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Tim Doner - hyperpolygot? | ||
Tags: Youtube Polyglot | Polyglot | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : Polyglots | ( Topic Closed) |  |
| patrickwilken Senior Member Germany radiant-flux.net Joined 4618 days ago 1546 posts - 3200 votes  Studies: German | Message 17 of 28 10 April 2013 at 10:45pm | IP Logged | ||
http://how-to-learn-any-language.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?T ID=30907&PN=2&TPN=1 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| tarvos Super Polyglot Winner TAC 2012 Senior Member China likeapolyglot.wordpr Joined 4792 days ago 5310 posts - 9399 votes Speaks: Dutch*, English, Swedish, French, Russian, German, Italian, Norwegian, Mandarin, Romanian, Afrikaans Studies: Greek, Modern Hebrew, Spanish, Portuguese, Czech, Korean, Esperanto, Finnish | Message 18 of 28 10 April 2013 at 11:13pm | IP Logged | ||
Just take media headlines with a grain of salt. He has a video where he speaks 20 languages, but he even prefaces by saying it that he does not speak some of them very well (he was referring to Wolof and Hausa in particular, and he says the same about Xhosa and Ojibwe). He is also public about his problems with Russian, for example. That the media turn "studied" into "speaks" because it sells better... well, that's the media. 3 persons have voted this message useful | |||
| patrickwilken Senior Member Germany radiant-flux.net Joined 4618 days ago 1546 posts - 3200 votes Studies: German | Message 19 of 28 10 April 2013 at 11:31pm | IP Logged | ||
But if he says "he does not speak some of them very well..." it does imply that he does claim to speak these languages (albeit not very well). I guess as I still don't say I speak German even though I am at a high B1 level, I just have a different understanding what "speaking a language" means. There are not right/wrong answers here, just some that are more or less interesting. I just don't think it's interesting if someone says they speak a language when they are at A1/A2. If that was a criteria I would list French (eight years at school) and Arabic (two years at university) on my list of languages as well as a bit of Lithuanian (which I learnt as a child from my mother). But I would feel like a complete fraud as I don't speak these languages. I am getting close to being able to say I speak (albeit badly) German, but that's at least another six months away. Even though now I know I could go into a random bar and strike up a random conversation with a stranger about pretty much anything. Edited by patrickwilken on 10 April 2013 at 11:32pm 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| tarvos Super Polyglot Winner TAC 2012 Senior Member China likeapolyglot.wordpr Joined 4792 days ago 5310 posts - 9399 votes Speaks: Dutch*, English, Swedish, French, Russian, German, Italian, Norwegian, Mandarin, Romanian, Afrikaans Studies: Greek, Modern Hebrew, Spanish, Portuguese, Czech, Korean, Esperanto, Finnish | Message 20 of 28 10 April 2013 at 11:35pm | IP Logged | ||
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High B1 means you can speak, just with errors. I am high B1 low B2 in Russian and nobody
would have problems claiming I spoke Russian, although not fluently. At that level in German I would be able to function marvelously as I would be able to understand close to everything and function pretty well. I also think that some of his languages are A2 but some of them, like French, are definitely more than B2. So it really does not matter in the end. He has a spread of languages that range from outliers to fluent. If you have studied 23 languages at age 17 and achieved quite good levels in 5 of them then I am impressed by any means, no matter what the media spins on it. Edited by tarvos on 10 April 2013 at 11:38pm 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| Kyle Corrie Senior Member United States Joined 4914 days ago 175 posts - 464 votes | Message 21 of 28 10 April 2013 at 11:44pm | IP Logged | ||
I don't know if I'd give them the entirety of the blame. He has a Youtube video entitled 'American Polyglot practicing 20 languages'. When that video was first uploaded it was called 'American polyglot speaking 20 languages" and then he changed it after criticism. So I'm sure he has no problem doting on his abilities to those who are unfamiliar with the subject. But again, as long as he doesn't try to start selling something while marketing the idea that he has some hidden language secret then I have no problem with whatever he says. 3 persons have voted this message useful | |||
| patrickwilken Senior Member Germany radiant-flux.net Joined 4618 days ago 1546 posts - 3200 votes Studies: German | Message 22 of 28 11 April 2013 at 1:21pm | IP Logged | ||
Function marvelously is all relative. I want to work here in Germany and high B1 is not functional for that. Yes. I can talk to people, and I can read slowly, but I am not functional at B1+. I certainly don't understand almost everything. At least not everything written. Anyway we just have different criteria for what it means to speak a language. I have no interest in claiming I can speak a language until I am functional in it. To be honest I don't think C1 is such a high level either. At least not by the standards for English C1 speakers I have seen; though I would certainly grant at C1 you can speak the language. Edited by patrickwilken on 11 April 2013 at 1:26pm 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| s_allard Triglot Senior Member Canada Joined 5515 days ago 2704 posts - 5425 votes Speaks: French*, English, Spanish Studies: Polish | Message 23 of 28 11 April 2013 at 1:58pm | IP Logged | ||
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As this discussion has illustrated, the notion of speaking a language is extremely elastic. I think that for most people around here if you can speak one other language very well with natives, you are doing very well.
What I find so intriguing about these media stories is that there is some sort of fascination with a large number of languages in young people and zero interest in the polyglot skills of older people. If someone learned, let's say 5 languages to a C1 level at age 65, I would be really impressed. In fact, when you look at how many people study languages and usually have very little to show for it, achieving a high level of proficiency as an adult is a major accomplishment. This is not meant to pooh-pooh the accomplishments of Tim. I just think that it makes for good news more than anything else. 5 persons have voted this message useful | |||
| morinkhuur Triglot Groupie Germany Joined 4762 days ago 79 posts - 157 votes Speaks: German*, Latin, English Studies: Spanish, Arabic (Written), Arabic (Egyptian), Arabic (Maghribi) | Message 24 of 28 11 April 2013 at 2:09pm | IP Logged | ||
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Here's a video of him speaking Farsi with a native
speaker. He seems to be quite fluent and his French and Arabic are also great. I think he's a remarkable language learner, and he doesn't fit the Moses McCormick category (i.e. quantity over quality) at all. Also he is very humble and realistic about his abilities. It always confuses me when people get angry at polyglots and accuse them of being a fraud right away without even looking. If it makes you angry that someone is better than you, then maybe you should focus more on your own studies than on other people. 7 persons have voted this message useful |
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