As I had a late start into practicing Korean with a language partner this semester, I still have not learned much new in Korean. On my own, I practice vocabulary to catch up to my past knowledge and to re-familiarize myself with verb endings and other grammar structures. With Alvin, I then practice that vocabulary in a casual conversation.
Being able to practice Korean in this setting, with someone Korean who can correct my grammar as I speak to him, I have learned a lot about forming sentences. My goal is not necessarily to learn new vocabulary but to connect the vocabulary I already know with their respective verbs, connect verbs with verb endings correctly, and understand the nuances between similar verb endings. This is practiced as I work toward my goal of also being able to hold basic conversations, e.g., starting with “What did you do today?” or “What are your plans for Fall Break?” and saying whatever is on my mind that I can mostly articulate in Korean.
Culturally, my biggest problem is that it is hard for me to speak formally. In teaching myself Korean, I can recognize formal structures, but not reproduce them when speaking myself. Also, at the higher levels (such as when addressing groups and when addressing unfamiliar people who are much older than you), there are many similar verb endings that denote formality, and some basic nouns and verbs have a formal version. This all can be very hard to keep track of, and as a foreigner it is difficult to understand why speaking formally is so important and why failing to is seen as so disrespectful, so it can be especially hard to become accustomed to changing how formally you speak in different situations. This will be something that I will need to familiarize myself with in the future, especially if I plan to go back to Korea and make an effort to communicate with people.
With Alvin, I speak to him only slightly formally. This involves adding the ending -yo to verbs at the end of each sentence, and using formal versions of the words I/me. Sometimes even the latter aspect is hard for me to keep track of. As I become better at forming sentences and speaking in Korean, I would like to spend some lessons speaking more formally. Even though it would not make sense culturally as Alvin is only slightly older than I, it would be beneficial for situations in the future in which I would have to deal with older people.
Another cultural aspect that I am starting to be more exposed to is the types of sentences that Koreans ask as they get to know you. For example, it is very common to ask what one’s ideal type is, which is something I had seen in variety shows and already knew the word for. While asking about ideal types is not seen as something serious in Korea--it is more along the lines of fantasizing about what type of person you are interested in--it is very odd in America. In fact, when Alvin initially asked me what my ideal type was, I became flustered and did not answer the question. Just as foreigners here often have to be told how to answer the question “How are you?” I need to familiarize myself with answering common Korean questions, even if they are culturally considered to be weird in America.
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