Is it important if one can speak/write more than one languages?

[Kyriakos]

It would seem that it is quite useful, and not just for obviously practical reasons, to speak more than one languages. Surely English is mostly used in the western world as some sort of common language, so if one knows it then he has access to most of the information which gets to be presented in a notable way in the media he is aware of and can keep an eye on.

However i think that knowing a second language gives an advantage in the ability to examine what language is. If you are monolingual then it is less likely that you can observe how different the dynamics in languages are. As Plato had argued, if there is only one item of some given nature or form, then it is by definition the prototype. But if at least two items of that nature appear, despite what minor or more pronounced differences exist between them, the prototype now becomes a theoretical model, which would be linked to both existent items.

So it is easier to notice that the language itself is quite distinct from the human need for expression. It can form or limit it. It is not one and the same with it. It seems very likely that cultures were evolving very dependent on their language, and despite all being cultures of humans, they were aspiring (consciously or not) to present in clarity some different shape that the particular linguistic tools they had could be used so as to present and give meaning to.

-You can reflect on the importance of knowing more than one languages, and to anything in the OP if you wish too as well

 

[Tee Kay]

Not sure about important unless you have a job that requires knowledge of another language, but I feel it does enrich your life to be non-monolingual. Speaking another language means access to a whole other world of tradition and culture, from films to literature to music and all kinds of knowledge.

 

[sophie]

Not sure about important unless you have a job that requires knowledge of another language, but I feel it does enrich your life to be non-monolingual. Speaking another language means access to a whole other world of tradition and culture, from films to literature to music and all kinds of knowledge.

This. Thread over.

 

[madviking]

clearly op has some problems speaking more than one languages.

 

[Kyriakos]

^It is still English, just made of Greek terms

 

[Antilogic]

I also am in agreement with TK's post.

EDIT: Estoy de acuerdo.

 

[caketastydelish]

I agree with Owen, but I will say that just as some degrees give you more opportunities for money than others, some languages give you more opportunity for money than others. (that said, people that say Spanish is the most valuable language to learn in the US as a second language don't know what they're talking about, and that's coming from someone that has a mother as a spanish teacher).

 

[warpus]

Not sure about important unless you have a job that requires knowledge of another language, but I feel it does enrich your life to be non-monolingual. Speaking another language means access to a whole other world of tradition and culture, from films to literature to music and all kinds of knowledge.

I would say it's important enough, in the sense that it gives you a view of the world from an entirely different context, assuming that you are fluent enough in the language to be able to grasp the nuances that it provides.

For the same reason I think it's also important to travel and see other cultures and different ways of doing things and seeing the world.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

In English Canada, being able to read French is handy when the French side of cans and boxes get turned outward in the grocery stores.

 

[warpus]

In English Canada, being able to read French is handy when the French side of cans and boxes get turned outward in the grocery stores.

French education here in Ontario seems to really suck. I got the highest mark in grade 9 French, and I did not learn a thing. All I did was memorize verbs, which I'm very good at, but it didn't teach me anything about the language at all.

Mind you I arrived here in Canada in grade 7 and got to skip French class through grade 7 and for parts of grade 8, but I really wish I could speak it. I don't know the language at all and I wish I did. I suppose you could tell me to just go take courses and learn it on my own or whatever, and that's fair, and maybe I just had 1 bad experience with a teacher, but not many people who live here really seem to be that great at French either, making me think that French education in the province is less than optimal.

 

[BSPollux]

Not sure about important unless you have a job that requires knowledge of another language, but I feel it does enrich your life to be non-monolingual. Speaking another language means access to a whole other world of tradition and culture, from films to literature to music and all kinds of knowledge.

This is only correct if you take it for granted that only your job can make things important. Which, btw, is a very common thought these days. Media and politics does everything possible to spread that believe.

 

[Cheezy the Wiz]

Only if that language is Greek.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

French education here in Ontario seems to really suck. I got the highest mark in grade 9 French, and I did not learn a thing. All I did was memorize verbs, which I'm very good at, but it didn't teach me anything about the language at all.

Mind you I arrived here in Canada in grade 7 and got to skip French class through grade 7 and for parts of grade 8, but I really wish I could speak it. I don't know the language at all and I wish I did. I suppose you could tell me to just go take courses and learn it on my own or whatever, and that's fair, and maybe I just had 1 bad experience with a teacher, but not many people who live here really seem to be that great at French either, making me think that French education in the province is less than optimal.

Before I started school, there was a French-language children's program on CBC called Chez Helene (apologies for the lack of proper letters, but I've no idea how to do that on my keyboard). So my first exposure to French was at around 3-4 years old. I didn't actually take any French in school until Grade 5. That, plus Grade 6, was strictly memory work and very basic grammar. I know more about what Paul, Michel, and Alice have for breakfast and what colors their bowls and plates were than I'd ever care about anyone - fictitious characters or RL. This was nearly 40 years ago and I STILL remember those damn language tapes!

I didn't get to take French in Grade 7 because it was a different school system where they shoehorned all the girls into Home Ec. whether they wanted it or not. I then had to make a choice between French and music, and music was more important. It wasn't until Grade 8 that I got back into a French class and actually started learning to read it. From there, I took French throughout the remainder of junior high, high school, and two years of college (that's 9 years total throughout my school/college years).

Learning to compose paragraphs in high school and essays in college in French was both interesting and bizarre. I had really good teachers for those years, and it was about as intense as a language class could be, short of immersion. I'd come out of those classes having to throw a mental switch so I could understand the English conversations going on around me in the halls. I sometimes caught myself writing my class notes (for other courses) in "Frenglish." Having to learn to construct proper sentences in another language taught me a lot about how to do it in English, too.

And for the conversation portions of the classes... try to explain science fiction conventions and strange hall costumes to people in another language, when you lack the vocabulary - it's hard enough in English sometimes, if SF conventions are something they've never heard of, or assume it's just getting actors' autographs!

It sounds like you had the misfortune of having bad teachers. From my own time in the B.Ed. program, I can definitely say that there's the option to take French (to teach it to elementary kids), but not a lot of emphasis on making sure the prospective French teacher is any good at it. Mind you, this was 30 years ago, and the system could be completely different now. And this is Alberta, where people who weren't even alive during Pierre Trudeau's early years as PM are taught to hate him and All Things French.

Only if that language is Greek.

I know the Greek alphabet and can write some of it. I can read a few words, but have no knowledge whatsoever of the grammar. If I'd had the chance to learn Greek and Latin, I'd have jumped at it!

 

[woody60707]

As a person who knows English, I feel I'm good for the most part. If my primary language wasn't English, then I would think it was very important to learn a 2nd language (English).

 

[Mango Elephant]

English speakers generally get by in most of the world so everyone should learn English just for the opportunities that presents.

Other languages don't matter so much from a practical standpoint. You do learn a lot about English grammar when you learn another language, though. Native English students usually never learn about their conjugation or infinitives or anything like that unless they study another language.

 

[caketastydelish]

English speakers generally get by in most of the world so everyone should learn English just for the opportunities that presents.

Other languages don't matter so much from a practical standpoint. You do learn a lot about English grammar when you learn another language, though. Native English students usually never learn about their conjugation or infinitives or anything like that unless they study another language.

Actually, no.

Can't speak for other countries, so here's how other languages are marketable from the perspective of an American:

If you want to go into military/CIA/etc stuff, or even something like Petroleum engineering, learning middle eastern languages like Arabic (the more dialects the better) or Farsi can make you more marketable for a job.

If you want to go into technology or the general business world relating to it, learning Japanese, Korean and Mandarin can help.

Etc, etc.

This is not to say Spanish doesn't help, but the next person that says Spanish is the only language worth learning, I'll slap in the face. (I know you didn't say that, I'm just ranting. )

 

[Kyriakos]

For practical (and non-specific) reasons, obviously English is the only language which will allow one access to most of what is going on.

That said, it is beneficial to speak at least two languages, since then you get to examine their limitations and special abilities. To refer back to my own OP: If you only know of one object of a type, then that is the prototype by default. But if you know of at least two then the prototype becomes something ideal, distanced from all existent/known objects of its type

Greek is not a practical language to learn these days, sure. However i am very happy that i write my literature in this language, given that it is a very expressive one. Not sure how i would view english if i was a native speaker of it, but i like the added complexity of Greek, even in its current state.

 

[caketastydelish]

Obviously being a native English speaker is a huge advantage, but that doesn't mean native English speakers can't improve themselves (even from a purely marketable standpoint) by learning other languages.

 

[Glassfan]

I agree with the cat lady that speaking a second language helps English-speakers understand their own language better. That was certainly my experience studying German. Also, there does seem to be evidence that bilingualism makes you smarter. Bilingualism ..."forces the brain to resolve internal conflict, giving the mind a workout that strengthens its cognitive muscles."

The key difference between bilinguals and monolinguals may be more basic: a heightened ability to monitor the environment. “Bilinguals have to switch languages quite often — you may talk to your father in one language and to your mother in another language,” says Albert Costa, a researcher at the University of Pompeu Fabra in Spain. “It requires keeping track of changes around you in the same way that we monitor our surroundings when driving.” In a study comparing German-Italian bilinguals with Italian monolinguals on monitoring tasks, Mr. Costa and his colleagues found that the bilingual subjects not only performed better, but they also did so with less activity in parts of the brain involved in monitoring, indicating that they were more efficient at it.

Bilingualism appears to improve the brains' executive functions, and delays the onset of dementia and other symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease: the higher the degree of bilingualism, the later the age of onset.

Being midwest-dialect American, I seldom have the opportunity to speak or write German, but I sometimes think in German, and it occasionally provides insight and perspective.

 

[NovaKart]

I find it hard to adjust to multiple foreign languages. I can switch back to English effortlessly but when speaking Turkish I find it hard to not use Kurdish by accident, at least for the first few minutes, and then when I go back to Kurdish I have to struggle to not use Turkish.

I find that when studying foreign languages closely related to English it helps you better understand the roots of certain words in English and their original meanings.

Actually, no.

Can't speak for other countries, so here's how other languages are marketable from the perspective of an American:

If you want to go into military/CIA/etc stuff, or even something like Petroleum engineering, learning middle eastern languages like Arabic (the more dialects the better) or Farsi can make you more marketable for a job.

If you want to go into technology or the general business world relating to it, learning Japanese, Korean and Mandarin can help.

Etc, etc.

This is not to say Spanish doesn't help, but the next person that says Spanish is the only language worth learning, I'll slap in the face. (I know you didn't say that, I'm just ranting. )

It depends on what you want to do, sure. Spanish is very useful if you're working in the police force or in the hospital and there's been a huge increase in the Latino population in some parts of the US like Kentucky and North Carolina, where 15 years ago there were practically no Latinos. Many of them don't speak English and many services had a difficulty because they didn't have enough Spanish speakers. However, when I was in Kentucky and NC I didn't work in those jobs and I had little interaction with Latinos so it made no difference to me. I would think if you're working in the police force in Miami or Southern California though that it would be a major hindrance to not speak Spanish.