February Journal Entry
After meeting a couple of times with David, I am learning that I speak a lot more Konglish than I thought. I am almost finding it difficult not to substitute English whenever it is convenient for me. Meeting with David has definitely expanded my vocabulary and allowed me to develop more skills to discern appropriate words for the given context and situation. I’m a couple of episodes into Singles Inferno and I have already learned so much about dating culture in Korea and how much it differs from the culture in America. I am also learning a lot of new terminology that couples use, and I find it so interesting that there is little to no overlap with the terms they use in Korea. Additionally, as we attend church together, I am learning vocabulary that is more specific to my faith, which has allowed me to talk more comfortably to my parents about my church experience. This has increased my range of communication with them and it has allowed them to understand me better with less difficulty. David has also introduced me to a lot of the music he listens to, and while I would not reach for it on my own, it is widening my musical range because I usually stick to the ballads, while he has shown me a lot of R&B. The lyrics engage my brain in a different way, because the context that these songs are written in is so vastly different than the sad ballads about heartbreak. But, after listening to more Korean music, I feel more confident about my songwriting abilities to write lyrics in Korean one day. I hope that I can reach this level of confidence and comfortability to be able to write poems one day as well. An area in which I would like to improve my vocabulary is medical terminology. Both of my parents are slowly reaching the age at which they will have to make more and more hospital visits. I hope to be proficient enough to be able to navigate language barriers and help them with any miscommunications and misunderstandings in the healthcare field and medical system. Being able to do this will allow me to feel helpful, which is very fulfilling for me, and this could be a part of my way of giving back to my parents after all they have done for me. Beyond this, I am still feeling excited about learning more Korean and more about the cultural differences. I am more hopeful that I will reach my desired level of proficiency after meeting with David and reviewing many terms that I don’t know. This has also encouraged me to speak in Korean with my other Korean friends, which has been nice because we get to talk more about ourselves in our native language and share parts of our life that are more intimate and connected to our culture and heritage. I am looking forward to my next meeting with David and documenting my progress more consistently!
After meeting a couple of times with David, I am learning that I speak a lot more Konglish than I thought. I am almost finding it difficult not to substitute English whenever it is convenient for me. Meeting with David has definitely expanded my vocabulary and allowed me to develop more skills to discern appropriate words for the given context and situation. I’m a couple of episodes into Singles Inferno and I have already learned so much about dating culture in Korea and how much it differs from the culture in America. I am also learning a lot of new terminology that couples use, and I find it so interesting that there is little to no overlap with the terms they use in Korea. Additionally, as we attend church together, I am learning vocabulary that is more specific to my faith, which has allowed me to talk more comfortably to my parents about my church experience. This has increased my range of communication with them and it has allowed them to understand me better with less difficulty. David has also introduced me to a lot of the music he listens to, and while I would not reach for it on my own, it is widening my musical range because I usually stick to the ballads, while he has shown me a lot of R&B. The lyrics engage my brain in a different way, because the context that these songs are written in is so vastly different than the sad ballads about heartbreak. But, after listening to more Korean music, I feel more confident about my songwriting abilities to write lyrics in Korean one day. I hope that I can reach this level of confidence and comfortability to be able to write poems one day as well. An area in which I would like to improve my vocabulary is medical terminology. Both of my parents are slowly reaching the age at which they will have to make more and more hospital visits. I hope to be proficient enough to be able to navigate language barriers and help them with any miscommunications and misunderstandings in the healthcare field and medical system. Being able to do this will allow me to feel helpful, which is very fulfilling for me, and this could be a part of my way of giving back to my parents after all they have done for me. Beyond this, I am still feeling excited about learning more Korean and more about the cultural differences. I am more hopeful that I will reach my desired level of proficiency after meeting with David and reviewing many terms that I don’t know. This has also encouraged me to speak in Korean with my other Korean friends, which has been nice because we get to talk more about ourselves in our native language and share parts of our life that are more intimate and connected to our culture and heritage. I am looking forward to my next meeting with David and documenting my progress more consistently!
Comments
I think its interesting that you mentioned you use a lot of Konglish. Maybe this is a universal experience for many Korean-Americans. I think the interchangeable vocabulary and words makes it so accessible but I can also see how it may take away from the sole purpose of speaking solely in Korean.
I've also watched the first couple episodes of Single's Inferno and concur that the show has taught much more beyond the language and also gives a bit of insight into the dating culture of Koreans.