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Richness of learned languages | ||
Tags: Reading | ||
 Language Learning Forum : Books, Literature & Reading |  | |
| platypodes Newbie United States Joined 5090 days ago 4 posts - 5 votes Speaks: English* Studies: French | Message 1 of 6 17 June 2010 at 12:42am | IP Logged |
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When you guys read in your non-native languages do you associate images with each word, like you do while reading your native language? At least for me, every English word evokes abstract pictures in my mind which lets me interact with the written language on a deeper level than just understanding the literal meaning of text. For example, when I read a couple lines of poetry like
"I'm a riddle in nine syllables, An elephant, a ponderous house, A melon strolling on two tendrils." the words carry so many connotations and imagery with them. When I read something in French, though, this is almost entirely absent. Maybe I haven't been reading enough? But when the imagery does come, it's because some word sounds like an equivalent English word. Does this property just come after lots of exposure to writing in a certain language? 2 persons have voted this message useful | |
| ReneeMona Diglot Senior Member Netherlands Joined 5117 days ago 864 posts - 1274 votes  Speaks: Dutch*, EnglishC2 Studies: French | Message 2 of 6 17 June 2010 at 1:08am | IP Logged |
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I think it comes with exposure, although your native language will always feel the most natural to you, at least that's how it's worked out for me. No matter how well I understand English and now matter how comfortable I am speaking and writing in it, there is always a little distance between me and the language that's not there when I speak Dutch. It's not a bad thing and I hardly even notice it apart from when I switch from one to the other in conversation but it is there and I don't think it will ever go away.
When I read French there is also a distance that's a lot more noticeable but at the same time I feel like I'm starting to internalize the language as in when I read a word that I know, neither the Dutch nor the English translation pops into my mind but I just know what the word means in a more abstract way. Edited by ReneeMona on 17 June 2010 at 12:05pm 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| luhmann Senior Member Brazil Joined 5115 days ago 156 posts - 271 votes Speaks: Portuguese* Studies: Mandarin, French, English, Italian, Spanish, Persian, Arabic (classical) | Message 3 of 6 17 June 2010 at 2:35am | IP Logged |
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Reading or listening, either in my native languages or in a second languages, does not, most of the time, elicit any kind of visual imagery to me -- though I can more or less consciously bring them about.
I suppose it is just a matter of habit -- you have trained yourself to read English like that, and you could probably build image associations for French too, with enough practice. 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| parasitius Diglot Senior Member United States Joined 5780 days ago 220 posts - 323 votes Speaks: English*, Mandarin Studies: Cantonese, Polish, Spanish, French | Message 4 of 6 17 June 2010 at 2:59am | IP Logged |
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I think it comes down to life experiences that gave the essences of those words their deeper meaning. Perhaps you went to a zoo as a child and heard the names of those animals in your native language and thus the living, breathing creature is IN essence and experience identical to the experience of the phonemes entering your ears. If you have a life experience first in the new language, the word for the concept in that language will be closer to your heart. Just use some lame English 'relationship' terminology around me and watch my boredom. (My pet peeve has to be the different concepts of "in love with" vs "love") On the other hand, when I read a story about a horrible break-up in Chinese though -- man, that stuff makes me have to hold back the tears.
I know your question is talking about reading :) Let's just say a lot of the important events in my life happen over text messages in Chinese, so, I think there is no difference written/spoken form of your L2. 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| Sennin Senior Member Bulgaria Joined 5816 days ago 1457 posts - 1759 votes 5 sounds | Message 5 of 6 17 June 2010 at 7:36pm | IP Logged |
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I build pictures in my mind regardless of the language, but not for every separate word. I build an overall picture, individual words don't necessarily invoke images.
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| BartoG Diglot Senior Member United States confession Joined 5229 days ago 292 posts - 818 votes Speaks: English*, French Studies: Italian, Spanish, Latin, Uzbek | Message 6 of 6 19 June 2010 at 9:56pm | IP Logged |
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You may be reading the wrong things. When I started reading literature - in my own language! - I had no idea why the sky was always azure, when everywhere else it's blue. But if I liked the poem, it didn't bother me. And if I didn't, the fact the sky was azure, instead of boring old blue, just wasn't enough to save it for me. Likewise, if I find a clever story, cleverly told, the author's use of clever words will intrigue me and I'll look up any unknown words. But a boring story filled with clever words is just tedious.
By reading and reading and reading, eventually, I noticed that oaks are always strong or mighty and willows are always weeping. This stuff sinks in. But the focus, for me, is unquestionably on the story; the words aren't there to be special; they're there to add up to a story or poem and either they do the job or they don't. Sennin, above, builds pictures, but not for every word. This is the way to go. Read stories or poems you think you'll like, and imagine the action in flowing ideas. After awhile, you'll have a sense of which words show up with which pictures, just as I eventually caught on about those azure skies. I would emphasize again the importance of reading stuff that will intrigue you. Often, people read things in a foreign language that they'd never bother with in translation. When they do this, they think it's the lack of language understanding that keeps them from feeling anything. In reality, they might not feel anything even if they understood every word and its every connotation. 1 person has voted this message useful |
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