Are there people who just can't do languages?

<<woah!! you must be a genius ... I never meet a person who learn a foreign language only by reading books and listening musics. >>

Just goes to show how easy it is to learn English, as long as you don't go overboard and try to learn all the strange little quirks.

I wonder about this topic more than I should, lol.

Barring an injury to the brain, I tend to think most people are capable of learning a second language. Some people are capable of learning many, many more.

I think people in the US tend to underestimate both the difficulty and the time that it takes to learn a language. On the one hand, learning a language needn't be unpleasant, but the student is not going to learn the language in four weeks.

But what if the learner had a good ear and an eidetic memory? People vary greatly in how quickly they memorize music, for example. What about Kim P., the savant?

How many times do you have to hear a word before you own it? For some people it may be only one time. Other people may need to hear it six or ten times.

<<I think people in the US tend to underestimate both the difficulty and the time that it takes to learn a language. On the one hand, learning a language needn't be unpleasant, but the student is not going to learn the language in four weeks.>>

I thought Winston Churchill claimed that Western Europeans could learn the basics of Engflish in just a few weeks of diligent study? I suppose this means they could read articles written in English, and get the gist of them.

<<I think people in the US tend to underestimate both the difficulty and the time that it takes to learn a language. On the one hand, learning a language needn't be unpleasant, but the student is not going to learn the language in four weeks>>

Very true. A lot of English speakers don't reaslise that it takes most people several years to gain proficiency in a language. They seem to think it is a skill you can acquire within a few weeks.

English speakers do have a terrible record of mastering other tongues but I don't think that's necessarily something to be ashamed of. The rest of the world is busy learning English but there is no obvious language for Britons and Americans to target. For instance, I could dedicate the next 5 years of my life to learning Italian but that would hardly help me if my boss decided to place me in Poland.

What I find truly unforgivable, is the number of English speakers who go and live in another country yet fail to make any recognisable progress with the local language. There can be no excuse for that.

<<What I find truly unforgivable, is the number of English speakers who go and live in another country yet fail to make any recognisable progress with the local language. There can be no excuse for that. >.


Yes there can. There are a lot of good excuses. I just can't be bothered. How's that for an excuse? I'd rather be on a beach drinking beer. You may say "that's disrespectful". I agree. But I am disrespectful. You may say "go back to your own country". I see where you're coming from, but until I am deported I shall go nowhere.

<<Yes there can. There are a lot of good excuses. I just can't be bothered. How's that for an excuse? I'd rather be on a beach drinking beer. You may say "that's disrespectful". I agree. But I am disrespectful. You may say "go back to your own country". I see where you're coming from, but until I am deported I shall go nowhere. >>

Of course, human beings can be a lazy bunch and you can't force a language down someone's throat. But I wonder why any educated person would want want to live in a society where they couldn't understand what other people were saying and not be in a position to talk with the locals in the community.

"But I wonder why any educated person would want want to live in a society where they couldn't understand what other people were saying and not be in a position to talk with the locals in the community."

I see your point and agree with you, but some languages are easier to take on the road quickly. Spanish for English speakers is one of the them. I don't doubt that some Spanish speakers have tried out some Italian on vacation and vice versa.

Living in China for six months isn't long enough for many people to learn the language to any high level. Then, there's the story of an American who was thrust into a situation in Thailand (living with a family with children) who picked up a lot in six months as his Thai "family" just wouldn't let him have any peace and quiet time to himself except in the bathroom. It was a cultural "thing"-they didn't want him to feel lonely.