For the upcoming couple of weeks after spring break, my language partner and I focused on the 3 different types of pronouns in Korean since they are used very often: interrogative, demonstrative, and personal pronouns.The interrogative and demonstrative pronouns were easy to grasp but I am having a hard time following the use of personal pronouns in the Korean culture.
To begin with, the interrogative pronouns are used to make questions with question words. So I learned that 누구(who-nugu), 언 제 (when-eon jae), 어디 (where-eodi), 뭐 (what-mwo), 어느 (which-eoneu), 어 떤 (what kind of-eoddeon). For the demonstrative pronouns, 여 기(yeo gi) means here, 거기 (geogi) means there (far away from speaker and close to the listener), and 저기 (jeogi) also means there but far away from both the speaker and listener. These weren’t different from the rules used for English that I know of with the simple uses I have learned so it was straightforward to learn these.
However, as soon as we got to the personal pronouns, it got a little crazy as due to the culture of Korea, they aren’t used as they are in the US. This plays very heavily in how respect is a major defining point of the culture. It’s deeply rooted in the language with the honorifics and hierarchy in how to speak to people around you and address them. So in general to say “I” you can say 나 or 저(politer). To say “you”, it can be said as 너 or 그대(politer).
However, personal pronouns are actually not used as often in the Korean language. This is especially in the case of “you.” It sounds more respectful to call someone by their name or title rather than saying “you.” This is very different because we say it all the time in the US. For example, “Hey, what are you doing?” or “Did you get my email?” However, this actually sounds very disrespectful to Koreans and sounds like you’re angry or you don’t like them. This is very interesting because if you don’t know a person’s name that you want to call, you can say 저기요. 저기요 means “over there”,but it’s not disrespectful and you can use it anytime and anywhere. This actually sounds more disrespectful and not something you would use by American standards whereas to me using “you” in sentences seems fine. This is a major cultural difference and clearly shows the importance in how interconnected language is with a culture of a country. Not knowing and not trying to understand the culture of a place will easily make someone seem intentionally rude when they are not trying to be.
Another characteristic of the culture is seen with the pronoun “we.” So to say “us”or “we” in korean, 우리 and 저희(politer) is used. In Korean, Korean people call the things that are their own “our”. For example “my country” in Korean would be “우리 나라" which translates directly to “our country.” People even call their wives with “우리 아내" which means “our wife” directly but it means “my wife.” I remember writing a discussion post on how Koreans emphasize the value of the group that a person belongs to like a person’s country or family. This collectivism aspect seems to be rooted deeply in the way Koreans speak as well as act. Without this insight, it’s hard to make sense of 우리(our) as a language learner. Personally, this aspect of Korean culture where they like to show unity and the huge role of respect is one I admire heavily. However, I don’t know if I can get used to using 저기요 (over here) to address strangers.
A while back, I downloaded the Korean keyboard onto my laptop. I was wary of this because I don’t know which keys are which so I didn’t know how to go about it, other than testing every single key until I found the letter I needed. Therefore, to type Korean, I had been using my phone instead because I also added the Korean keyboard on it. However, recently, I have been using Hangul on my computer more often when I am typing in documents. It has been helpful to type all the letters right below where I am typing my sentences. This lets me look down and find the respective place on the keyboard. As I use some keys more than others, I know the place for some of the Hangul on my computer immediately. With more practice I think I can soon know where all the letters are in Korean on my English keyboard. Every time I am daunted by something, I have realized all it takes is practicing a few more times, and each time you do get better even if it’s only a little bit.
Overall, I am really enjoying self-directed language learning. I appreciate the flexibility with it because I am seeing so much of the culture and really understanding how to apply what I am learning properly. My language partner, Jannette, is amazing! I can’t help but be awed by the Korean culture and the manner in which they do things compared to the norms I know. This class has definitely changed my mindset about language learning and cultures around the world. I wish I had this when learning Spanish because I didn’t take the class with as much of an open and welcoming attitude, especially since I had a lot of trouble. I hope to go back to Spanish at some point. Regardless, with Korean now, the challenging differences have been exciting and allowed me to take a pause and reflect often.
Replies
That's exciting you are becoming able to ask questions. I completely agree with overcoming struggles as they can sometimes make me shy away from learning the language. However, that is how learning occurs. That is awesome you are using your computer to type now, probably very motivating as well. I hope you can continue to learn throughout the summer and beyond!:)