Je ne parle pas bien francais....

Let's take a moment to talk about language.

Even as an English major I have a very limited comprehension of the structure of the English language. Of course I have taken endless classes about writing style, sentence composure, grammar, and so much more; but still I cannot fully appreciate the complexities of my own language.

Why?

Language professionals, I am sure, could answer this question with endless lists of technical jargon explaining why native speakers do not understand the workings of their own tongue. However I am not a language professional. My simple answer is this: we were born into it. Just like breathing, we were born to learn language from infancy. Before we could even remember, our brains were working to mimic words and connect them to objects we could see and touch in order to communicate with others around us. We think about our language about as hard as we think about walking. The only times we pay attention to the way we say or write things are when it is important (like in this blog post, for example).

Now, let's talk about learning a second language.

Learning a foreign language is an entirely different ball game. Unless you are fortunate enough to have been born into a multilingual home, chances are you weren't born with the ability to speak more than one. In order to pick up extra languages later in life, our brains have to work extremely hard to rewire all of our "language centers". (Bear with me, I told you I wasn't a professional.) Every single piece of a new language needs to be concentrated on and thought about. You have to point at a notebook and say "cahier". Hold a notebook and say again, "cahier". Write a billion times, "notebook = cahier". Every single time you see a notebook, you first must think "notebook" and search in your brain dictionary to find the french equivalent.

Simple words can cause headaches! Then you enter the terrifying world of stringing words together into sentences. Learning verbs and tenses, different word order, sentence structure, grammar, gender (in some cases). Not to mention you need to learn words that don't even translate to English and then think about propriety and politeness.

EEK! I'm getting anxious just thinking about it. 

As my time abroad comes nearer, I get more excited and more afraid of the language. Even after four years of learning French here in the USA, I realize how little I know of  "la plus belle langue du la monde" (the most beautiful language in the world). People tell me over and over that I know more than I think I do, and they are probably right. Still, it's so scary to think that I will be stranded in a place where I will have such a limited range of verbal expression.

 Me. A writer, reader, and speaker, left without words.

I chose to go to Grenoble specifically because it is a smaller city with less people who speak English. In Paris, they switch to English the moment they realize you are struggling. (I have been to France before, for a 10 day trip with my high school) My minor is in French because I love the culture, the country, and the way it sounds. As a lover of beautiful things, it makes sense for me to be captivated by the smooth, rolling cadence of French. I want to immerse myself in a sea of language and feel the thrill of the moment when complete gibberish becomes a comprehensible phrase. I want to be able to respond fluently to native speakers and hold a complete conversation with my host family.

This will be my biggest challenge by far. It will be hard, frustrating, and absolutely miserable at times, but I know I'm going to be so proud when I come back to the States thinking in French.


PS: Here's a link to an excellent map of France!
http://www.gite.com/art/france-map/map-of-france-regions.jpg