(For the record, my foreign languages are French and German. Oh, the good old standbys!)
I have had those 'switch' converations - felt awfully pretentious doing it, but really it's just so you can get your meaning across fully if the other person doesn't understand, or to put across subtleties. And some things just don't translate, or sound stupid in another language other than the original.
C said that she was much more outgoing about her feelings in English, that she was very shy in French
Partly the more outgoing side does come out in another language for me, but mainly I get v. frustrated in my languages - I've studied them to a very high level, but have a natural affinity for writing rather than oral expression, so my oral communication skills are the worst part of it. That doesn't mean I can't hold long conversations on difficult topics, but certain areas like arguing are v. hard for me. They're also hard, emotionally speaking, in English, but somehow the emotions get in the way of language even more in my non-native languages. Gah, it's really annoying.
What I ultimately felt when spending quite some time abroad, was that I couldn't express my personality in another language. It was like I remained on the same surface level and just couldn't break through...partly vocab, partly people, I guess, partly cultural differences... all of those combined made it very isolating. I didn't feel people got the 'real' me, because my personality is so tied to fluency of expression and the beauty of words and feeling at home in them, playing with/on words. Though I love my adopted languages, and the unique words that they contain, which you can't translate into English, well... it sounds awful and cheesy, but - my heart expresses itself in English. I can't change that, and just have to accept it.
"To speak another language is to possess another soul"
Yes - I do feel I change somewhat, different parts of me come to the fore when communicating in another language - and I do feel the ability to do so, adds something to my soul. It's also getting further into another culture, that allows you to share in it and possess something more than the heritage you grew up with.
Just browsing through the comments - the swearing and porn thing is interesting. Since I don't have a problem with swearing in English anyway, it's almost a moot point - but it's very easy to swear in other languages because the words just don't have that instant emotional effect. Porn, on the other hand... When people were trying to help me with career choices, they would say 'Well, you could...write books in 2 languages!' I'd be like, er...NO. I can write creatively in other languages - perhaps it's more practice than anything that I need - but on a regular basis? OMG how the fuck do you people do it? Let alone write porn? For me, part of the joy of writing, and of writing porn, is the weigh of the words, the titillation, the visceral shock of something like 'cock'. Esp. when someone like Snape says it, for whom it's a little incongruous. And that weight is there because I've grown up with English, because I love it and its breadth and depth and wheee! Can't express how much I love it, really. :D
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Date: 2004-12-14 01:56 pm (UTC)I have had those 'switch' converations - felt awfully pretentious doing it, but really it's just so you can get your meaning across fully if the other person doesn't understand, or to put across subtleties. And some things just don't translate, or sound stupid in another language other than the original.
C said that she was much more outgoing about her feelings in English, that she was very shy in French
Partly the more outgoing side does come out in another language for me, but mainly I get v. frustrated in my languages - I've studied them to a very high level, but have a natural affinity for writing rather than oral expression, so my oral communication skills are the worst part of it. That doesn't mean I can't hold long conversations on difficult topics, but certain areas like arguing are v. hard for me. They're also hard, emotionally speaking, in English, but somehow the emotions get in the way of language even more in my non-native languages. Gah, it's really annoying.
What I ultimately felt when spending quite some time abroad, was that I couldn't express my personality in another language. It was like I remained on the same surface level and just couldn't break through...partly vocab, partly people, I guess, partly cultural differences... all of those combined made it very isolating. I didn't feel people got the 'real' me, because my personality is so tied to fluency of expression and the beauty of words and feeling at home in them, playing with/on words. Though I love my adopted languages, and the unique words that they contain, which you can't translate into English, well... it sounds awful and cheesy, but - my heart expresses itself in English. I can't change that, and just have to accept it.
"To speak another language is to possess another soul"
Yes - I do feel I change somewhat, different parts of me come to the fore when communicating in another language - and I do feel the ability to do so, adds something to my soul. It's also getting further into another culture, that allows you to share in it and possess something more than the heritage you grew up with.
Just browsing through the comments - the swearing and porn thing is interesting. Since I don't have a problem with swearing in English anyway, it's almost a moot point - but it's very easy to swear in other languages because the words just don't have that instant emotional effect. Porn, on the other hand... When people were trying to help me with career choices, they would say 'Well, you could...write books in 2 languages!' I'd be like, er...NO. I can write creatively in other languages - perhaps it's more practice than anything that I need - but on a regular basis? OMG how the fuck do you people do it? Let alone write porn? For me, part of the joy of writing, and of writing porn, is the weigh of the words, the titillation, the visceral shock of something like 'cock'. Esp. when someone like Snape says it, for whom it's a little incongruous. And that weight is there because I've grown up with English, because I love it and its breadth and depth and wheee! Can't express how much I love it, really. :D
/ramble