Hmm, I'm Singaporean-Chinese, and I speak and write and swear in English and Chinese. Personally, I don't find a difference in myself when I switch from speaking English to Chinese (and vice versa), but that's probably because I grew up learning both and hence do not see English as a 'foreign language'. Most of the time, the language I choose depends on who I'm speaking to. If I'm speaking to another Chinese who is well-versed in Chinese idioms, I'll be able to express myself better in Chinese and with fewer words. Otherwise, speaking Chinese or English really don't matter all that much.
And about switching languages in mid-conversation? Happens all the time here. When I was in high school, my principal was a 'Nazi' and forbidded us from speaking in mixed English-Chinese-Whatever, but no one cared. It's very common to speak in a mixture of English-Chinese-Malay-Hokkein-Hindi-Cantonese-WhatHaveYou when you live in a multi-racial society. It helps to bridge the gap between cultural differences; it makes conversations more 'casual', and consequently, the best way to express myself (I guess) is to speak and think in a mixture of languages I know, choosing specific words/phrases/sayings/expressions that happen to express my thoughts and feelings most accurately. I'm not sure if I've articulated it well, but the connection between language and the self has a lot to do with the individual's own attachment to certain words/sayings of a particular language. For example, I may speak English most of the time, but I find myself inserting Chinese, Malay, or dialects in instances where they will make my point (in the conversation) more succinct.
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and swearin English and Chinese. Personally, I don't find a difference in myself when I switch from speaking English to Chinese (and vice versa), but that's probably because I grew up learning both and hence do not see English as a 'foreign language'. Most of the time, the language I choose depends on who I'm speaking to. If I'm speaking to another Chinese who is well-versed in Chinese idioms, I'll be able to express myself better in Chinese and with fewer words. Otherwise, speaking Chinese or English really don't matter all that much.And about switching languages in mid-conversation? Happens all the time here. When I was in high school, my principal was a 'Nazi' and forbidded us from speaking in mixed English-Chinese-Whatever, but no one cared. It's very common to speak in a mixture of English-Chinese-Malay-Hokkein-Hindi-Cantonese-WhatHaveYou when you live in a multi-racial society. It helps to bridge the gap between cultural differences; it makes conversations more 'casual', and consequently, the best way to express myself (I guess) is to speak and think in a mixture of languages I know, choosing specific words/phrases/sayings/expressions that happen to express my thoughts and feelings most accurately. I'm not sure if I've articulated it well, but the connection between language and the self has a lot to do with the individual's own attachment to certain words/sayings of a particular language. For example, I may speak English most of the time, but I find myself inserting Chinese, Malay, or dialects in instances where they will make my point (in the conversation) more succinct.