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Alexander Arguelles’s Korean program | ||
Tags: Alexander Arguelles | Korean | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : Language Programs, Books & Tapes |  | |
| braveb Senior Member United States languageprograms.blo Joined 6985 days ago 264 posts - 263 votes  Speaks: English* Studies: German, French | Message 1 of 6 08 April 2006 at 8:24am | IP Logged |
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Has anyone tried this program? It seems to be a reasonably priced set of language tapes and text.
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| virgule Senior Member Antarctica Joined 6628 days ago 242 posts - 261 votes Studies: Korean | Message 2 of 6 13 April 2006 at 7:05am | IP Logged |
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I have tried it.
My impression is that on its own, for a complete beginner, the book is a bit steep. As the title suggests, the book is keen to communicate the culture, too. This basically means that the texts are modified versions of Korean stories. This is sort of nice, but has the disadvantage of introducing vocabulary that may not be the most useful to you. You will also learn some hanja (Chinese characters), but this should not put you off. Instead, I thought that this was an additional motivation, and hanja really can help you understand words better. The tapes contain all the dialogues, and some of the exercises. They are of reasonable quality. A key strength of the book, in my opinion, is the grammar section. Again, as a complete beginner, it might be quite steep; but the points are well explained. Like with any other book I have tried, I would have loved more exercises (it does have exercises on all the points introduced). If you are foremost interested in daily communication, maybe there are other books that will help you achieve this quicker. However, if you really want to understand the language, I would definitely recommend it. 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| virgule Senior Member Antarctica Joined 6628 days ago 242 posts - 261 votes Studies: Korean | Message 3 of 6 13 August 2006 at 6:07pm | IP Logged |
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I have received a request for further information on this book. This book doesn't seem to be a major player in the small market for Korean books, but it is actually not bad.
The basic outline: introduction (Korean language) p.9 pronunciation practice p.28 basic grammar p.47 20 lessons divided into 2 sections p. 54 answer key to exercises p.245 index to grammar patters p/272 index of hanja p.276 glossary p.279 I consider it a bit too steep for beginners, but if you are anything like me, then this won't be your only or first book. There are tapes to go with the book, but I found the tapes rather dry. The tapes cover all sounds of the Korean language, and this really means all of them. The whole first section is dedicated to sounds, and this section is much more thorough than I have seen anywhere else. If you are interested in this (e.g. you're a linguist in disguise) then this alone may make the purchase worth it. Writing practice accompanies the introduction of sounds. The tapes include the whole alphabet chart (가 갸 거 ... 쩌 쬐) and there is lots of pronunciation practice (about 16 pages). This is actually the only book where an effort is made to differentiate between voiced and voiceless pronunciation. It's also the only book I have used where double consonants are dealt with, or there is a section on liquidization (sound assimilation). To my liking, there should maybe be some more examples or even exercises on the difficult ㅂ, ㅃ, and ㅍ (etc.) sounds... The cultural bit in the title really comes to the fore when it comes to the selection of dialogues and texts: rather than pseudo-dialogues, simplified and short versions of real Korean stories are used in many places. I think this gives the book a nice touch, but comes with its downsides, too. There are a number of words and expressions that you will come across that you may not use for another few years again (my guess). Some specialist terms are needed to tell the stories included... On the other hand, your Korean friends will be impressed if you know about their folk tales, or even can sing Arirang with them... The first two lessons, to give an example, are about a children's rhyme; not the common "hello, my name is" dialogue. Grammar can be explained easily, but in terms of real-life use, I'm not sure when I'm going to talk about monkeys next time. The grammar notes are thorough, unlike the superficial treatments I came across in other books. Every lesson includes a cultural note, some short, others long. Lesson 10 and 20 are revision lessons. In contrast to other book, I really felt like I worked when going through this book. The cultural texts at times were interesting, although not new to me. In a way they gave me a sense of achievement; somehow having read a real story. On the other hand, I was always left with the feeling that maybe this is not so useful when it comes to talking to Koreans... I would not advise that anyone buy this book if this is the only book they use. When used in conjunction with other books, this one may be helpful. Maybe after (nearly) completing an introductory text? I have worked through this book after having studied on and off for a while, and many points in terms of pronunciation and grammar became much clearer. In terms of fluency I am still looking... Details from the Publisher 6 persons have voted this message useful | |
| miKonnen Bilingual Diglot Groupie Canada mikonnen.blogsp Joined 6639 days ago 54 posts - 57 votes Speaks: English*, Cantonese* Studies: French, Mandarin | Message 4 of 6 14 August 2006 at 12:20am | IP Logged |
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Thank you very much, virgule, for the detailed analysis of this textbook. I guess this book is for people who not only want to learn the Korean language, but practically become as culturally Korean as possible.
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| virgule Senior Member Antarctica Joined 6628 days ago 242 posts - 261 votes Studies: Korean | Message 5 of 6 14 August 2006 at 5:07am | IP Logged |
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It is still a language book... It's probably best suited for people who want a thorough background that helps them really understand what is going on (and not just want to speak).
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| Captain Haddock Diglot Senior Member Japan kanjicabinet.tumblr. Joined 6556 days ago 2282 posts - 2814 votes Speaks: English*, Japanese Studies: French, Korean, Ancient Greek | Message 6 of 6 14 August 2006 at 5:46am | IP Logged |
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No CD edition, eh? I have no way of playing tapes at my house.
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