The Official Language Thread II

[katya]

I took French I (college) a couple years ago and am studying my ass of in French II right now. Mais ju suis pressée. Je dois aller au travail.

[Gwaimir Windgem]

I was assigned an article in French for one of my classes! Since my French is more or less non-existent, I didn't read it.

[Jonathan]

That seems rather inane, doesn't it? Unless it was for French class.

My French is rusting at an alarming rate. I did make a half-hearted effort at nurturing it by reading Le Petit Prince recently But if anyone here is up to practising French, I'll be delighted to do so too.

[Earniel]

Le Petit Prince est un joli bouquin mais un peu mince, n'est pas?

J'ai l'idée que ma Français est un peu plus acceptable aujourd'hui, que d'avant. Mais comme c'est affreux quand même!

[Jonathan]

Très bien Eärniel Pour moi, c'est tout le contraire! Même si mon française était ok autrefois, le niveau d'acceptance est tombé comme un couperet de guillotine!

Et oui, Le Petit Prince est mince. Donc je dois commencer doucement avant que j'ose lire des plus grand romans

[Earniel]

C'est alarmant, la vitesse avec laquelle on oublie des choses quand on ne practique pas des autres langues. Mais je fais beaucoup plus d'effort pour lire en Français ces jours-la qu'en école. Je sais mieux écrire en Français, mais ne me demande pas de parler, ça c'est totalement honteux.

Pour lire en Français, je lis des livres de Jules Verne. Celui est presque le seul auteur français que je veux lire. Je ne trouve aucun autre qui m'interesse. Ses livres sont assez court et le vocabulaire est pas trop specialisé.

[Jonathan]

Je reconnais ça. Si quelqu'un essaie de m'addresser en français, je devient presque muet moi-même!

Après l'école, j'avais me promis de lire des romans français. Mais ça c'est quelque chose que j'ai presque jamais fait Le Petit Prince était un exception. Et aussie, l'année dernière j'ai lit une nouvelle de l'auteur Le Clézio. Son langue n'est pas trop compliqué.

Alors, Jules Verne pourra sauver mes connaissances françaises diminuantes. J'ai voulu lire ces livres dans le langue original, peut-être il est enfin temps que je le fasse!

[Earniel]

Moi, je ne deviens pas muet, mais je commence Ã* bégayer, je ne trouve pas les mots les plus simples, je dis des gros bétises etc. Je resemble Ã* quelqu'un de la préhistoire.

Si on m'avais dis en école que je fais si de travail pour lire Français quand je ne dois pas, je n'aurais pas cru. (Oh, les conjugaisons, c'est dur!)

[katya]

Muzukashii ne....

Je comprends qu’est-ce que vous disons, mais je ne peux pas dire très bien. (If I make mistake, and I know I make a lot, please let me know!)

Je toujours dit que je veux étudier le français ou une autre langue, mais quand je n’ai pas de cours français, je n’étudie jamais. >< J’ai commence Ã* lire “L’étranger” en français. Je l’ai lu en englais déjÃ*.

Whenever I think about how much I still have to learn in French I comfort myself by thinking, “Well, at least I know how to say it in Japanese...“

[Gwaimir Windgem]

I've never studied French, but a combination of smatterings of Latin, Portuguese, and Italian, plus a few bits of French bits picked up here and there, enable me to understand most of what you people write, even though I could never formulate a sentence myself.

But I just have to say...

Oh, les conjugaisons, c'est dur!

I totally see you sitting on a cafe patio some autumn day, with a black beret on your head and a bottle of red wine in front of you, lazily taking a drag on your cigarette as you say this, with the faint strains of a distant accordeon in the background.

[Mari]

Originally Posted by Jonathan

That seems rather inane, doesn't it? Unless it was for French class.

I had to read in French and German too for my BA. Here they expect you to at least have some knowledge of both languages if you go to a university even if you haven't studied it really.

[Gwaimir Windgem]

Originally Posted by Jonathan

That seems rather inane, doesn't it? Unless it was for French class.

Nope, this is theology. I think the prof assumed that, since this is Canada, everyone reads French or something... >.>

[Jonathan]

Originally Posted by Eärniel

Moi, je ne deviens pas muet, mais je commence Ã* bégayer, je ne trouve pas les mots les plus simples, je dis des gros bétises etc. Je resemble Ã* quelqu'un de la préhistoire.

Oui, Cro-Magnon est vraiment un site français

Originally Posted by Eärniel

Si on m'avais dis en école que je fais si de travail pour lire Français quand je ne dois pas, je n'aurais pas cru. (Oh, les conjugaisons, c'est dur!)

Mais les conjugasions font la moitié du plaisir quand on parle ce langue! Ah, le passe simple, subjonctif, et le conditionnel passé

Originally Posted by Gwaimir Windgem

Nope, this is theology. I think the prof assumed that, since this is Canada, everyone reads French or something... >.>

Yes, blame Canada

I just learnt that a test next week will be in English, not Swedish. Of course here, knowing English is basically a requirement for getting into a university at all.
I would have complained though if I had to take the test in French, or in German

[Earniel]

Originally Posted by katya

Je comprends qu’est-ce que vous disons, mais je ne peux pas dire très bien. (If I make mistake, and I know I make a lot, please let me know!)

In which case, I think 'parler' is a better choice if you want to say 'I don't speak it very well'. 'Dire' is more like 'to say'.

And we're all bound to make mistakes, so not to worry.

Je toujours dit que je veux étudier le français ou une autre langue, mais quand je n’ai pas de cours français, je n’étudie jamais. ><

Si je n'avais eu pas de leçons on école, je ne pense pas que je puis parler en Français ou en Allemand. Les langues, c'est quelque chose que je ne savais pas apprécier vraiement que après l'école.

Whenever I think about how much I still have to learn in French I comfort myself by thinking, “Well, at least I know how to say it in Japanese...“

I don't think you're ever finished with learning languages. I'm sure that people who are practically bilingual still discover news words every now and then.

Originally Posted by Gwaimir Windgem

I totally see you sitting on a cafe patio some autumn day, with a black beret on your head and a bottle of red wine in front of you, lazily taking a drag on your cigarette as you say this, with the faint strains of a distant accordeon in the background.

You forgot the croissants.

Originally Posted by Jonathan

Oui, Cro-Magnon est vraiment un site français

Ah oui, c'est vrai. C'est domage que tous les grottes avec l'art préhistorique son't inaccessible pour le grand public. Je aimerais tellement de les visiter.

Mais les conjugasions font la moitié du plaisir quand on parle ce langue! Ah, le passe simple, subjonctif, et le conditionnel passé

Je sais, je sais, mais ça ne rends les choses pas plus simple.

Je me suis rendu compte, quand on était on train de regarder un quiz Ã* la télé hier, que je connais les noms des conjugaisons en Français mieux que en le Néerlandais.

[GrayMouser]

In the town where I live, we have one Frenchman, one Italian, and one Spaniard.

They enjoy conversing among themselves to get a break from all us Anglos (Yanks, Canucks, Brits, Saffies, Aussies) that dominate the (small) foreign population.

Each of them knows somewhat of the others' languages; their conversations tend to flow into a kind of generic "Romance" parle that seems to serve quite well.

[Gwaimir Windgem]

Originally Posted by Eärniel

You forgot the croissants.

Aren't croissants a breakfast thing? I didn't envision you having a whole bottle of wine for breakfast! Even I find that a bit excessive!

[Gwaimir Windgem]

Originally Posted by GrayMouser

In the town where I live, we have one Frenchman, one Italian, and one Spaniard.

They enjoy conversing among themselves to get a break from all us Anglos (Yanks, Canucks, Brits, Saffies, Aussies) that dominate the (small) foreign population.

Each of them knows somewhat of the others' languages; their conversations tend to flow into a kind of generic "Romance" parle that seems to serve quite well.

My brother and I occasionally speak a kind of Russian-Portuguese pidgin to each other, with occasional smatterings from our much more meager French, Italian, or German. As long as you don't use English, anything goes. The results can be rather grotesque!

[Jonathan]

Originally Posted by GrayMouser

Each of them knows somewhat of the others' languages; their conversations tend to flow into a kind of generic "Romance" parle that seems to serve quite well.

Having studied both French and Spanish has been immensely helpful on my many trips Italy. There's hardly any need for English at times.

Interlingua, like Esperanto, is a made-up language that is constructed in such a fashion that all who speak a Romance language should be able to understand it. It is basically a mix of common words in the respective languages, with a much simplified grammar (especially verb forms, I reckon).

[katya]

That sounds so cool. I wish I had some more Romance people around to talk to. I'm sure that there are- it's just about finding them. Which reminds me that I should call my new Japanese friend sometime. But I'm so busy all the time, when I finally get a break I don't want to do anything.

When I'm trying to talk French in my head, all the gaps in my knowledge get filled in with Japanese, not English. It's interesting because the grammar, unlike with other Romance languages or even English, is completely different.

[katya]

Je veux croire que je suis une femme qui préfère le Mountain Dew, mais je pense que je vais devenir une femme qui aime le café. J’aime boire un café le matin.

(Mtn. Dew no hou ga kakkoii mon' )