how to learn any language-第24章
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to learn Italian。
You are not guaranteed love forevermore； but you are guaranteed novelty status。
You’ll attract attention in your target community as “the one who went to the trouble of
learning our language。” You’ll be invited； introduced around； and questioned thoroughly
as to your reasons for studying their particular language。 The less popular the language；
the greater a celebrity you’ll be among its speakers。 French is very popular； so you won’t
have Paris at your feet； we’ve already agreed； even after your best rendered “Comment
allez…vous？”； but Norwegians will want to burn arctic moss at your altar when after a
meal you say “Takk for maten。” That means “Thanks for the food；” which non…
Norwegians not only generally don’t know how to say； but also don’t realise it’s
traditionally said as you leave the table of your host in Norway。
Native English speakers have more to gain from studying other languages than
anybody else。 Honour； love； cooperation； respect； advantage – they all shower down
upon people in inverse proportion to their need to learn a language。
English is the most prominent language in the world。 The Dutch； as one example；
all seem to know four or five languages well upon graduation from high school； but （I am
not trying to diminish their achievement） they have to learn other languages； beginning
with English； to make their way in the commercial world。 You can’t play that game with
Dutch alone。 Languages find their fair rate of exchange as currencies do。 We who speak
English get a lot more credit from the Dutch if we learn Dutch than they get from us just
because they learned English。 And so on around the world。
Learn that other language now； while there’s still time to enjoy the honours due
those who don’t have to learn the other guy’s language but choose to do so anyhow。 That
time is rapidly running out。 For the very first time in our history Americans are learning
other languages not out of courtesy but out of necessity。 That fact of life is so new that
it’s not yet apparent to America or the world； so we still have a little more time to bask in
the admiration of those who had to learn our language and who still believe we simply
chose to learn theirs。
Something ennobling happens when you learn to communicate in more than one
language。 And it’s fun to watch the magic flash as you touch your word wand to the ears
of those who’d never suspect you speak their language。 It’s one more way of making
friends。 In big cities you’ll have many chances to find people who speak foreign
languages。
But you can’t sally in and ambush strangers in their language even if their accent
and appearance make it a sure bet。 They’re probably proud of their accent free （or nearly
accent free） English。 The best way to avoid insulting them – so they can concentrate on
loving you when you speak their language – is to say； before you venture one word of
their language； “Your accent is beautiful。 Are you from England？”
They will then proudly say； “No； I’m from Poland” （or wherever）； and they will
thereupon welcome your overtures。
Get to Know the Family
Languages have their own happy surprises。 For example； Serbo…Croatian and Bulgarian
overlap。 Learn either one； and at no extra cost you get seventy percent of the other。 You
may want to select a language to learn according to how much bounce it has beyond its
borders。 Languages come in families； and it pays to know which relations might work for
you。
Let’s pursue the Serbo…Croatian…Bulgarian connection。 They’re related in
diminishing degrees to all the Slavic languages； which include Russian； Byelorussian；
Polish； Ukranian； Czech； Slovak； Slovenian； Macedonian； and Ruthenian。 They’re not all
seventy percent overlapping； but so what？ What if they’re only forty； thirty； twenty
percent overlapping？ That’s still like having the shopkeeper hand you extra cloth on a
second bolt when you thought you’d only bought one bolt of cloth。
You learn so much Italian when you learn Spanish that it’s a shame not to switch
over and pursue Italian once your Spanish is adequate。 Portugese isn’t far behind； and
even French； the Romance language least like any of the others； has enough similar
grammatical features and vocabulary to help you conquer all of the other Romance
languages。
Hindi and Urdu； the principal languages of India and Pakistan； are virtually the
same spoken language。
Dutch is far more than the language of a tiny nation between Germany and the
English Channel。 It’s almost identical to Flemish； which along with French is one of the
two principal languages of Belgium。 Dutch is the foundation of Afrikaans； which along
with English is a major language of South Africa。 And you’ll have no trouble finding
Dutch speakers all over Indonesia； the old “Spice Islands” ruled by Holland for four
hundred years。
Get to know the family of the language you’re learning – where it fits in； what other
languages it will make easier for you to learn later。 What doors in what industries will it
open （for example； Flemish and Yiddish for diamonds； Arabic for oil； Swedish for
crystal； Italian for fashion）？ Over how wide an area is your target language spoken （more
Chinese speak Chinese outside China than Frenchmen speak French in France）？
Knowing where your language fits into the world mosaic will offer you countless
advantages and rewards； and almost certainly the motivation to learn more。
Language Power
to the People
The many who crave language knowledge in America have risen in rebellion against the
many who have failed （we could even say refused） to give it。
Language teaching used to be in the control of “the faculty；” a Prussian guard of
grammarians who taught that after all the conjugations； declensions； irregularities； and
exceptions were mastered； surely fluency would follow。 What followed instead was a
parade of hapless Americans who； after eight years of good grades； could not go to the
desk clerk at a hotel in a country whose language they’d studied and ask if they had any
messages！
“The faculty” taught rigidly by the book； the grammar book； and all our desire to
learn to say useful things and converse were dashed。
Today foreign languages are no longer “electives。” Those suddenly faced with their
first need to command another language are besieging Berlitz and other commercial
language schools and buying the Pimsleur cassettes and other self study courses。 We； the
laymen； are picking up our tools – language workbooks； cassette courses； phrase books；
flash cards – to try to make up for our failure to learn； while all those incredible
Europeans were learning English in their public schools！
Two； four； six； eight years of high school and college study in a foreign language；
and still our American graduates can’t tell whether the man on the radio speaking the
language they “learned” is declaring war or recommending a restaurant！
Has one single American graduate ever stepped into a job that called for a foreign
language with nothing more than the language he learned in high school or college？ It’s
not a cruel question。 Most Americans can get by on the reading they learned in school。
And the math。 And the history。 Why is that when it come to foreign languages our
graduates have to rush into expensive private instruction to start all over again？
One hero of language learning in the United States is Dr。 Henry Urbanski； professor
of Russian； former chairman of the department of Foreign Languages of the State
University of New York at New Paltz； and now director of the Language Immersion
Institute。 Once upon a time Dr。 Urbanski’s “immersion” heresy would probably have
resulted in his getting banned from university life。 Today Urbanski is showered with
praise and honour。
His immersion programme defies the language teaching tradition of rote
