Neonpossum
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Posts posted by Neonpossum
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Hi all!
I've been stuck with my choices a lot over the years. Here is a quick background of my language learning:
I'm a native English speaker, I learned French in school and got a B in my GCSEs. A few years ago I started to learn Japanese, then Spanish, then Norwegian, then Esperanto, then Japanese again... as you can see, I have a lot of interest in many languages but I have problems committing to one. Part of the reason for this is that I have various mental illnesses that make concentrating difficult (bad excuse I know). However I don't want to give up and I strongly believe that I can learn a language if I try hard enough.
I use the pimsleur or teach yourself methods, depending on the language. I also use duolingo and memrise.
The main two I am zoning in on are:
Norwegian:
- At first, I started this one as I know it's close to English and I wanted a language I could progress quickly in. I ended up absolutely falling in love with the language and culture.
- I have various friends in Scandinavia. I found that I was able to understand Swedish and Danish to a degree, and even had a conversation in Norwegian at a few events!
- I am still a beginner of course, but I feel I can progress really quickly in this language.
Japanese:
- I have different reasons for learning Japanese. I am a member of the Shinto faith and wish to fully immerse myself in the rituals and such involved. I also wish to visit Japan and go to Fushimi Inari Taisha.
- It's a dumb reason, but I also watch a lot of anime and read manga. Therefore I would love to be able to consume the media in the original forms, without subtitles.
- My main problem with Japanese is the commitment level needed. I've tried so many times and failed, and although I really want to learn it and it would be a great advantage for me, learning it without a teacher or such is difficult.
Really what I am looking for is some advice... I am sick of moving from language to language and I want to commit myself. I know Norwegian is a lot easier and is a gateway language to other Scandinavian languages, but as Japanese is a goal also I feel that I could be spending my time learning that instead? On the other hand I feel that learning Norwegian may give me the confidence I need to tackle Japanese.
Any advice is welcome! This has been eating at me for so long!
- Matt
First 'second' language learning... cannot decide...
in Language Learning
Posted
Thanks so much for the advice guys! When I think about it, I do think that I have a lot more fun with Norwegian and it is closer to my heart in many ways. I want to learn it because I love the sound of it and everything about it, while with Japanese I feel like I need to learn it because I 'need to'.
So things have become more clear to me now, thanks so much for the help guys