Learning a new language is tough, so most of us rather ignore its importance because it’s not something that is beneficial to us in the short-term. Let’s face it, the rewards for learning a new language today are (somewhat) tiny, unless it is a new programming language. I digress. I am talking about languages like Chinese, Indonesian, Japanese, French, Spanish, etc. So we don’t want to learn a new language because it’s not relevant to us now. If that is our best excuse, how about learning a language for long-term? The problem here is not time, the problem here is the word “us”. Let me explain!
Currently, I am studying in a beautiful Asian country called Taiwan, so I get to interact with locals everyday — mostly using funny, awkward signs and my ridiculous “Chinglish”. I should be ashamed of myself. I have to admit that I am so terrible at learning Chinese — I am just not good at it. But I think I found what my problem is. I have recently noticed that I have been demanding my colleagues to learn the English language, so that I could better communicate with them. The thing is they know a little English — well enough do have a dialogue with. So I am not sure what I am really demanding and whether that is my right, especially because I am living in their country. Honestly, after some assessment, I consider my act to be selfish and nothing less. The reason I say this is because I don’t spend too much of my time learning Chinese, to be able to communicate in their language, but I do spend a lot of time demanding that they learn my native language (English), so that I can better communicate with them. If that is not a selfish act, then I don’t know what it is. It’s selfish, rude, and bad manners. Here is why!
I feel that we have a responsibility to respect and care for the language of others, and that it is our duty and responsibility to learn their language so as to be able to communicate in their mother tongue. Not because English is the most spoken language in the world, it entitles us to demand others to learn English. I have come to believe that this demand is unfair, especially if you reside in their country. After some reflection, I have realized that it is our duty to make bigger efforts to understand other people’s first language, and stop ranking languages because it has no important effect. We should learn language to respect culture and show that we care for others. To show that we respect their culture and that we are willing to commit. Maybe this motivates them to learn our language better. I don’t know. I feel like a lot can improve if we look at the problem from a different angle. We shouldn’t learn a language just because it looks nice on our resume. We should learn a new language because we respect and care, and we want to show others that we do so.
