Learning a New Language
AMONG the most challenging and demanding mental tasks is learning a new language. It would be much easier to learn a language if it were merely a matter of acquiring a new set of words that could be used in the same manner as one’s mother tongue. But this is not the case. Often a person must learn a grammar and a way of thinking that are completely foreign to his native speech.
What is involved might be illustrated with literal translations from several languages into English. According to the New World Translation, Matthew 24:14 is rendered into English as follows: “This good news of the kingdom will be preached in all the inhabited earth for a witness to all the nations; and then the end will come.”
The Greek literally reads: “Will be preached this the good news of the kingdom in whole the inhabited into witness to all the nations, and then will come the end.”
In Spanish these words would be translated as follows: “This good news of the kingdom themselves will preach in all the earth inhabited for witness to all the nations; and then will come the end.”
In Japanese this passage would be: “Kingdom’s this good news, all the nations to a witness for, inhabited all the earth in preached be will. And then the end come will.”
To be conversant in a language requires even more than knowing sentence structure and being able to think in that language. Pronunciation, rhythm and intonation vary from language to language.
Basically, there are no shortcuts in gaining the mastery of a language. Even those who know numerous languages will acknowledge that it required real effort to learn them. When asked whether there is a fast, painless way of learning languages a Scotsman who knows forty-four languages (imagine that!) answers, “No.” Of his own accomplishments in this area, he says: “I’ve learnt them in orthodox fashion, by going to university courses and doing a lot of study on my own. There’s no magic about it. For a difficult language, you have to work just that much harder.”
The person who wants to learn a language should, therefore, be willing to work hard at it. If this is your desire, what can you do? Study the grammar. Read the language as often as you reasonably can. Try to determine the meaning of what you read from its context. Check your conclusions against a dictionary. If possible, associate with people who know the language well, and use at every opportunity what you have learned. Let those who really know the language correct you so that serious mispronunciations and grammatical errors do not become an ingrained part of your speech.
Although a difficult task, learning a new language can be a rich and rewarding experience. It broadens one’s understanding of people and their way of thinking. It can also serve to safeguard a person from the notion that his way of speaking is best. One of the greatest benefits that comes from knowing another language is being able to use it in encouraging and building others up, making them feel needed and appreciated.