China Reflections: The Language Issue
This is really embarrassing to admit, but after four years in China I still speak like a toddler. And not even a really smart toddler. My Mandarin skills are deplorable. Sure, I get by and by that I mean I can tell a taxi driver where to go, answer questions about where I am from, bargain for food at the street market and tell people that, sorry, I can’t speak Chinese. I have gotten so good at saying “I can’t speak Chinese” that everyone refuses to believe that, in fact, I cannot speak Chinese.
I have a pocketful of excuses for why I have let my language learning slide. At first I told everyone I was trying. And I was, for a while. Then I blamed my lack of acquisition on the fact we were living at an airport, in the middle of cornfields, talking only to other foreigners. And that would have been a correct assessment of the first year. Then I enrolled in grad school and conveniently blamed “studying” and a lack of time. Oops, it’s been nine months since I graduated. The truth is I have had a major lack of motivation and will. My heart just wasn’t in the language.
Well, folks, the shame has won out. Something happened when I was on vacation in Spain. Perhaps I realized that if I could speak Spanish, there really were no excuses for not learning Mandarin. Besides, all that business about Mandarin being “so hard” is really just hooey. Spanish is a heck of a lot harder than Mandarin. Mandarin has practically no grammar rules at all! Yes, the tones are difficult, but I have found that after four years of listening to this language, I have got a pretty firm grasp on the tones and rhythm.
While I don’t recommend spending a few years becoming familiar with a language before actually learning it, that is the road I’ve taken. And I am finally going to learn it. I’m committed! I have put it in writing – I am GOING to speak Mandarin. I am leaning heavily on ChinesePod, a college textbook and my work colleagues for practice. Wish me luck!
Related Posts:
- Reverse Culture Shock Anyone who has traveled away from their homeland has probably...
- Excuse the Drivel I wanted to write something witty. I wanted to tell...
- Gypsy Cab Lady – You’re The Best! I love my gypsy cab lady! Everyday she waits outside...
- Looking Back Five Years Seems all I do these days is navel-gaze! Here’s another...
- Why China is Like a Box of Chocolates #543 You never know what you’re gonna get when ordering in a...
{ 18 comments… read them below or add one }
Funny, I was just telling my son that Spanish was a lot easier to learn than Mandarin.
But don’t let that scare you.
LOL! Great! I do think that pronunciation is much easier in Spanish but the grammar is just insane.
But seriously, having spent some years developing a passive understanding, you will be surprised how quickly you develop proficiency.
This is what I am hoping for, especially since osmosis isn’t working!
I could totally relate to your post because it sums up my experience with Portuguese. Good for you for committing to learning the language!
I was doing so well with my Portuguese until I went back to the States last Nov then it was all down hill from there. It’s like I forgot everything and with my freelance work in English I get almost no practice anymore. I “get by” as well. My intention was to speak and understand so much more by the time this experience was over, but it didn’t happen. I view it as a huge failure, but I’m beginning to move on. There will be other opportunities.
I feel you with the comment about your heart not being in it. I often feel that way too. I’ve always wanted to accomplish German and French first, but due to this experience Portuguese was kind of forced on me which is why I think it never really clicked.
.-= Lori´s last blog ..Still Fun with Words =-.
I do believe that you have to feel some sort of passion about a language to really learn it. I feel passionate about Spanish, and there are several other languages I would love to speak, like Arabic and German. I couldn’t wait to go to class everyday to study Spanish and I studied so enthusiastically. Mandarin… well I’m enthusiastic at the moment, so let’s hope it lasts.
Ditto. When I first moved to Iceland, I was pretty gung-ho on learning Icelandic (at least basic Icelandic). Then the banks collapsed and the country went bust and I started to question how long we’d live there. So I really let my lessons slide. Ironically, I’m now enrolled in a masters program that is taught in, yes, mostly Icelandic. Hmm. Irony?
.-= Jessica´s last blog ..How many clichés can fit into 13 minutes? =-.
I always thought we would leave China at the end of each of our contracts, so that also kept me from studying. I imagine Icelandic being really difficult, but I have no idea if that it is true. So will being in the masters program necessitate learning Icelandic? That must be a pretty big motivator!
Good luck with your studies, Global Gal! I really think that just making that decision to study and to really learn the language is the most important part. Get going in the right direction, and let momentum do its thing.
Thanks! I think your blog will be an inspiration to me.
Welcome back and good luck with Chinese… you won’t regret it, I am sure.
.-= Annje´s last blog ..Mr. Fix-it =-.
Thanks! So far it is going well.
加油!
Good luck with your learning. When I started, I didn’t try *learn* anything. I simply played ChinesePod lessons, over and over again. Didn’t try memorise or anything, just played repeatedly until I realised I could understand & say. Then I moved to the next lesson. Starts off slowly, but it gains momentum – even with this lazy approach.
For the last month I’ve been actively trying to read, and I’m blogging about my experiences with that. Take a look, you might see some overlap!
Thanks for commenting! I went to your blog and was immediately interested in the Heisig method. I downloaded a sample of the book and… Unbelievable! This is exactly what I have been looking for as a way to learn the characters. The method absolutely clicked for me. I ordered the book! I will be spending some time reading your blog. Thanks again!
I’m pleased that you “found” what you were looking for. Yesterday I crossed 850 characters (with high recall!) – it has only been about 40 days I think. You might go faster or slower – it depends on you – but I’m loving it too! Good luck!
Interesting comments about learning mandarin!
http://WWW.Amazon.com has a book you may be interested in called “Learning Chinese The Easy Way”, ISBN: 1419686119.
Haha, I got in a cab the other night, and the driver, who apparently never noticed me coming or bothered to look at the person in the back seat asked me what province I was from and if I came from Xinjiang. I said I came from California, which immediately prompted him to turn around. He didn’t say that my Mandarin was either good or bad, just that I didn’t sound like a foreigner and that that struck him as odd.
I found it odd too since I basically learned to speak by listening to those around me, but I do have an Armenian accent when I speak English, even though I cannot speak Armenian (long story). I guess it’s coming through in my Mandarin as well?
Anyway, good luck! I never formally studied anything. If I had, maybe I could have avoided telling the fruit vendor that the damn fruit were talking to me again. Haha… That was three years ago and he still teases me about it. To this day, I cannot remember what I was actually trying to say.
Laters…
Lizabeth