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Negative aspects of being a Polygot? | ||
Tags: Polyglot bashing | Polyglot | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : Polyglots |  | |
| nhk9 Senior Member Canada Joined 6618 days ago 290 posts - 319 votes  Speaks: English* | Message 1 of 94 18 March 2007 at 6:01am | IP Logged | ||
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Being able to speak many languages is a blessing, but don't you think there are some downsides to it?
1) Well for one, if you are in a place where you are not supposed to speak a particular language, it is possible that others may conceive you as a spy. 2) In politically unstable regions it maybe better to not disclose your knowledge of certain languages 3) If you can speak 10 languages at native levels and is applying for a job that requires foreign language skills (but not necessarily all 10), would you think that it is better to just list the ones ONLY that directly has something to do with your job? Listing all 10 may give the impression that you CAN speak to a certain level all 10 languages (or that you are just boasting), but not really the fact that you can ACTUALLY be fluent in all 10. Many employers probably wouldn't think that a person can speak all 10 languages anyway, since they would have no realistic method of testing one's ability of say, German, arabic, or other exotic languages that they have absolutely no clue about. 3 persons have voted this message useful | |||
| Clintaroo Diglot Senior Member Australia Joined 6685 days ago 189 posts - 201 votes Speaks: English*, Japanese Studies: Tagalog, Indonesian | Message 2 of 94 18 March 2007 at 6:24am | IP Logged | ||
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4) Being drafted in as an impromptu translator in situations that are outside one's knowledge. Some friends asked me to interpret from Tagalog-English in the Philippines and I had learnt Tagalog for a grand total of two months! Apparently making the effort to learn the basics of a language means you can suddenly interpret :-P
5 persons have voted this message useful | |||
| japkorengchi Senior Member Hong Kong Joined 6494 days ago 334 posts - 355 votes | Message 3 of 94 18 March 2007 at 6:35am | IP Logged | ||
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Some people are not very friendly to Polygot. They just can't accept someone can speak a foreign language which they can't. Unfortunately, this kind of person may knock your door and ask for help when they need a help in translation, for example.
There are ways to prove your language ability. For Japanese, French, German, Spanish, Korean etc, I am sure there are some public exams that serve as a qualification of your language performance. Even for "minor" languages you can still look for a public exam. I basically set a goal for all the languages I learn, and prepare to sit in their repsective public exams to check my progress. Unfortunately, I also receive some harsh time of being able to speak some languages - some people just don't know how to appreciate others' effort. 4 persons have voted this message useful | |||
| Linguamor Decaglot Senior Member United States Joined 6432 days ago 469 posts - 599 votes Speaks: English*, German, Italian, Spanish, Swedish, Danish, French, Norwegian, Portuguese, Dutch | Message 4 of 94 18 March 2007 at 6:51am | IP Logged | ||
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Wanting to say something, and finding that what you want to say comes to mind in a different language than the language you're speaking. This is especially awkward if the language that you're speaking is your native language. Edited by Linguamor on 18 March 2007 at 6:54am 6 persons have voted this message useful | |||
| justinwilliams Diglot Senior Member Canada Joined 6503 days ago 321 posts - 327 votes 3 sounds Speaks: French*, EnglishC2 Studies: German, Italian | Message 5 of 94 18 March 2007 at 11:03am | IP Logged | ||
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Where I'm from it is seen by many as a treason to learn English further than 'Hi'.
I guess it fits in reason 2) though. 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| Guanche Hexaglot Senior Member Spain danielmarin.blogspot Joined 6860 days ago 168 posts - 178 votes Speaks: Spanish*, EnglishC2, GermanC1, RussianB1, French, Japanese Studies: Greek, Mandarin, Arabic (Written) | Message 6 of 94 18 March 2007 at 5:22pm | IP Logged | ||
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Another drawback I've experienced is that many people may think you're extraordinary intelligent (even a genius!) when they discover you can speak several languages. Theres's an instinctive association in many people's minds between knowing foreign languages and having a high IQ, when in fact you can be a fool in 20 languages!
7 persons have voted this message useful | |||
| frenkeld Diglot Senior Member United States Joined 6757 days ago 2042 posts - 2719 votes Speaks: Russian*, English Studies: German | Message 7 of 94 18 March 2007 at 5:57pm | IP Logged | ||
The fact that language learning and maintenance are very time-consuming, taking time away from other things in life. Edited by frenkeld on 18 March 2007 at 9:34pm 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| PETE Triglot Groupie United States Joined 6297 days ago 73 posts - 85 votes Speaks: English*, German, Russian Studies: Spanish | Message 8 of 94 18 March 2007 at 10:22pm | IP Logged | ||
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"Negative aspects of being a Polygot?"
- Arrogance 3 persons have voted this message useful |
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