Job Discussion Forums

bnix · Joined: 16 Jan 2003 Posts: 645

A couple of hypothetical questions for everyone:
1. How many wars, other manmade disasters,etc.do you think have been caused by the differences in language? Do you think the lack of a common global language has been a significant factor in mankind's inability to solve their differences peacefully?

2.Hypothetically,if sometime in the distant future everyone everywhere in the world is able to speak and understand a common language(oh,let's just say English, for instance), will it lead to greater understanding, less wars or not? Or perhaps,because people will be able to better communicate and understand each other, will there be more p----d off people, more conflicts and more wars? The old "So now I know what you have been trying to pull on us all of these years" syndrome.

3. Where is English on the "most spoken languages" chart? Despite its growing popularity, I know it is not number one...because of China.Is English second or third? Spanish must be high up on that list somewhere.

Hope these questions interest somebody.The forum seems to be in the summer doldrums. And "doors" is on vacation, I guess. Smile

Wolf · Joined: 10 May 2003 Posts: 1245 Location: Middle Earth

Mosley · Joined: 17 Jan 2003 Posts: 158

If I remember correctly, the Japanese Foreign Minister issued a reply to the Allies regarding the Potsdam Declaration. The reply included a word(which escapes me right now) that was translated as "ignore". The subtlety of the Japanese word meant that it could have been translated as "put off until further consideration." In any event, the reply was enough to convince Truman to use the bomb. The possible mistranslation is probably a moot point, anyway: the top Japanese civilian & military leadership was bitterly divided on whether or not to continue fighting. Maybe somebody out there can provide a link relating to the Japanese reply.

Kent F. Kruhoeffer · Joined: 22 Jan 2003 Posts: 2129 Location: 中国

Hello bnix and Co.:

Here are the stats regarding question #3: The top 10 spoken languages of the world are:

1. Mandarin Chinese - 885 million

2. Spanish - 332 million

3. English - 322 million

4. Arabic - 235 million

5. Bengali - 189 million

6. Hindi - 182 million

7. Portuguese - 170 million

8. Russian - 170 million

9. Japanese - 125 million

10. German - 98 million

data courtesy of: http://www.photius.com/rankings/languages2.html

PS: The #5 language came as a surprise! Very Happy

Would never have guessed.

dmb · Joined: 12 Feb 2003 Posts: 8397

bnix, you guess correctly. doors is on vacation but I'm sure he will be back soon with his usual politeness and unique insight into the TEFL world.

Mike_2003 · Joined: 27 Mar 2003 Posts: 344 Location: Bucharest, Romania

2. I'd say religion and nationalism are the biggest culprits when it comes to starting wars, although lack of understanding through a difference in language could go some way to exasperating those issues.

johnslat · Posted: Mon Jun 23, 2003 7:13 am Post subject: War's crazy to begin with

And let's not forget - Greed and the Lust for Power. For all too many wars, conflicts, arguments - even perfect communication wouldn't matter much.
People are most often driven more by emotion, urges and obsessions than by reason.
Regards,
John

Steiner · Joined: 21 Apr 2003 Posts: 573 Location: Hunan China

Roger · Joined: 19 Jan 2003 Posts: 9138

The lingua franca problem is how to choose one of the existing natural and national tongues! Any choice would have to be arbitrary, and would be construed to be biased against other contenders.
English may be the most widely accepted or tolerated one (which does not mean it is liked or respected proportionately).
The most neutral choice would be for Esperanto. However, not many people seem to be promoting it! There is a huge psychological hurdle. Presige? No nationality attached to it?

richard ame · Joined: 16 Jan 2003 Posts: 319 Location: Republic of Turkey

Hi it's me
The numbers kent gave are a little on the low side INMO I would have thought that the numbers would be higher especially if you include those countries where it is used as a second language .

Tong Dawei · Joined: 31 Jan 2003 Posts: 215

I am inclined to give Johnslat's view (greed and lust for power) credence over the lack of a universal language hypothesis. To go a bit further, i am toying with the idea that it is the frailty of the male ego that begets greed and lust for power. I am interested to know anyone else's take on this persuasion. I grant you that the conquests of Catherine the Great in the Crimea tend to poke a hole in the reasoning that frailty of one's ego is strictly a masculine phenomenon.

johnslat

Dear Tong Dawei,
Well, not only Catherine - there have been others:
Cleopatra
Semiramis
Zenobia
Hau Mu-Lan China
Julia Berenice - Judea
Iulia Agrippina, Roman Empire
Queen Aife of Alba, Scotland
Iulia Domna, Roman Empire
Boudicca
Elizabeth I
( and " Bloody " Mary, Queen of Scots )
Maggie Thatcher
Golda Meir
Benazir Bhutto
Eva Peron
Imelda Marcos
Cixi or Tz'u-hsi or Hsiao-ch'in ( the " Dowager Empress " of China
Sirimavo Bandaranaike, Prime Minister, Sri Lanka
Khaleda Zia, Bangladesh
Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunge, Sri Lanka
Claudette Werleigh, Haiti, Prime Minister
Sheikh Hasina Wajed, Bangladesh

While not ALL of these have displayed an excessive love of power and/or of greed, none of them were exactly " shrinking violets ", either.
Regards,
John

zakiah25 · Joined: 09 Feb 2003 Posts: 155 Location: Oman

Queen Hatshepsut of Eqypt
Dowager Empress Tsu Hsi of China
Lucretia Borgia
Helen of Troy ? (possible real character)
Delilah
Madame Curie
Empress Marie Theresa of Austria
Florence Nightingale
Joan of Arc
Emily Pankhurst
Mata Hari
Eva Peron
Eleanor of Aquitaine
Balquis, Queen of Sheba
Indira Ghandhi
Agrippina, Nero's mother - daughter of Germanicus and sister to Caligula and survivor of various assassination attempts
and of course.......
Oprah Winfrey ? (who else makes as much money as she does?)
sorry John after checking I've repeated a few from your list

Irish · Joined: 13 Jan 2003 Posts: 371

Well, I certainly can't top those lists--especially not Zakiah's last entry. The thought of Oprah becoming world dictator is enough to give me nightmares for a week.

Seriously, though, I'm not sure I buy the "male ego" argument. While I admit that I don't know much about men (and have a couple of ex-boyfriends who could support my argument if they'd consent to speak to me), I think greed and lust for power is a human trait rather than a masculine one. One key difference is that men have typically* had more opportunities to do something about it on a grand scale. Given the right circumstances, many women can do just as well (or badly, depending on your perspective) as men.

But that's just my opinion.

* Note--sweeping generalization. Not all subjects conform to type. Your mileage may vary. If symptoms persist, consult primary care provider.

Dr.J · Joined: 09 May 2003 Posts: 304 Location: usually Japan

Well a single language isn't the answer, but it's a step forward.

Unless, of course God comes down and says "what the hell is this one-language thing? no you don't, not again!" and POW! we're all split into little tribes again. What were you so afraid of God!? huh!?

And Esperanto?...shadappa ya face!