Is there any point in learning just 'a bit' of several languages? How do you sustain interest for very long periods?
Hey there.
I recently ended my 2 months period of learning Mandarin every day. I had a consistent routine and several ressources, at some point I also had Tandem partners. However, some things brought me away from it. I had some personal issues, plus I'm increasingly afraid of China as a country (if you're not aware of it what's happening with the Uyghurs will probably called one of the biggest human rights violations of the last decades in hindsight).
So now, I can basically not speak any Chinese except for some sentences. I also learned French in school but forgot almost everything. My english skills are pretty decent compared to most of my friends skills. My native language is German. I struggle maintaining interest in most of the languages and I'm wondering how futile my future efforts will be.
But one of the big goals of my life is to learn at least one non-european language properly. There are several reasons for that, among them my philosophy studies, travelling plans, and the idea of being able to immerse yourself in a different culture, and to get a different perspective. I think you know the arguments.
What made me choose Chinese was, that it has an extremely different culture, an entirely different history and also a very rich philosophical tradition. Unlike some other languages it has a very long tradition of writing and it's simply one of the major forces to deal with, both historically and nowadays. But right now I just can't see myself living there. Chinese culture seems so different from what I've known to, and also partly hostile to foreigners, that I don't see a point in trying to get 'immersed'. So I'm searching for alternatives.
Recently I found the Portuguese language intriguing (I listened to a lot of Brazilian music and met some people from Brazil) - but I'm wondering how long my motivation will last if I start learning it now.
I know most people say you need a specific reason to learn a language, and they think that's correct, but my goals are pretty general.
.I plan living in a foreign country after I finished my bachelor and I'm pretty sure, that I will learn about any language pretty quickly if I live there for a year.
Besides that reasons for picking a language would be a) a philosophical or poetic tradition / historical relevance b) non-european c) interesting culture d) general relevance
Some candidates for me are Japanese, Russian, maybe even Arabic or Turkish (think about the Ottoman empire and the big Turkish population in Germany) .
Most of the times I start learning a language people are impressed by how quickly I learn, but then after a while my interest fades. With English that was not the case and I feel fluent in many topics.
Before I decided to learn Chinese I always thought that I had to pick one language and learn it to 'fluency' (whatever that means). I read quite a bit before I picked Chinese (I had several courses on Chinese philosophy and read some general linguistic literature) and now I sort of gave up.
Do you think I should just start learning the languages that I'm curious about, even if I'm pretty sure that they will not be relevant in my life? Is it a waste of time to learn a language for just a couple of months?!
Or Should I just put some more energy in determining a specific language and culture and just go for it?!
Should I just try to force myself to continue Mandarin?
Should I just start and learn bits and pieces of other languages?
Should I try to learn several languages for a while and then pick one that I get more serious about?
If I knew it would not be too expensive I might even consider visiting several countries before opting for one country that I will live in for that year.
I'm suffering from a lack of sleep and my questions are a bit chaotic now, but maybe you can help me somehow.
Any suggestions are welcome!
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