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Slang in Assimil | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : Language Programs, Books & Tapes |  | |
| kanewai Triglot Senior Member United States justpaste.it/kanewai Joined 4891 days ago 1386 posts - 3054 votes  Speaks: English*, French, Marshallese Studies: Italian, Spanish | Message 1 of 13 08 August 2012 at 10:08pm | IP Logged | |||||
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I usually ignore the chapters in Assimil that are heavy with slang and idioms. I'll do
them, but I won't try too hard; I have a hard time believing that any textbook can teach that kind of language. I wondered whether I should keep a more open mind - and then I saw this over the weekend on the Assimil website and had to share:
For the non-Americans, I don't think anyone has called a woman a 'total dime' outside of 1940's film noir, and I have no idea what they mean when they say people in Boston speak with an 'air pincé.' The whole blurb reminds me of adults who try to speak 'hip' to kids. It just doesn't work. Is Assimil this much 'off' when they use French slang?
Edited by kanewai on 08 August 2012 at 10:15pm 1 person has voted this message useful | ||||||
| Serpent Octoglot Senior Member Russian Federation serpent-849.livejour Joined 6599 days ago 9753 posts - 15779 votes 4 sounds Speaks: Russian*, English, FinnishC1, Latin, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese Studies: Danish, Romanian, Polish, Belarusian, Ukrainian, Croatian, Slovenian, Catalan, Czech, Galician, Dutch, Swedish | Message 2 of 13 08 August 2012 at 10:33pm | IP Logged | |||||
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I'd rather use the wrong kind of slang than sound hilariously formal/bookish.
3 persons have voted this message useful | ||||||
| Chung Diglot Senior Member Joined 7158 days ago 4228 posts - 8259 votes 20 sounds Speaks: English*, French Studies: Polish, Slovak, Uzbek, Turkish, Korean, Finnish | Message 3 of 13 08 August 2012 at 10:46pm | IP Logged | |||||
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I'd rather do the opposite. A foreigner seems to be more easily forgiven by the natives when he/she sounds excessively formal rather than with outdated slang or slang that's inappropriate to the target audience (e.g. "pissed" means different things depending on which side of the pond you're on)
Somehow a foreigner saying that an attractive woman is "a total dime" raises my eyebrows more than saying that she is "very comely". Edited by Chung on 08 August 2012 at 10:53pm 6 persons have voted this message useful | ||||||
| tractor Tetraglot Senior Member Norway Joined 5455 days ago 1349 posts - 2292 votes Speaks: Norwegian*, English, Spanish, Catalan Studies: French, German, Latin | Message 4 of 13 08 August 2012 at 10:57pm | IP Logged | |||||
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One of the nice aspects of Assimil is that it teaches informal language in addition to the formal language you'll find in many other courses. Although you risk picking up some expressions that are outdated, you'll be better prepared for the way "real" people actually talk and not only the kind of language a newsreader form the 1950s would use.
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| Julie Heptaglot Senior Member PolandRegistered users can see my Skype Name Joined 6905 days ago 1251 posts - 1733 votes 5 sounds Speaks: Polish*, EnglishB2, GermanC2, SpanishB2, Dutch, Swedish, French | Message 5 of 13 08 August 2012 at 11:02pm | IP Logged | |||||
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Personally, I wouldn't use such books to learn (actively) slang although I might read
them once or twice to be able to recognize some expressions (passively) later on. I actually went through a book of this kind once for German, and it was an interesting reading. For active use, I prefer to get a lot of input. After having watched hours of American TV series I don't really struggle to understand colloquial language or to use it. If there is something new I just look it up or google it. urbandictionary.com is also quite useful. This method worked when my English was much weaker, too. The good thing about it is that I learn expressions that are really used (well, if the script is well-written). I do struggle to understand many colloquial expressions in British English but again, it's a matter of input. This should work for any language although it may be harder if there are huge differences between standard and colloquial language (which I don't think is the case of English). //All corrections of my English are welcome and very much appreciated. Send me a PM, please.// 1 person has voted this message useful | ||||||
| Serpent Octoglot Senior Member Russian Federation serpent-849.livejour Joined 6599 days ago 9753 posts - 15779 votes 4 sounds Speaks: Russian*, English, FinnishC1, Latin, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese Studies: Danish, Romanian, Polish, Belarusian, Ukrainian, Croatian, Slovenian, Catalan, Czech, Galician, Dutch, Swedish | Message 6 of 13 08 August 2012 at 11:34pm | IP Logged | |||||
I can see this changing with age, though :) I'm 22. Also, imo correct grammar+wrong slang sounds like a higher level of skills than when your speech is too formal. Especially if it's formal vocab+incorrect grammar. Besides, native speakers will hesitate to correct things that sound odd if they're not sure what the rule is/whether it's "officially" considered right or not, and they'll likely err on the side of prescriptiveness even if they'd never say this themselves... Whie wrong slang will always be pointed out, even if not always "corrected". Entirely agree with Julie about input, though. 2 persons have voted this message useful | ||||||
| Julie Heptaglot Senior Member PolandRegistered users can see my Skype Name Joined 6905 days ago 1251 posts - 1733 votes 5 sounds Speaks: Polish*, EnglishB2, GermanC2, SpanishB2, Dutch, Swedish, French | Message 7 of 13 08 August 2012 at 11:59pm | IP Logged | |||||
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I think I'm on Chung's side here. I believe it is always better to sound a bit too formal
than not formal enough (the same applies to clothes at work ;)). Excessively formal is obviously not good, though. Generally, I prefer to stick to the standard until I get the "feeling" for a given language and its registers. 3 persons have voted this message useful | ||||||
| PillowRock Groupie United States Joined 4736 days ago 87 posts - 151 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Spanish | Message 8 of 13 09 August 2012 at 12:44am | IP Logged | |||||
I think that you're setting up a false dichotomy. Those aren't the only two choices. Using a relatively slang free, standard form of a language is light years away from "hilariously formal". Outdated slang and idioms sound every bit as hilarious to native speakers as excessive formality, often even more so; and slang tends to become dated much more quickly than "standard" usages. 4 persons have voted this message useful |
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