All Whacky on the Eastern Front

One of my more noble (More noble? Nobler? Do I really teach this language?) goals here in Korea was to learn the Korean language. After 8 months, which it will be in just a few days, I think I could now comfortably say I can speak beginner Korean. I can communicate how I feel, give terrible directions, muddle through dates and times, and basically explain what I want in the most basic of possible terms to someone who doesn't speak English. I've learned also that I'm not a natural when it comes to learning a language, and that most times common sense and a little insight will get you much farther in a conversation than knowing the right words. I can't count the times that Shannon and I have been in a cab and she's able to answer questions the cab driver has much faster than I am based solely on how he asks them, the look he gives and by remembering that no one ever really asks anything original anymore (where are you from, what do you do here, etc.).

Still, I'm trying to get better, and sometimes having no teacher can be incredibly frustrating. For example, I'm trying to learn how to say "just", as in "I just want cheese on my pizza." No big deal right? Well, here's how it's gone so far...

The first book I went to had two definitions, "o-chik" and "kyeo-oo". Well that makes sense, "just" can have variations to it's meaning. So, I look up "only", which is maybe a more accurate word for what I want. "o-chik" it says, problem solved, right? You'd think so, only (did you catch that there?) even the word "only" can be used different ways, just like "just". So, onto the next book.

I look up "just" first - "kuh-nyang" it says, adding a third word to my list of possible definitions. This obviously doesn't help me,so I look up "only" again in the second book It gives me a fourth word, "mal", adding even more confusion to my definition search. In an attempt to eliminate something, I look up "right" (as in "it's right (just) beside me"), and I get "ba-ro". This is not going well.

My next stop is to use online translators, which of course gives me three more definitions, "da-man", "dan-chi" and "kwon-ri". At this point, I'm completely lost, and practically give up all hope, which is the exact reason why I started writing on the blog here, to vent a little frustration at not being able to sort out the language problems I'm having. However, since starting my entry here, I was able to remember seeing the word "just" used in the context I wanted, and have found that "mal" was the word I wanted, but this kind of situation happens with apoplectic regularity.

A brief lesson in the Korean language: At home, it's pretty easy to slip in and out of formal speaking when necessary. You ease up on the abbreviations, watch the slang, maybe even stiffen your shoulders a bit to look more proper. In Korea, all that holds true, but the language - the words used to form sentences - actually changes. An example was given to me regarding going out for a meal. There are at least three different words for "meal", one that's casually used among close friends, one with people older than you, and one that's highly formal and very respectful. Each word is completely different, it's conjugated differently when used as a verb, yet they all have identical meanings. And it's like this for just about everything; even just asking someone's name can become two completely different sentences without changing the meaning or sentence order, it just depends who you're talking to.

I've finally finished my first Korean language book, so I can occasionally sound as though I know what I'm talking about when speaking. This however has turned into as much of a drawback as a good thing. Korean people who don't know you will talk your head off if they think you know Korean, and they quickly become frustrated when they learn you aren't able to say more than a few basic commands. One taxi driver was so incensed he spent most of the cab ride complaining about English teachers moving to Korea and not learning any of the Korean language before arriving.

Well, that's my language rant for today. I've had to teach a total of 6 hours this week, so I've felt a little bored and restless, and it doesn't feel as though anything has really happened since last time I blogged. With the hockey playoffs on right now, I'm spending more time watching TV on the computer than I am working with the students at school, which seems like a bit of a waste of time and energy, but I really don't have a whole lot else to do. Till next week!