Third Year Winner: Trilingually Tongue-Tied

WRIT 3730, Substantive Editing. CD: Dunja Baus.

Abstract

Delivered in an eloquent and captivating blend of prose and poetry, "Trilingually Tongue-tied" is a well-deserved winner that beautifully investigates the author's biracial identity and unique relationship with her two native languages, Arabic and Vietnamese. Told through a series of family situations, metaphors, and poems, the author immerses the reader in the isolation that happens when one can't communicate their mother tongue(s) fluently. The writer is stuck hearing the noise of languages, a space where they are curious to understand but frustrated due to her current translation abilities. Language is noise that has meaning—even when the meaning isn't so obvious— and " Trilingually Tongue-tied" is here to prove that.