Vive Le Français!
Why study French?
The participants in the first Conference for French Language in Northeast Asia couldn't find an answer to that question, other than the belief that English is "not a quality language," at least according to this article:
I can't believe the author of this article is reporting the whole story. Any self-respecting Francophone could come up with dozens of reasons to learn the language of the "First Daughter of the Church." I only took a couple of semesters of French in college, and could never speak it without a strong Spanish accent, but can think of these reasons off the top of my head:
1. to read Blaise Pascal
2. to travel to Québec or Côte d'Ivoire
3. to watch a lot of good movies without subtitles
4. to understand all those phrases used by characters in Dostoyevsky and Tolstoy novels translated into English
5. to impress people
Seriously though, the article, which focuses on French in international business, illustrates the sad reality that people these days, especially here in Northeast Asia, only learn languages for instrumentative reasons. If it can't make you money, why learn it? Gone are the days when a Miguel de Unamuno would learn a language like Danish solely in order to read the works of a Kierkegaard.
Why study French?
The participants in the first Conference for French Language in Northeast Asia couldn't find an answer to that question, other than the belief that English is "not a quality language," at least according to this article:
I can't believe the author of this article is reporting the whole story. Any self-respecting Francophone could come up with dozens of reasons to learn the language of the "First Daughter of the Church." I only took a couple of semesters of French in college, and could never speak it without a strong Spanish accent, but can think of these reasons off the top of my head:
1. to read Blaise Pascal
2. to travel to Québec or Côte d'Ivoire
3. to watch a lot of good movies without subtitles
4. to understand all those phrases used by characters in Dostoyevsky and Tolstoy novels translated into English
5. to impress people
Seriously though, the article, which focuses on French in international business, illustrates the sad reality that people these days, especially here in Northeast Asia, only learn languages for instrumentative reasons. If it can't make you money, why learn it? Gone are the days when a Miguel de Unamuno would learn a language like Danish solely in order to read the works of a Kierkegaard.
Redeemed by Our Savior, I work out my salvation with fear and trembling in Pohang, South Korea, where I live with my wife, daughter, and son and teach English at a science and technology university. Baptized a Methodist and raised a Missouri Synod Lutheran in Buffalo, NY, I spent six years as a guest of the Anglican Communion before being received by the Grace of God into the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church on the Feast of Saint Andrew, my patron, anno domini 2002.
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