Korean Job Discussion Forums

[tfunk]

If you ask long-timers whether or not it's worthwhile to learn Korean, the answer is usually "yes" - if you plan to live in Korea.

There is one reason against learning Korean that I would like people to respond to...


Learning Korean makes the country more understandable and therefore less of a bizarre, other-worldly experience.

Sometimes I enjoy Korea because of the sense of alienation, because of the sense of being an outsider looking in, observing a lifestyle that seems weird. I don't get this feeling in Thailand or any of the (admittedly limited) countries I've been to. Korea seems like a different planet. Thailand seems like a different country, different culture.

My question is - does learning Korean take away from your sense of wonder/estrangement with Korea?

Also, learning Korean...have you ever wished you didn't learn Korean?

[happiness]

it makes you see how differently programmed you are. ive read the average American will you use 2000 different words a day and the average Korean will use around 500. Their socail patterns and such are so strict and defined, its rather constricting for a westerner to use. I can speak Korean but I always prefer English, but unfortuantely (or maybe fortunately), I end up using Korean mostly in my day to day activity.

theyre not any less weird, its made me see how alot of people here, when you do have to learn how to deal with various kind of people and situations, but rote expressions and such will do, kind of give up on learning and expanding themselves, which I find alot of the locals do. They just dont need it....and their languge expresses that, and the culture follows suit

less weird? no, i think theyre all cultural awkward, but when awkward is the norm, whos to question them..

well, i think it alienates you from other foreigners, unless their long timers or married or whathaveyou...I havent found many foriegners Ive talked to after a while, they kind of see you as "one of them" not "one of us..." but if thats cool with you....

and then, when people ask me, I tell them learn about 20-50 good phrases, learn to say them clearly, and thatll be enough. My life is richer for speaking Korean (I also speak two more langauges), but Id say you really have to need it, and be willing to go into the headspace where Korean takes you.

thats a long answer than "yeah, do it man!" but I just thought Id say...

[tfunk]

Thanks happiness. I didn't mean to use "weird" in a pejorative sense, I was trying to describe the sense of excitement/difference/newness/awkwardness/alienness that comes with being in a new place.

The first few months I was in Korea was a buzz. Partly a negative experience, partly a positive experience.

Personally, I don't want to become so familiar with Korea that it becomes boring. Part of something being 'not boring' involves it being unpredictable and different. But by learning Korean language I'll essentially be able to understand more about everyday life... events will seem more familiar...less exciting.

??? Maybe I'm way off track here.

[edwardcatflap]

If you don't mind or you like learning languages, it's a no brainer. Overall, learning Korean will improve your time here. If you find learning it a chore, you have to balance the time you spend learning it against the benefits you get. Obviously lifers will get more of these benefits than people here for one or two years.

When you're weighing up the pros and cons you could think of the sense of alienation as a positive or a negative factor. For example sometimes in my own country I find overhearing other people's conversations on public transport interesting but other times it's annoying. Sometimes it's nice to be made a fuss of as a foreigner and have things done for you, other times you just want to be treated like everyone else. But I think that sense of wonder/estrangement will soon wear off, whether you learn the language or not.

[tfunk]

Thanks edwardcatflap, what you say is reasonable.

[Leon]

I'd suggest that everyone who is here for a year or more should at least learn hangul (the writing) as it will make it much easier to do things like use the buses and order food. Also I would recommend that everyone learns the very basics such as hello, thankyou, please give me, etc. Beyond that it's just a matter of if you like learning languages or if it will benefit you, or personal choice. People who can't even read the language will be much more limited than those that spend two or three hours learning how.

[Squire]

I imagine a person's sense of wonder will soon disappear when they can't buy a bus ticket out of their city without help from someone else

[schwa]

I rather like being off on my own cloud while people yammer on around me about banal stuff, its peaceful.

At the same time, its a bit embarrassing that I'm not relatively fluent after all my time in Korea, more like basic functional. I've tried, but I've come to accept that others have a better gift for 2nd language acquisition than I do.

[edwardcatflap]

[JustinC]