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Learning Journal #9

I found this section of reading to be very interesting; in particular, the sections about dialect reminded me of my experiences with language in India.  As Crystal writes, “dialect” refers to spoken grammar and vocabulary differences (290).  His concept of a “chain of dialects” was something I encountered when travelling throughout India.  He writes that, “At any point in the chain, speakers of a dialect can understand the speakers of other dialects who live in adjacent areas to them; but they find it difficult to understand people who live further along the chain (291).”  This was especially true during the time I spent in villages in India.  My Hindi teachers generally acted as translators for us, but found this much in the villages due to the different dialects there.  Depending on where we were and who was translating, almost all to almost none of the Hindi dialect was intelligible to my professors.  Dialects can definitely complicate the task of learning a language through immersion, as what one is taught in the classroom may be different than what one hears on the street.  I also found the concept of the social dialects very interesting.  One of my Hindi professors, who was a proud part of the Brahmin, or highest caste, told me that he could distinguish a person’s class by the way that person spoke as well as his mannerisms.  This reading showed me that this is actually a well observed phenomenon. 

On a final, and very different note, the concept of introducing a new English sex-neutral pronoun  such as E, ne, thon, mon, heesh, or any of the others Crystal lists (314) seemed a bit unnecessary to me and definitely a result of a certain type of feminist movement.  I don’t find that the lack of a sex-neutral pronoun is a sign of discrimination towards women that needs to be changed; it is merely a quirk or fact of the English language.

Cultural competence, or the ability to interact with people of different cultures, is definitely a skill which needs to be developed over time.  I think it quite usually requires a conscious effort, at least in the beginning.  This is because an important part of cultural competence is an awareness of one’s own culture and the biases that culture may impart.  On top of that, one must also become knowledgeable about the culture he or she wishes to interact in – what are the cultural norms, what types of behavior are acceptable in society?  Understanding the differences can help one behave and relate to people much more appropriately and effectively when in a culture that is not one’s own.  An additional component of cultural competence which goes along with this is the ability to be flexible and accept that one may make cultural mistakes, but that they are to be learned from in the future.

For conversation class this week with my language partner, we talked about cultural aspects of the US that my conversation partner did not understand. So I did my best to explain the significance of Easter and St. Patrick’s day.  That was actually really interesting.

This week I was able to complete my short story in Bangla, and my language partner corrected it for me.  Also this week we finished our first entire Bengali Sesame Street episode!  Now for episode 2!

I have noticed that native speakers do not use the word “and” very often.  While two forms of this word exists, one for linking sentences and another for linking nouns, I rarely hear it.  My language partner explained that instead of saying “I went to the store and then went home”, they would say “having gone to the store, I went home.”  It seems to me that they speak more like we write.  Anyway, this just adds another layer of complexity to learning the language.  Not an insurmountable challenge, but difficult.

The reading this week was great though.  It basically was two different kid’s stories and was about at my level.  I think more readings like this will improve my abilities to tell stories. My goal for next week is to finish writing a short story.

This week my language partner and I continued working on using numbers in Farsi.  Because Farsi uses arabic numbers I have to get used to identifying the new symbols and words.  The symbols are actually kind of cool looking, especially when used to tell time.  To practice with numbers, Maroof would type out numbers and I would have to say them.  We ranged from zero to somewhere around 11 billion.  That's not to say that we practiced every number in between but we practiced each interval between zero and 11 billion.  For example we started with single numbers, then moved to tens, hundreds, thousands, ten-thousands... until we got to billions. It was actually satisfying being able to read a large number based on new symbols after only practicing for a little while. 

While practicing numbers we also practiced time. I learned how to ask what time it was, say the time and count regular intervals of time.  An example of this is that I know how to say it's one-fifty, and also it's ten till two.  Both obviously mean the same thing but I can express it two different ways.  One thing that I might have mentioned in a previous post is that eventhough Farsi uses arabic numbers, Maroof said that in general people use english numbers on digital watches and clocks. 

Maroof also showed me a website that has a bunch of Disney stories in Farsi.  While this is still a little too advanced for me, it gives me a goal to aspire to.  It also helps becasue I am already familiar with the stories. That way, as I'm looking up vocabulary I will already know how that word fits into the story and use it within a context instead of only using it in an isolated instance. 

The readings for this week about languages dying out and being created was especially interesting to me.  I thought the story about the Egyptian pharaoh trying to figure out what the earliest language was, was clever (also a little cruel to those kids but an interesting idea nonetheless).  One thing that I'm not clear on is why there are a bunch of theories that try to explain how language developed.  It seems that all of the theories recognize their own faults and say they can't explain everything.  My issue with it is that one of these theories being right does not exclude the others from being right too.  Basically, that early man could have used a multitude of different ways to create words including mimicking sounds in nature and trying to express emotion. 

Another aspect of the reading that I found relevant was the pidgin languages.  When I started reading about them I immediately thought of the lingua franca from the mediterranean.  I was pleased to see that the author used this as an example later on in the chapter.  I first encountered the lingua franca in Spanish class earlier this semester. We are reading through Miguel de Cervantes' Novelas ejemplares which are a compilation of many of Cervantes' novelas.  Because most of them are based around the mediterranean he mentions the lingua franca which was used as a means to facilitate trade between people who did not speak the same native language. 

Going into spring break I hope to be able to regroup a little bit and re-asses where I am in my language learning program and my goals.  My hope is that I will be able to give more structured time after break to learning Farsi.

I was intrigued by the discussion of the potential death to a language and pigeon languages. One is forced to wonder if English arising as a universal language could potentially contribute to the death of several more minor languages. At the same time, however, I have noticed that many less significant languages have adapted to the influx of English by attempting to teach both their native tongue and English in schools. Additionally, I have witnessed many people adopting English words and putting some sort of native accent on it to make it their own. I would tend to side with this trend of assimilation of languages over the mass death of many of the world's languages.

I have utilized my own creative adaptation of the Thai language at times by repeating phrases that make the most sense to me and by adding English words when necessary and understood by Thai people. For example, the Thai use the English word "computer" with a rising tone at the end. It is definitely reassuring to hear the random English word utilized when attempting to piece together sentences to make meaning of what a fast Thai speaker is saying. The problem with this approach is that only certain people in Thai society would understand my pigeon formulation of Thai language. It is difficult to figure out what exactly I should be trying to learn (extremely formal, slang words or something in the middle). It is certainly reassuring when my Thai language partner tells me that the Thai people will generally understand what I am saying even if I am not speaking their specific dialect or their level of formality. I hope to gain a more in depth understanding of Thai language particulars so that I don’t sound like as much of an outsider to Thai people. Fortunately, I have the opportunity to learn much of the "urban slang" from my Thai language partner who has spent much of his life in Bangkok. I can compare these words to the "rural Isaan slang" that I picked up on while studying in the northeast.

Learning Journal #8

I found most of this section of reading very difficult to get through, as throughout much of it Crystal simply lists languages that belong to each language family.  I did, however, find it interesting that it is believed many of the languages in Eurasia derived from a single language.  This was somewhat surprising to me, because on the surface it seems that many Eurasian languages have evolved to be extremely distinct from one another.  The way in which language reconstruction can be used to provide insight into the daily life of people who spoke it was also extremely interesting.  Crystal shows that cultural elements, along with the types of animals, and greenery that existed in a society may be deduced from the language alone.  Crystal’s assertion that the “dialects” of Chinese such as Mandarin and Cantonese are actually separate languages also caught my attention.  Though they use the same script and share the same cultural history, the Chinese varieties of speech are so dissimilar as to be mutually unintelligible.  Because of this, they may be classified as different languages. 

I think that knowing the history of a language could be useful, especially if one already knows a language which is related to the new language to be learned.  In this case, it would be possible to take advantage of similarities in the languages.  Also, history can provide a great deal of context for the language, which may help elucidate the need for certain vocabulary, for example.

Does language really need saved? The book believes that all 6,000 languages in the world need to be saved in order to keep the diversity of the world intact. They compared it to an endangered species on the wildlife list. However, I disagree with the book and do not believe that every language needs to be saved. Having to save every language is extremely time consuming and not worth the effort. Having so many languages makes communication complicated. The world already has enough problems in its interactions with the other people, there is no need to make an interaction more complicated by not being on the same wavelengths with communication.

Coming from an English background and traveling abroad to cultures that do not have English as a native tongue, I have seen the difficulties in properly communicating what one wants to say.  One can become frustrated when he or she is trying to convey something to another person that does not understand what he or she is saying. What saved me while I was abroad is that many people spoke some form of English. These people were interested in adopting the English language because to them it was seen as the language of the world. Since I speak English I like to think that everybody would like to speak that language. I respect people for wanting to maintain their own culture by speaking their own language, but I do not want to have to do a business meeting in their language. Whatever the majority speaking language in the world is at the time should be the basis as to what should be learned by everybody in the world. For instance, since there is a large influx of Hispanic people in the United States, I have worked hard in speaking the Spanish language because a large portion of people I could potentially come across might only speak Spanish.  Yes it is important to keep your own culture and own tongue. However, it is more important to be able to effectively communicate with other people in the world. Communication is the basis for successful interactions and relationships. That is the primary purpose for why we study a language. Having to understand possibly 5000 different languages in order to communicate with all 6 billion people on the planet is unrealistic and absurd. We should all agree to understand one universal language and then go from there on whether we want to speak another language.

Although I went on a rant here about language needing saved, I just wanted to briefly touch on how languages are created. The book gave so many theories and scientific explanations as to how language came about that it proved that nobody really knows how language came about. There is always a hypothesis but nobody can actually prove how language came about 4000 years ago. 

Cultural assimilation may be the biggest threat to a language dying.  This brings light to the conflict of globalization and the ever so subtle penetration of large firms into different cultures of the world.  Firms that move into these new areas put massive amount of pressure on the indigenous population whether it be political, social or economic.  As this occurs, bilingualism emerges in which many participants being to understand and use the new.  Before you know it, the language that used to be in existence is no longer there.  It is a downward spiral because as individuals stop using this language there are less and less of those with whom to speak.  Therefore, families may not teach their children the language since it may no longer be as useful.

In order to revitalize such languages it is extremely important for the community to take action.  Though it is difficult since funding is lacking, those within the community need to be willing to speak and teach others.  If a language is lost the culture may soon follow and a homogenous world, well, it simply isn’t as interesting or exciting.  Some languages that have been dead for quite some time are being revived as we speak, such as the British Cornish and Manx languages. 

The beginnings of languages, and most commonly these lost languages started out very small.  In fact, they were called Pidgin languages and were used as physical gestures to identify needs and wants.  These languages usually do not last long, maybe a year, as they are meant to provide a quick means of communication between languages.  However, the ones that do stick are dubbed creole languages and they become the mother tongue for communities. 

Creoles present a unique argument in which they suggest that cultures, not matter how different they become, will have strikingly similar languages and customs.  This is due to the fact that if the origin is the same than they are considered monogenetic and do not have many differences.

Some languages may have even been created through oral sounds that were uttered by the reaction to “stimuli” from the outside world.  For example “buzz”, or any onomatopoeia.  This can be built upon as cultures learn to use tools and record such sounds.  As this happens writing forms which creates the language on paper.  Languages will change through the culture including accents which can play a big part in societies like Britain.  Based upon how you speak individuals can tell where you are from and surmise potential upbringing.  All in all, language can be used for many things as discussed above.

The reading for this week focused on reading, writing and speech. The chapter How writing and speech differ analyzes the importance of speech and written text and assess whether one can be substituted for another. The author concludes that although writing and speech are now seen as alternative equal system of linguistic expression, there are various situations when one cannot be substituted for other. He draws on the example of memory and learning where he believes speech cannot be substituted for writing as written records are easier to keep and scan. Reading the chapter about importance of speech and writing, I began to wonder if one was more important than the other.

As a language learner, it is always important to have the written skills; however, the written skills will yield no result if speech is absent. There are various arguments which state that written skills will improve the speech aspect. This is where I differ to most of the arguments. Although I believe it is essential to be able to write and read, I don’t think it will have much of an effect on speaking aspect. As a beginner learner of English, I was able to read and write. I grew up learning how to read and write in English but that did not make me a proficient speaker in English. I struggled often at time with the speech aspects. I lacked the much needed knowledge of pronunciation and also fluency in conversation. I often fell behind during a conversation not because I did not what I wanted to say but because I was not sure of how to say the word. 

Learning a language can be tricky at times. One cannot be considered a fluent speaker of a certain language by only knowing the structure of language; there are various other aspects that have to be considered before one can be proficient. Factors such as the use of body language, slangs, idioms, culture, and expression play a vital role in learning. Each language has its own attributes and is distinct from another language.

            One of the most essential aspects of learning a language is utilizing the “slangs” and “idioms” that exist in the language. When I first came to the United States I was astounded by the fact that English language was full of slangs and people often used slangs to convey their message. I then began to wonder if I used Nepali slangs while speaking Nepali. Soon I realized I was not speaking proper Nepali – it was the combination of commonly used slangs and Nepali words. Words such as “Jhyau” meaning bored is often used in Nepali, however, that word doesn’t have a literal meaning. Similarly, English contains slangs and idioms that are used frequently while speaking. Slangs and idioms such as kill time, bored till death, boo boo, cheesy, chicken etc. when heard by a non-native speaker could make very little sense to them. However if the same language was used in front of a proficient speaker, it would be a part of a normal conversation. Factors such as these contribute highly in making language learning experience challenging. 

Although the reading for this week focused on sound and how it is acquired, the chapter losing your voice made me think about something I have noticed in many non-native speakers of English. Macquarie University is a very diverse University with students from all around the world. The University has large majority of Asian students including students from Indonesia. As I walked passed a group of Indonesian students, I realized how the tone of their voice was louder when they spoke Indonesian. The tone dropped suddenly as soon as they started speaking English. I went to the dining hall and sat near a group of Asian students and listened to how they spoke. While speaking Chinese their tone was loud. I could clearly hear them from another table. But, while speaking English their tone was significantly low. I wondered if such trend is seen among all the internationals students.

As I came back to University of Richmond, I started noticing similar trend among many international students. Although I could hardly tell the difference in some, there were many whose tone of the voice got louder as they spoke their native language. I was curious if I fell in the same category and I asked my friend to notice the difference next time I was talking to my parents. I was surprised to find out I fell under the same category. I wondered why was there sudden change in the tone when switching from one language to another. Although, I believe the answer to that question depends on each language and how they are spoken, there are few things I feel has contributed to the trend.

            It is not necessary for people to raise the tone of their voice while speaking Nepali. However I tend to raise the tone of my voice very frequently. I believe the comfort level in the language has a key role to play in the phenomena. I am very comfortable in Nepali as it is my native language while in English which is an acquired language, I am semi-comfortable. I would much rather speak Nepali with anyone than try to speak English and my confidence is clearly highlighted in the way I speak. Also, adding to the comfort label is the self-belief. If I believe I understand the language well and speak it properly, I am more inclined on speaking with more confidence. However, if I believe I am a learner, I am often hesitant on speaking, and even if I do say something, the tone of my voice would be low. 

Body Language is always an interesting aspect of learning to assimilate in a culture. It plays essential role in being able to speak a language properly. The Chapter how to treat body language provides a general overview of the differences that exists in understanding different languages. The author believe we use gestures , vary our facial expression, make eye contact, and alter our body posture to perform various functions ranging from giving clues about our personality to stating an emotional states. However, body language differs from one country to another. A perfect example of differences in understanding body language would be the use of eye contact.

            Eye contact is often viewed to be essential in communication in the United States. Lack of eye contact can create a sense of discomfort during conversation often leading people to draw parallels to lack of attention. However, lack of eye contact can be seen as a sign of respect in different societies. In Nepal, a younger person is not supposed to maintain eye contact with the older person while talking. If one looks at the eye and maintains eye contact it could be deemed disrespectful and often consider manner less. Also a student barely maintains eye contacts with their professor in order to show their respect to their teachers.

Another example of difference in body language is the use of the sign “thumbs-up”. Normally, in most of the societies the sign thumbs-up refer to something positive. It has a positive connotation and is often associated with “all is well” or “I am winning”. However, in Arab world, as well as parts of West Africa and Asia, it is a symbol of insult, equivalent to giving someone the finger in the West. So it is essential for a language learner to take in consideration the use of body language in different cultures before learning the language. 

Going through the reading assigned for today, I was intrigued by a chapter, how names work. It was fascinating to see how the concept of name varies in different places. The chapter introduces the concept of naming - a place or person, and highlights the two major headings in name studies – personal names and place names. The author reflects on the use of personal names in different cultures and shows how naming system differ greatly from language to language. He refers to a general misconception of using first and last name as the standard form of using names and highlights how different culture use different naming system. In United States of America, Last name is often given importance over the first name and there is a frequent use of middle name which is not the case in Europe where middle name is acquired through special occasions (such as the Catholic ceremony of Confirmation).  The use of middle name is not very common in countries such as Nepal, where people acquire middle name by their choice. When a person is born, their name hardly resembles their parents and the concept of using the same name with different suffix such as Jr. doesn’t exist. Also, the first name is given more importance than the last name and often a person is identified by their first name rather than last name.

            One thing I have noticed after coming to the United States is that the name used in America doesn’t have a literal meaning. The name can be derived from a word similar to the name; however, the name itself doesn’t carry any meaning and is not used while creating a sentence. However, in Nepal a person’s name usually means something and the name itself is used while formulating a sentence. For e.g. Prayas is a word in Nepali which mean “Try again” and it is very common to create a sentence with the name Prayas in it – “Ma padhne prayas gardai chu,”  which if translated in English would be “I am trying to study.”

            In terms of naming place, the author mentions how there are similarity in naming places as the names people give to their surrounding often provide a unique source of information about a society’s history, culture, beliefs and values. For e.g. the name of natural features such as hills, rivers often give information about the hills, rivers – Honolulu (safe harbor). A similar concept is seen in Nepali culture. For e.g. Sagarmatha (Mt. Everest) refer to a highest point. 

Growing up in Nepal has provided me with a unique opportunity to learn languages. I grew up as a native speaker of Nepali however it didn’t take me long to realize I could speak another language as fluently as Nepali. I was in fourth grade when a number of students from India came over to my school in an exchange program. They knew very little of Nepali, which compelled most of the students in the class to communicate with them in Hindi. It was quiet awkward at first to speak Hindi not because I didn’t know the language but because of the similarity between the two languages. There are various words that can be interchanged - For e.g. in Nepali tea is chya and in Hindi it is chai.  Within the span of few months I was able to speak Hindi fluently.

            My first language learning experience was learning how to speak English. As a kid, studying in private school in Nepal, we were taught the basics of English. I knew how to read and write, however, speaking was something that was completely different. One of the biggest challenges I faced while speaking was the differences in pronunciation. Nepal and the United States had very little in common in terms of how people pronounced words. Even the basic words such as hour, geometry, salad, etc are pronounced differently. On top of the differences, it was already hard enough to form sentences and carry out a normal conversation. Factors such as these contributed to my first experience as a language learner.

            As I spent more time in the United States I became more comfortable in speaking. The fact that I was talking mostly to American people helped me immensely in the sense that I could learn from the way they spoke. I realized the best way to learn speaking  is to listen others speak and try to pay close attention to phrasing of the sentences, use of vocabulary, pronunciation and hand gestures.   Soon, I became more confident in speaking however, till today whenever I have to say something I find myself thinking about it in Nepali, and later translating that in English. Although this has helped me become a better speaker, it has also slowed my response time.

            Despite being an Ok speaker, I consider myself a student of English all the time. Every day I yearn to learn something new – a new vocabulary, phrase, pronunciation, etc. After speaking English for almost 5 year, I believe the only way to improve your speaking ability is to speak more and try to leave behind the feeling on not being a native speaker. In order to become proficient in speaking, I have to start communicating more and take confidence from my improvements and express the confidence while I am speaking. 

Of all the readings from How Language Works, I found this portion to be the most interesting.  As I've already mentioned, most of the previous readings have been more of review for me since many of the topics were covered in my linguistics course; this information, however, was new to me and I really enjoyed it.  I was completely shocked to read that on average, a language is dying somewhere in the world every two weeks.  I believe that languages are an extremely important aspect of culture.  Just by viewing the vocabulary of a language, so much can be learned about that culture.  And so, I believe that language preservation is extremely important even as the world becomes more "flat" and globalized.  When traveling, I always note how people of others cultures usually know multiple words in English and are able to communicate in English, even if that communication is very minimal.  While in France, I became easily frustrated when I attempted to speak French in stores and the sales associates (or even street vendors) would insist on responding in English as soon as they noted my American accent.  English has become such an important language to know and tends to be the common language between people of non-English speaking countries.  For this reason, I have often wondered if everyone in the world will just begin to speak a common language, and if that language will be English.  Even though certain aspects of life would become easier with a common language, I would hate for this to happen.  Sure, people would feel more comfortable traveling to foreign countries, business would be easier to conduct, and everyone could enjoy the same television programs, music, and literature, but at what cost?  I believe that if this were to occur, nations would lose a lot of their individuality.  Personally, I love being able to understand multiple languages.  As great as it is to read translated fables by La Fontaine, there's something so satisfying about reading it in the original French, the way it was written and the way it was meant to be read. 

Reading about the revitalization of Hebrew really did give me a sense of hope about the futures of other dying languages.  As the book mentions, the process of revitalization begins once a community realizes that the language is in danger, so I believe that there should be increased awareness in such communities.  Although as also mentioned, in these communities, people are usually worried about their own personal survival and not linguistic survival.  Because of the cost and effort involved in revitalizing a language, it seems to be that people must weigh the importance of the continuance of a language before deciding if that language is worth revitalization.  For me, determining the importance would include looking at the literature of the language, the possibility of the survival of the people who speak the language, and that language's historic role. 

Another aspect of this reading that I found intriguing was the chapter "How languages changes".  In my linguistic studies, I have been fascinated by the evolution of language.  While studying French, I love to focus on etymology.  I find that doing this makes learning new words and remembering their meaning easier, because I understand their history.  I also loved learning about the role that poetry has played in knowing how words used to be pronounced. 

Again, my actual language learning didn't progress as much as I would have liked this week.  I went over telling the time again with Wadia, and I think that this is just something I'm going to have to practice a lot as it combines knowledge of numbers with grammatical knowledge; which is difficult for me to put together at this point.  Wadia also told me that she is going to give me a mini quiz on Thursday to check my progress.  In this quiz she said sthat she will have me write the alphabet, beginning and ending at different points, and have me write the vocabulary that I have learned thus far, as well as the numbers.  This worried me a little because I'm still having some trouble with writing, but after thinking about it I know that this is a good idea for me, because it will force me to really learn the alphabet and my vocab words.  So far, I've been keeping my alphabet list with me and looking up the letters I'm still confused about, but for this quiz, I will have to know these letters by heart and I will not have the option of looking them up when I'm uncertain. 

I also began to get pretty frustrated with Rosetta Stone this week.  Although it's been great for learning new vocab like numbers, colors, clothes, and other random objects, I'm not learning any grammar.  I can repeat sentences about women/men reading/cooking/swimming, but I'm not sure how to form new sentences and am not really learning verb conjugations or sentence structures because Rosetta Stone doesn't single out certain parts of the sentences.  I tried using the books that are available in the cabinet, but didn't find any that I really liked, and also found it to be sort of a nuisance to have to be in the Global Studio to practice the language.  For this reason, I thought it'd be a good idea to buy my own textbook so that I can do more learning in my own apartment when I'm not able to make it to the Global Studio.  I was also thinking about how I am going to continue learning Farsi once I graduate and no longer have the same resourced available, so I really think it's important for me to start a collection of personal resources.  I went onto Amazon and read reviews of a few different Farsi textbooks and learning programs and ended up purchasing the "Living Language" program.  This program is designed for beginners with no previous knowledge of the language, so it's perfect for me.  It includes audio cds, a textbook, and a workbook, so I will be able to still hear word pronunciation, but will also be able to read explanations of the grammar, and then practice and test myself by using the workbook.  I'll be at home over spring break, and the program should arrive next Monday, so I plan on testing it out while I have plenty of time at home.  This is actually perfect timing as I was worried that I wouldn't be able to keep up my Farsi while home.  I'm very excited to try this out and really hope that it accelerates my language learning. 

I found the author's in-depth analysis as to what actually constitutes language fascinating.  I've definitely contemplated as to whether or not animal communication could be considered language.  Also, to what extent body language could be considered "language."  I think that Crystal makes a legitimate point in saying, "human language is productive. Productivity is the capacity to express and understand a potentially infinite number utterances, made by combining sentence elements in new ways and introducing fresh combinations of words...new words are being invented everyday."  However, to completely remove body language (or body communication as he puts it) and facial expressions from the realm of language would be incorrect. 

I found the section on paralanguage to also be very interesting.  Most things that Crystal defines as paralanguages are gestures and sounds that we don't even notice but can have a great influence how proper language is expressed.  Hearing someone giggle or whisper automatically changes the way we interpret what it being said.  By themselves these paralanguages don't constitute much but when paired with proper language they become powerful tools. 

The rest of the sections were somewhat dry but nevertheless interesting.  The complexity involved in speech and hearing is unreal to me.  Yet, most people (people not affected by speech or hearing disabilities) carry out these functions everyday without the slightest idea of these complexities. 

For me, learning new words is all abou repetition.  Whether I see a picture of the word in Turkish or simply see the word listed next to the English translation ie. Çilek=Strawberry, doesn't matter very much.  As soon as I see the translation I simply begin repeating it in my head.  This way, I can learn anywhere at anytime because I don't necessarily need much to learn.  Things like Rosetta Stone definitely help but, again, if I'm given a table with a list of conjugations I will sit down and memorize it and then try and use what I memorized in a conversation.  I would say that my progress up to this point has been pretty good but I could easily digest more vocabulary and will try to do so.

The first section of the book brought me back to my great grandmother, or "ma" as i used to call her when i was little.  Ma could speak Yiddish fluently, and would often hold conversations with me in Yiddish.  I don't remember these conversations but my mom has told me time and time again about them, so I can almost picture them.  Yiddish is almost a dead language, many attribute the huge decline in this language to the Holocaust, a correct and devastating fact.  Page 338 talks about how hard it is to revitalize a language, it states that "the speakers are too few or too old" and with Yiddish that its the actual case.  Ma passed away when I was a child, and thus did my exposure to Yiddish.  It is sad to think that such a special language that I had exposure to will no longer be around.  Languages can be saved, on page 339 the book states that "if the will and funding were available" languages can be saved and perhaps one day that can happen with Yiddish, but for now the language might go extinct. 

Languages can be formed just as they can become extinct.  There are various theories as to how languages begin, however ultimately language serves as one of many outlets for us to express ourselves and communicate with one another.  How languages change was a section that really caught my attention, how we learn about past languages and pronunciations are even more interesting.  Through comparative reconstruction, and written language, we can learn a lot about the history and evolution of language.  Languages change for various reasons: social factors, cultural developments, imperfect learning, social prestige, and more.  We can see how languages evolve just by looking at different generations, what our grandparents say versus our parents and then how we speak.  Languages are always evolving, always changing, and are great reflection of our culture.  So i guess languages are not just a way to communicate, they are a direct reflection of our culture and society.