Finding the Library, and Other Adventures in Language Learning
In seventh grade, students in the academic stream were allowed to add a language to their schedule. I chose French, and delighted in the mini dialogues at the beginning of each chapter.
Bonjour, Jeanne! Comment vas-tu? Très bien, merci, et tu?
We went around the room, greeting one another with our newly assigned French names, Marie, Étienne, Pierre. We quickly learned never to address Mademoiselle Brown, our prim spinster teacher, as tu, but rather the more formal vous.
The ALM Program (Audio-Lingual Method) relied on listening to records and memorizing sentences that might come in handy, like asking for directions to the library (où est la biblioteque?). These phrases remain embedded in memory, as evidenced by the ease with which far-flung friends reeled off the lines from their own programs.
Guten Tag Louisa! Wie geht’s? Danke, gut, und dir?
Como estas Carlos? Estoy bien, gracias, y tu?”
Apparently, libraries around the world are more difficult to locate than I ever imagined.
My efforts over the years qualified me to join the French Club trip to Paris my junior year (aided, no doubt, by my parents’ willingness to pony up the fee). Miss Brown donned a beret and shepherded our group to the Louvre and Montmartre. I delighted in “conversing” with the concierge at our modest hotel, where we enthusiastically agreed that it was, indeed, raining.
Having gotten lost on the way to the Eiffel Tower, my friends and I approached a helpful local, who directed us to proceed tous les droits, literally all the rights. After we circled the block, we came to the conclusion that perhaps this was a colloquialism for you’re all right, since we could see the structure straight ahead.
Some years later, in college studying new communication technology, I discovered that it was possible to enroll in an intensive Japanese class. I envisioned myself posted to Tokyo, using my new bilingual skills to build international connections for some corporate giant. Against my advisor’s counsel, I enrolled in the class.
We met for two hours each morning in an immersive session where our teacher spoke only Japanese, occasionally aided by a drawing that clued my classmates (but rarely me) in on the meaning. I made it through greetings, yes and no, but met my Waterloo with apologies. She went around the room bumping into people, and we learned the vast vocabulary of contrition. I am sorry/very sorry for the small/moderate/extreme injury I am about to commit/have just committed/will shortly commit to you (male/female, older/younger, high status/low status). I learned that as a female, the language would never allow me to negotiate as an equal in a business setting, and the gentle suggestion during my first oral exam that perhaps I should transfer into the slower moving class confirmed my decision to apologize for my incompetence and say sayonara.
Over the years, I’ve made it a point to learn a few basic phrases in the language of wherever I’m travelling — the always-useful where is the restroom, please and thank you, a few menu translations. I tried reading some familiar books in translation; El señor y la señora Dursley, que vivían en el número 4 de Privet Drive, estaban orgullosos de decir que eran muy normales, afortunadamente.
Inspired by a trip to rural France, I enrolled in a local Alliance Française class, and discovered that language learning had progressed since the days of finding the library. Now we watched French in Action videos, following the budding romance of Robert, an American visiting Paris (thanks to his mother, his French is perfect) and Mireille (whose younger sister Marie-Laure appears to have a crush on Robert). The attractive pair soon converse using the more intimate tu, visit cafés, cinémas, and cathédrales, and then there’s that mysterious man in black…
Lately, I’ve been spending time learning German on Duolingo in preparation for a European trip. Their gamification of the learning process is appealing and I’ve recently personalized my avatar but am struggling to remember that elephants are masculine (der Elefant) and avocados are feminine (die Avocado), while confusingly a young girl (das Mädchen) is neuter. I was relieved to discover that die Bibliotek ist der drüben (over there) in Duolingoland. Even if I don’t master much German, I’ve got the advertising pitch for upgrading to the paid version down pat.
Books, records, videos, digital games; all have their points, but nothing compares to immersion in a culture. Should I ever find myself in a situation where I urgently require a library or need to apologize for spilling eight kilos of tomatoes or want to go hiking with the elephant, I’ll be prepared. Even if the best I can manage is Entschuldigung, wo ist die Toilette? I know Miss Brown would be pleased.
