooperative spirit to militaristic zeal.
• Example of appropriation stripped from cultural nuance.
Chapter 4 — Other Borrowings with Bite
• “Hooligan” (Irish), “mumbo jumbo” (West African), “powwow” (Native American), “guru” (Indian), “gypped” (Roma).
• Each case as both borrowing and distortion.
• How humor, military, and colonial contact accelerated these adoptions.
Part II — Language as a Weapon of Insensitivity
Chapter 5 — Linguistic Mockery in American Culture
• Minstrel shows, Hollywood caricatures, and comedy routines.
• Mock dialects in print, film, and cartoons.
• The role of humor in normalizing prejudice.
Chapter 6 — English as the Dominant Tongue
• How power dynamics shape which borrowings “stick.”
• Contrast with words borrowed respectfully (e.g., culinary, luxury terms from French).
• Double standards in cultural valuation.
Chapter 7 — The Silence of the Borrowed
• Why original speakers’ voices are erased.
• Consequences for Chinese, Native American, African, and immigrant communities.
• The persistence of stereotypes through language.
Part III — Consequences and Reflections
Chapter 8 — Identity and Stigma
• Internalized shame and generational trauma.
• Case studies: Chinese American resistance, Native linguistic revival.
• Why words matter in shaping belonging.
Chapter 9 — Language, Racism, and Policy
• How linguistic prejudice fueled exclusion laws, segregation, and cultural erasure.
• Examples from schools, courts, and immigration offices.
• “Accent discrimination” as modern continuation.
Chapter 10 — The Hidden Curriculum of English
• What students learn when phrases with racist/insensitive roots are taught uncritically.
• The normalization of mockery as “neutral.”
• Implications for education and multicultural respect.
Part IV — Reclaiming Language
Chapter 11 — Can Phrases Be Redeemed?
• The debate: separate words from their origins, or retire them?
• When reclamation works (e.g., “queer”) vs. when harm lingers.
• Voices from affected communities.
Chapter 12 — Toward Linguistic Sensitivity
• Practical steps for awareness and alternatives.
• How institutions (schools, media, government) can model change.
• Language reform as cultural healing.
Chapter 13 — America’s Future English
• English as a global language: will sensitivity shape its future?
• The promise of multilingualism and pluralism.
• Reimagining American English not as mockery, but as respect.
Conclusion — From Mockery to Respect
• Words carry history, whether acknowledged or not.
• Recognizing harm is the first step toward responsibility.
• A call to reshape American English as a language of dignity, not derision.
