When we think of war, what might pop into mind are men in uniforms shooting at one another. That's a part of it, of course. But war is also about language and communication. The Americans couldn't have won World War II if they weren't able to communicate and organize their military strategy in an effective way.
Chester Nez's Code Talker shows us how World War II was as much a battle over language and communication as it was over territory and power. Without the Navajo code that Chester and his buddies developed, it's likely that the Americans would have lost the Pacific to the Japanese. But language and communication are also important in this book because they hint at Chester's own identity as a guy with each foot in a different world: one in the mainstream "Anglo" American world, and the other is in the Navajo world.
Questions About Language and Communication
- How do Chester's two languages embody the conflict between his Navajo and his "Anglo" cultures?
- In what ways is the military code that Chester and the code talkers develop a bridge between Chester's two worlds—Navajo and "Anglo"?
- How is Chester's "oral" Navajo culture—with its emphasis on oral storytelling—useful for his work as a Marine code talker?
- In what ways does the book suggest that war is as much a battle over communication as it is over territory?
Chew on This
Language functions as a bridge between Chester's two cultures in the book. Discuss.
Language represents the conflict between Chester's two cultures in the book. Discuss.