Det Danske Spørgsmål
Jul. 14th, 2020 09:59 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
tealinPretty much as long as I can remember, I've been trying to learn French. There were scattershot lessons from my mum (a native speaker) when I was young; I took three years of it in middle/high school from teachers who couldn't speak it; when in officially bilingual Canada I would have fits of listening to the French-language radio station to try to improve my ear, a practice I'd return to every so often later on, when I found how to stream it online.
Around 2018 I realised that I was visiting Denmark at least once a year, and France not at all, so it was more practical to learn Danish. It ended up being more fun, too – it's similar enough to English that you can see the common roots in a lot of words and the grammar is uncannily like English from 400 years ago, so my familiarity with Shakespeare and the Book of Common Prayer put me in good stead there. ('Sted' means 'place' in Danish. See?) For having a reputation as a very difficult language to learn, I was finding it a breeze compared to French, especially when I finally tuned my ear to the lack of diction. And, weirdly, spending time on Danish was improving my French, I think because it kept the 'not-English' side of my brain awake: when learning new Danish phrases it would usually say 'Oh, I already know how to say this in not-English,' and give me the French.
I had to leave off languages entirely when I was on my Antarctic trip – mostly because my brain was full already, but also on account of McMurdo not having sufficient internet to run Duolingo – which meant a lot of remedial study when I got back; I didn't have much brain for it then either, but I did push to reacquaint myself before I went back to Denmark in March. Then all the lockdown and moving stress occupied my brain again and I fell off. I've got back to it for the last month or so, but haven't really found a groove, and just jump around the lesson board levelling up sections that have fallen behind, rather than utilising the methodical way it's laid out.
I have really enjoyed learning Danish – it's been much more fun than French which, though I was motivated, always felt like a chore – and when I'm not practising it, I miss it. Looking at the endeavour as a whole, though, I have to wonder what the point is. Most people in Denmark speak English, and would prefer to do that than listen to me struggle in Danish. I don't even know if I will be going back, or how often, given pandemic travel precautions. I intend to get back to Canada at some point, and though French is less useful than Mandarin or Punjabi or Farsi on the west coast, Danish is a chocolate kettle by comparison. However, I am within shooting distance of the end of the lessons on Duolingo, and would like the satisfaction of seeing something through. Duo's French lessons aren't nearly as methodical as the Danish ones (lesson in national stereotypes there) so even though I know more French already I find them more frustrating. So, do I push through with something relatively useless but more or less fun, or move my energies over to something ultimately more practical and rewarding?
Around 2018 I realised that I was visiting Denmark at least once a year, and France not at all, so it was more practical to learn Danish. It ended up being more fun, too – it's similar enough to English that you can see the common roots in a lot of words and the grammar is uncannily like English from 400 years ago, so my familiarity with Shakespeare and the Book of Common Prayer put me in good stead there. ('Sted' means 'place' in Danish. See?) For having a reputation as a very difficult language to learn, I was finding it a breeze compared to French, especially when I finally tuned my ear to the lack of diction. And, weirdly, spending time on Danish was improving my French, I think because it kept the 'not-English' side of my brain awake: when learning new Danish phrases it would usually say 'Oh, I already know how to say this in not-English,' and give me the French.
I had to leave off languages entirely when I was on my Antarctic trip – mostly because my brain was full already, but also on account of McMurdo not having sufficient internet to run Duolingo – which meant a lot of remedial study when I got back; I didn't have much brain for it then either, but I did push to reacquaint myself before I went back to Denmark in March. Then all the lockdown and moving stress occupied my brain again and I fell off. I've got back to it for the last month or so, but haven't really found a groove, and just jump around the lesson board levelling up sections that have fallen behind, rather than utilising the methodical way it's laid out.
I have really enjoyed learning Danish – it's been much more fun than French which, though I was motivated, always felt like a chore – and when I'm not practising it, I miss it. Looking at the endeavour as a whole, though, I have to wonder what the point is. Most people in Denmark speak English, and would prefer to do that than listen to me struggle in Danish. I don't even know if I will be going back, or how often, given pandemic travel precautions. I intend to get back to Canada at some point, and though French is less useful than Mandarin or Punjabi or Farsi on the west coast, Danish is a chocolate kettle by comparison. However, I am within shooting distance of the end of the lessons on Duolingo, and would like the satisfaction of seeing something through. Duo's French lessons aren't nearly as methodical as the Danish ones (lesson in national stereotypes there) so even though I know more French already I find them more frustrating. So, do I push through with something relatively useless but more or less fun, or move my energies over to something ultimately more practical and rewarding?
no subject
Date: 2020-07-14 11:30 am (UTC)Possibly a cost issue, but are there any community college courses in French that you can take, if Doulingo is a bit frustrating for you to learn French from?
no subject
Date: 2020-07-15 05:34 pm (UTC)Local adult education courses would be the most sensible approach to learning French. They are not free, but they are not so expensive I wouldn't float one course just to see if it helped. I have this weird block against taking formal courses, I think because of my experience in secondary school – what I want is to be able to have a conversation; if it's just going to be grammatical exercises then I may be learning 'proper French' but not getting any closer to my goal; plus I can't guarantee that the teacher knows what on earth they're talking about. I have a great horror of learning something wrong and then having to unlearn it, moreso than the price. It turns out a lot of my bookwork exercises in school were wrong, and while my chances of being taught by an actual French speaker in southeast England are much greater than Utah, it's not a guarantee. And so, as usual when presented with any slightly uncertain choice, I just do nothing.
no subject
Date: 2020-07-15 07:30 pm (UTC)Train magazines can be full of colloquial language - not as advanced slangy as UK tabloid first pages, but still a bit advanced for a beginner learner. I have no knowledge of Duolingo, but are you at that level when you can comfortably read a kid's book in Danish? Kid's books are normally good because the language is a bit easier, but you still get the colloquialness in small doses. But I would still recommend getting a book that you already have read, or can get the English version as well, in case you need help with the language.
When I did a term of community college French (needed to be able to decipher articles for my MA research), the teacher for my class was all for oral learning focussed on holidaying in France... You probably would have liked him better than I did.
Another option - you're near Cambridge, aren't you? - there might be some students doing French lessons - I remember seeing ads for those on the library notice boards in Oxford.
no subject
Date: 2020-07-16 03:48 am (UTC)Could maybe look for Danish graded readers, e.g. books aimed at adult language learners.
I vote Danish over French, but I'm studying Italian in a desultory sort of way, so I've def gone for fun over practicality, haha.