Learning a Foreign Language

[Alan]

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Learning a new language is rather like going out and buying some new clothes. Sometimes you sense that they don’t really fit. They feel uncomfortable. You feel conspicuous. People, you have the feeling, are looking at you and thinking: Oh, those clothes aren’t right. They don’t suit. They look funny. This of course is entirely in your own imagination and it’s simply you being self conscious. People are really not giving you the time of day and not taking the slightest notice. When you saw these clothes in the shop window, you thought to yourself that you rather liked the idea of trying them on and buying them. And so that’s what you did. No one in the shop turned a hair. All the assistants took the transaction in their stride. So you bought them, tried them on again at home, got cold feet and put them in the wardrobe and didn’t take them out again.

That’s the trouble with this business of learning a foreign language. You start off with good intentions, have a stab at it, don’t necessarily get off to a flying start and before you know where you are, you’ve decided it’s simply not for you and put the idea, as we say, on the back burner. We shelve it, put it aside and convince ourselves that we’ll look at it later. For some of us of course that’s the end of the story. Occasionally we fish out those shiny new grammar books, flick through the pages fondly, reminisce a bit and then promptly remove them from the back burner and get rid of them in the local charity shop. The more adventurous of us look upon it more as a challenge. We try to master the grammar in those books. But of course we are learning a living language - it’s not Latin or Ancient Greek and there are millions of people in this world walking up and down all over the place using it as their preferred type of communication. So we have to use it, speak it and communicate in it. Now, we don’t always live next door to a chatty person who happens to be a native speaker who can hold us by the hand as we begin our first few faltering steps. But then of course there are possibly language classes where you can practise it. But it’s not the same speaking a foreign language with people who have the same language as you. But it’s a start. Charlie (just an imaginary figure) could go to a party and see this very pretty girl, decide to chat her up and joy of joys discover she is a living breathing, rather delicious, example of someone whose native language happens to be the very one he’s struggling to master. Charlie can’t believe his luck. She understands what he’s saying, he understands what she’s saying and before you can say Jack Robinson, they are getting on like a house on fire! And then - well I don’t need to go into details.

Another way of using your newly acquired language especially if you don’t have that neighbour or go to that party is to go to the country where the language is spoken. Again you feel you are sticking out like a sore thumb but you soon realise that the people around you take you for what you are, just another human being. At first you don’t really get half of what they are saying to you but in time it becomes a bit clearer. At this stage you are going in for short sentences and dreading making grammatical mistakes. No matter, nobody’s bothered. Then comes the stage when you not only speak reasonably well but you find your body language is adapting to the new idiom. Your sentences get longer. When you are sitting with a group of people, you start making contributions and people accept you. It won’t be long before you make a witty remark or a joke and the others laugh. You begin to glow inside. You go to bed that night and have a dream and when you wake up you realise that you dreamt in your new language. Congratulations - you’ve made it, you’ve cracked it. You’ve become a member of a new community.
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English as a Second Language
You can read my ESL story Present Simple

[Rinson Gultom]

Dear Mr. Alan.

I was so glad when I was hearing your voice. I like more and more the native speaker like you. Really, I like to hear much english from differend country, becouse it will make me more understand and can identify what words they said.

Regard's

R. Gultom
Indonesia

[Pasban110]

The second paragraph describes me well when I was a little younger. I was just bought every good-looking book I saw in the bookstore. But a week later, when I was neatening my room, I noticed that I had a book as was about to buy. An awful thing for me. In weeks, I didn't see it for real.

But, these days, I started to read my books. Happy thing.

[Marchello12]

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It's a bit weird to read this. I actually happen to think my thoughts in English at times. Also there are other times when after somebody has said something to me and I have to give a response i realize that i don't know how to say it in my native language. The answer just seems so fitting, yet I can't use it. And then I have to think of an alternative and so on.

[Pasban110]

Hi Marchello...
It also happens to me. Over thinking in English make me lost for very simple words when I want to response to someone in my own language. The really think that I don't know any thing to answer them. But at the moment, I am in doubt to answer them in my language or in English. Not that much good moments.

[Kati Svaby]

Hello Alan,

I've just read your writing.If I got a stab I never got off to a flying start as you say on the back burner. I never got rid off my English books. You say: " we have to use it, (English) speak it and communicate in it." I tried to speak it for example in your essays but several times 0 people listened to it. (even not you) I am in this course more than two years but anybody didn't correct my pronunciation. Of course it is comprehensible we are 57 615 students. I thought to leave this course but I like it so I can't. C'est la vie.

No matter, but I became very sad when I read your letter. I didn't agree with it.
In Christmas I spoke to my grandchildren more than an hour and they understood me and I understood them.

Since there has been the possibility to speak in Skype session I began to dare speak.

Regards:
Kati svaby
_________________
We always deceive ourselves twice about the people we love - first to their advantage, then to their disadvantage.

[Justin_Huang]

Hi Alan,
Could you explain me the bold portion: "the people around you take you for what you are"
Does it mean that people accept who you are?
Thank you.

Justin

[Kati Svaby]

Dear Alan,

I am very sorry that I didn't understand this writing. Or I misunderstand it.It is as good as the your every writing that meant to me always a great enjoyement. You try to encourage us to dare speak. Don't fear for mistakes, because if we speak with mistakes they will disappear and one day perhaps we can dream in English also.You are right because there was a language what I liked so much that I began to dream in it. I admired and I said to myself if I believed in the after the death the soul live again I would believe that in my previous life I was French.in my dream I could speak better than in life. Unfortunatly I never dreamt in English whereas I remember the words sooner in English than French. But to read I can better in French than in English. For me would be very important to speak English. When I have to write a letter in French I have to use an English-French dictionary because the words occurs to me sooner in English.

I hope you forgive me that I misunderstood your letter. Since I read it several times and it is a very helpful and encouraging letter.

Many thanks for it:
Kati Svaby
_________________
We always deceive ourselves twice about the people we love - first to their advantage, then to their disadvantage.

[Kati Svaby]

Hello Justin,

I try to explain what you asked. I hope that Alan will correct it when he returns.
In the beginning Alan spoke about a woman who chose a dress and meantime she was very self conscious (nervous/embarrased) because she felt everybody deals about her. Whereas the shop-assistents take their transaction and don't think anything of her.

When Alan tells "the people around you take you for what you are, JUST ANOTHER HUMAN BEING.

This is a change. You are not any more self conscious, nervous, embarrassed person but you became and I became me also, a self confident person, who knows the people have lot of things to do and they take us what we are, NORMAL HUMAN BEING.

Alan could have said that the song: Don't worry, be happy !

Of course I misunderstood his letter. For example: it was a difficulty for me the expression: "on the back burner."

But its essence that he wants to convince us to dare to speak.
1. You take you for what you are.= not to be cowardly, take resposibility for yourself.
2. Begin to say short stences you CAN make grammatical mistakes.
3.When you speak reasanably well but you find your body language to the new idioms.
4. Your sentences become longer.
5. When you are speaking you start making contributions and the people accept you.
6. You begin to make witty remarks, jokes and the others are laughing.
7. You begin to glow inside. ( you enjoy yourself)
8. You begin to dream in your new language.
Alan says to us: Congratulations -you've made it, you've CRACKED it. You become a member of a new commutnity.

Take care :
Kati Svaby

To Alan:I will correct my previous letter on the thread : "What gets on my nerves." Those mistakes what I made I could write them correctly also. In my whole life when I made a maths problem well nevertheless my result was bad because I lost count for example a simple addition.
_________________
We always deceive ourselves twice about the people we love - first to their advantage, then to their disadvantage.

[Justin_Huang]

Hi Kati,

Thank you for exlaining it. However, I am not so sure about it because it seems you have parsed the sentence in a different way from mine.
In my opinion, it should be parsed like this:
(the people around you) take you for what you are.
The subject should be "the people", not "you".

I believe that you already understand the meaning of the idiom: "put something on the back burner".
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/back-burner?q=put+on+the+back+burner#back-burner__3

Reading Alan's articles always helps me learning idioms. I like it. I hope someday I can dream in English.

Best Regards,
Justin

[Kati Svaby]

Hello Justin,

You are right in Alan's sentence the subject is the people.

My sentence is an interpretation, I tried to explain a sentence that we both didn't understand.

Now that we understand it , the best solution to copy Alan's sentence because there isn't need to make sense of it.
"...the people /around you /take you /for what you are,/ just an other human being."

Many thanks for your letter.

Kati Svaby
_________________
We always deceive ourselves twice about the people we love - first to their advantage, then to their disadvantage.