tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5541500.post1535408269027957863..comments2024-03-29T11:29:58.276+09:00Comments on BigHominid's Hairy Chasms: "Run away! Run away!"Kevin Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01328790917314282058noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5541500.post-45507204728367868372012-02-22T15:49:43.789+09:002012-02-22T15:49:43.789+09:00John,
I seriously doubt you'd run from anyone...John,<br /><br />I seriously doubt you'd run from anyone.<br /><br />For what it's worth: if you've got the free time and money, I'd recommend two ten-week intensive sessions at one of the better universities. You'll be amazed at how much you can learn when you're inundated with the language. My own Korean, which was shabby, improved by leaps and bounds from my time in the Korea University course. In 2002, Mom was shocked at how much my speaking ability had matured.<br /><br />You're right: it's easy to "get by" in Seoul, but what does "getting by" entail, if not a sort of glorified tourism? <br /><br />Maybe I'm just wired the wrong way, but when I'm in places like Switzerland or Korea, I'm not all that keen to hang around my own kind (with the exception of only two long-time expat friends), which is why I hit a place like Itaewon only when I'm feeling the Western food jones. Even then, I can get by without such trips.<br /><br />There are, of course, Koreans who do the same thing in reverse: they treat America as an extension of Korea, hanging close to their Koreatowns, doing Korean things, eating Korean food, listening to Korean music, etc. To them I ask: what's the point of going overseas, if that's all you want to do? <br /><br />I remember first cluing into this cultural phenomenon back in high school, when I went to France for the first time (1986): I saw US classmates bringing along their American music and Sony Walkmans; the music acted as a sort of shield or buffer to hold back the foreign reality. Never understood that, not even back then.<br /><br />To be clear, I'm not saying that an expat should go totally native-- I certainly didn't while I was in Korea-- but I do think that all long-term expats should feel some obligation to repay the country that's feeding, clothing, and paying them, and the most meaningful way to do this is through the medium of language.<br /><br />There's been an on-and-off debate in various parts of the Koreablogosphere about this constellation of issues: language learning, assimilation, etc. Many schools of thought are in contention. I'm not as extreme as some, but I do feel that, when I'm living in a foreign country, I shouldn't treat it as an extension of my own. Korea's not there to cater to me; I'm there to learn from it. <br /><br />Some expats get this: they learn the language, they travel around, they read up on Korean history and generally do a much better job than I did of appreciating the culture-- all without losing their Americanness, Canadianness, Britishness, Kiwiness, Aussieness, etc. And they don't do this as tourists, like those folks who rack up temple visits-- instead, they involve themselves deeply in some aspect of the culture (e.g., by being regular meditators at one temple as opposed to being serial temple-hoppers) and anchor themselves in the society that way.Kevin Kimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01328790917314282058noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5541500.post-42661098990365056092012-02-22T09:12:31.256+09:002012-02-22T09:12:31.256+09:00I don't wonder how different Korea really is i...I don't wonder how different Korea really is in this regard? I can tell you that there are people in the US that I'd run from if they approached.<br /><br />Your points on learning the language are fair enough I suppose, but they sting the lazy like me. I made some effort, including tutoring, but my brain just can't seem to grasp the complexity of a new language. Still, my vocabulary does grow incrementally and I can fend for myself at the most basic level. Conversation, no. But the KAL flight attendants smiled when I ordered my beer, and refused the Budweiser, preferring Korean brew all in Korean.<br /><br />I truly do admire my expat friends who have have attained fluency (and for folks here more than a year or two, the majority have). But in fairness, in Seoul it's pretty easy to get by in English, especially with the duo-language signage and transport announcements. I used to oppose such nonsense in the USA but have come to be much more tolerant in that regard for some reason...<br /><br />One thing I've noticed when I do speak Korean at first I'm almost never understood. I think this is because there's an expectation I'll be talking English. Also, my pronunciation is probably really bad.Johnhttp://www.mccrarey.comnoreply@blogger.com