Impact of language studies on worldview? (General discussion) Language Learning Forum

Impact of language studies on worldview?
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Language Learning Forum : General discussion

30 messages over 4 pages: 1 2 3 4

pmiller
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Canada
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Message 25 of 30

13 May 2009 at 10:04am | IP Logged

maya_star17 wrote:

EDIT: Oh, and obviously learning Japanese has impacted me as well. I don't read newspapers in Japanese (yet), but learning about the culture and talking to natives has made me question many of the things I've grown up taking for granted.

Would love to hear more about this...could you please elaborate?
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!LH@N
Triglot
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Germany
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Speaks: German, Turkish*, English
Studies: Serbo-Croatian, Spanish

Message 26 of 30

13 May 2009 at 10:48am | IP Logged

Louis wrote:

Well, when I was trying to decide on which language to learn, I spent a couple weeks learning the basics of Russian. I also subscribed to the RussiaToday Youtube channel and watch the videos daily. Seeing things from this Russian perspective has given me insight into events happening in that region that I would certainly not have heard about from the American media. I also watch all the interviews with Putin and frequently bring up events in Russian politics to my AP US Government class, thus earning the nickname "Comrade Louis!"

You have AP US Government? I did have it, too, two years ago. And I loved it! Of course, being a foreigner and highly influenced from social-democraticy in Germany, I had a somewhat more liberal and "more cosmopolitan/world-citizen" kind of opinion. And I did like to compare the different cultures and political systems I knew. For me it was very helpful!

Regards,
Ilhan
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Grammaticus
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Norway
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Speaks: French^C2, Norwegian*, English^C2, German^C2, Italian, Russian

Message 27 of 30

18 June 2009 at 6:14pm | IP Logged

cordelia0507 wrote:

In the English speaking world there is certainly a lot of negative reporting concerning countries as varied as France and China (and everything in between). How do you feel about this in light of your language studies?

Or perhaps you are not an English speaker and you changed your view on the US or Britain after becoming fluent in English?

An example: After I started to study Russian, I naturally started taking an interest in media reports concerning Russia. After a while I was in no doubt at all that British media "has it in for Russia" big time.. I found this unfair and started looking for the other side of the story.

Has anybody else found that their language studies have made them see the world from a different perspective, or challenge prevailing views on the speakers of the language that you are learning? What was your experience?

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Grammaticus
Hexaglot
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Norway
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Message 28 of 30

18 June 2009 at 6:37pm | IP Logged

An example: After I started to study Russian, I naturally started taking an interest in media reports concerning Russia. After a while I was in no doubt at all that British media "has it in for Russia" big time.. I found this unfair and started looking for the other side of the story.

Couldn't agree more. IMO reading russian is a must for getting a proper understanding of the country. Comparative reading of western and russian papers on the same news stories is a very rewarding experience. To get a proper view of for example the recent war in Georgia, the gas conflicts or the "history wars" in the former USSR, reading russian together with other languages is essential. It's also very interesting to notice that even though very few "anti-russian" books get translated to russian, the opposite certainly holds true of books available on Russia in Europe (even in major libraries, you'll have a hard time finding more than three books on Russia translated from russian). It's not just a matter of language or censorship (whether formal or informal the results can be just the same) : Most people read to get a confirmation of opinions they already hold, not to change them. If you vote for the left, you usually don't read right-wing newspapers and vice-versa. So in Russia people expect books on for example US foreign policy to bash the US government. And in the west a pro-russian book would sell poorly and wouldn't be taken seriously.
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Lizzern
Diglot
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Norway
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Studies: Japanese

Message 29 of 30

24 June 2009 at 5:06pm | IP Logged

pmiller wrote:

By the second generation they are already 100% American. We accept and integrate people better than just about any other country, certainly better than the (still) tribal countries of Europe, where you can NEVER really become German, or English or Swedish, let alone Japanese, Chinese or Arab.

Not to start a huge debate or anything, but the 2nd generation immigrants in European countries commonly grow up integrated in the society they're living in unless their parents actively work against it and adults are integrated to the degree that they put in the effort. I know several people who are ethnically not the slightest bit Norwegian, but who are just as Norwegian than me, if not more. Yes some of them keep in touch with their origins but that doesn't make them any less a part of the country whose culture they're currently immersed in.

People in the US seem to view nationality in a very different way, for historical reasons I guess, so being American is something that can be 'handed out' when earned so to speak (as I see it) whereas on this side of the pond, yeah maybe we see it as something that becomes part of you in your upbringing and is not easily changed, but that doesn't make us any less integrative. Also, I don't think most people here would feel the need to go and change their nationality.

I'm in my 20s and if I moved to the US today and never set foot in Norway again, 50 years from now I would still be Norwegian... Could I 'become' American? You might say yes - I would say no. Just different ways of seeing things.

Liz
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Lemus
Diglot
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United States
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Speaks: English*, Spanish
Studies: Japanese, Russian, German

Message 30 of 30

25 June 2009 at 6:45am | IP Logged

pmiller wrote:

But here's the thing: the US media also bashes the US more than any other country. Yeah, it's very strange - the US media criticize our own government more than it criticizes all other governments put together. Not only our media, but also most teachers and professors, from middle school through grad school. This is because both media and academia (and the Hollywood movie industry) are dominated by leftists, and leftists blame America first for every problem in the world, every time. The basic viewpoint is that "the US is just a bunch of ignorant, racist, hypocritical white men who want to conquer everybody and pillage their land and resources."

It's important for non-Americans to keep this in perspective. Although the media and acadamia does tend to tilt left, there are still many right wing voices in both places. No American accuses Fox News or the Wall Street Journal of a hidden leftist agenda. And there are no major newspapers or TV stations who are universally sladering the US like that implies (though definitly some in academia). They do criticize the US most, but they also report on it most. If they decided to report exclusively on Mongolia tommorow, Mongolia would get the most criticism.

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