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TAC 2013: Korean & Arabic | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : Language Learning Log |  | |
| Haksaeng Senior Member Korea, South Joined 5987 days ago 166 posts - 250 votes  Speaks: English* Studies: Korean, Arabic (Levantine) | Message 49 of 51 01 August 2013 at 10:36pm | IP Logged |
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It took me twice as long as I anticipated, but I finally finished reading my first Korean novel, 엄마를 부탁해 by 신경숙. Having the English translation on hand helped me to persevere and read the entire novel though it was really too hard for me.
I used the English translation extensively, page by page. I'd read the Korean page or paragraph first and then switch over to the other book and read it in English. I couldn't have gotten through it otherwise. My ability to read and understand the Korean improved noticeably over the course of the book. When I first started I could rarely read ten pages a day (my goal at the outset) and even if I managed the full ten pages, it would take me hours. I needed the translation for almost everything. Even though I knew much of the vocabulary and many sentences, I couldn't make sense of the text. Sometimes it seemed like chunks of familiar words/phrases that just didn't fit together in any logical way. Then I'd read the English and it would all become clear. After reading it in English, I'd go back and read it one more time in Korean. Korean and English are very different. Sometimes it's a big surprise to find out how they say something in Korean. Sometimes it seems that where English is precise, Korean is vague' and where English is vague, Korean is precise and exacting. Korean sentences will often leave out the subject, for instance, and just depend on the listener or reader to conjure it from context. On the other hand, Korean verbs seem so specific, especially all those compound verbs that describe actions in detail. Another problem I had with the Korean was identifying and understanding reported speech. It was often hard for me to recognize when someone was talking about an event involving another character, and quoting that character's speech. There are colloquial and short-hand methods that are tricky for me to spot. Now I've come to the end of this project I feel a sense of satisfaction even though I didn't read the book on my own. I've started again from the first page and I'm going to try to read it all over again. I can already tell it's much much easier this time; I can read it faster and understand it more easily, even though there are still passages that I find confusing. 4 persons have voted this message useful | |
| Serpent Octoglot Senior Member Russian Federation serpent-849.livejour Joined 6386 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 50 of 51 17 February 2014 at 5:50pm | IP Logged |
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Just saying that your latest post is very inspiring! I considered you eligible for the TAC 2013 Best Newcomer Poll. Hoping to see you on HTLAL again and good luck with your studies!
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| druckfehler Triglot Senior Member Germany Joined 4657 days ago 1181 posts - 1912 votes Speaks: German*, EnglishC2, Korean Studies: Persian | Message 51 of 51 17 February 2014 at 10:35pm | IP Logged |
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I'd also love to read from you again, Haksaeng. Hope you're doing well!
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