English or French?

I'm sort of in a position to choose which language I will continue to study on a more serious level, and I'm so incredibly undecided! I like both English and French, but they are oh so very different... I'm sure others had to make a similar choice (at least in my country, those are the two main foreign languages, and people who choose to study one have to make the choice).

What have you decided, and how do you feel about your choice now? And I really don't mean to start any fights or debates, so please leave them out of this thread!

Interesting discussion point... I'm intrigued to see what people have to say.

As for me, I'm a native English speaker and I have also studied French and Spanish academically and am now fluent in one and semi-fluent in the other.

My two cents: French is aesthetically very pleasing. English can be as well, but to a lesser extent overall. Expressively, both are very powerful. English is a more active language and French is definitely a more passive language (and sometimes passive-agressive). But both are great.

Vocabulary wise, English wins. (Frenchies will tell you otherwise, but every one of my French friends who has learned English fully has agreed that there is a broader depth of vocabulary with more subtle meanings in English. Stereotypically, French people are not too good with other languages, especially Parisians, so their opinions can be a tad biased. After all, what else do you need to know if you know French! JK :P)

Rhyming and rhythm wise, French wins.

Literature wise, both win for VERY different reasons. French has way more history obviously, and a very strong tradition with depth of character. This is something that perhaps modern English misses.



I can't say which one I'd choose if I were coming from a different place, but there's what I think. Good luck.

I like how you suggest that both languages win when it comes to literature. Whenever I raised that question in my mind, I have always tried to judge only one to be the winner. At first, I thought that French wins with a leap. But the more English literature I read, the more I understood that I have made a mistake in its evaluation.

As far as vocabulary goes, I agree that English has by far the most extensive one, but I can't say that's a good thing! I feel like I know the language well enough to actually "feel" it, but I often get confused whenever I'm trying to decide between two words that have very subtle differences in their meanings! Just the other day, a friend requested me to explain him the difference between "vertigo" and "dizziness," both of which appear in Madonna's song "Bittersweet." I had to turn to google to get the answer, and it was only is some medical dictionary that I discovered them to be close synonyms, with "vertigo" being a more inclusive term, as it could mean not only dizziness, but also lightheadedness and faintness...

Ahhhh! I see your point about the vocuabulary. This could potentially be an issue. It's hard for me to imagine since I've always spoken English, but it makes sense. The only thing I would say is that it's a challenge to be conquered and something to look forward to mastering! :) You don't want your choice to be too easy, right? :P

And besides, from the little I've seen of your writing your English is very good and definitely good enough that it wouldn't take you so long to discover many of the hidden subtleties. However, it's an interesting dilemma you've raised...

Neither. Italian beats them all.

Which language are you better at? Personally, I would rather be PERFECTLY fluent in one foreign language than be at the advanced level in two foreign languages. Choose the one you are better at.

Sorry, I meant to write "than being", not "than be".

Uh, "Guest," I think the way you originally wrote it is correct. :P rather be / than be.

As Shaun said, your English already sounded very good and totally natural [except for your use of incredibly... can't really modify "undecided" with a word saying it's hard to believe. ;) ] so I can only wonder how much more you think you need to study English. Maybe I need to see you write a bit more first.

How's your french? Is it at a similar level? lower? If lower, then maybe you should work on French, because your english seems great.

"Guest," it depends at what level you want to be though. PERFECTLY fluent would mean speaking, writing, reading, and listening are all easy, you're eloquent, and know technical terms, idioms, etc.

I personally also would prefer a high level of fluency before moving on to another, but I also don't mind being a jack-of-all-trades, master of few. ;) and I don't like missing opportunities. Even though my spanish is lacking in advanced vocab and technical terms, and my french is a struggle to speak but easier written, I'm still learning Japanese and might even push a little Hindi. Why? Because I have some great opportunities right now. As long as I ALSO keep up my french and spanish, I think I'll be ok. :)

That's so funny! For some reason I had thought you were French, and was wondering how could a French person have such an impeccable English (no offense to anyone, LOL).

My English is okay, but I thought it would get better if I were to take a few linguistics and literature classes. One day I want to be able to teach a foreign language, and so I'd need to know the why's and the how's!

My French sucks... I really like the language, but I don't get enough time to practice it or even study. I guess that since my goal is to teach, it makes more sense for me to master English, rather than toy around with French. How sad! I wish I could study them all: French, Spanish, Italian... I'm not even gonna mention Swedish! I buried that dream a long time ago :P