Language Classes, 12/20

[game-of-you.livejournal.com]

Written on the blackboard:

LAST CLASS -- Please hand in your final projects

There is a basket on Dream's desk to collect the papers; next to it sits another basket, full of red-and-green wrapped Christmas chocolates. Dream, now free of the plague of balloons, leans against the blackboard with his arms folded. He manages a smile for each student as they hand in their papers.

Comments

Re: Languages of Europe, 12/20

[actingltcrumpet.livejournal.com]

Though some people, in some kind of misguided attempt at patriotic fervour, might feel it appropriate to eschew any association with the people, languages, and culture of enemy combatant countries, it has been my personal experience that knowing such things is innately useful, particularly for a member of the military service. One never knows when one might be called upon to engage in operations that involve infiltrating enemy camps or meeting with enemy officers under temporary truce, and therefore I would submit that the ability to communicate effectively with them is a highly useful one.

On this note, there are certain tactical advantages to speaking an enemy combatant's language fluently. For one, it becomes more difficult for an enemy communique to employ underhanded games of rhetoric, the more familiar one is with the nuances of the language. In addition, fluency allows one to present a certain air of, if not superiority, equality; one does not wish to present an appearance of incompetent fumbling if one is to maintain a psychological edge.

Tangentially, one's accent can be either a help or a hindrance, and knowing the cultural implications thereof is a useful tool; for instance, one could pose as an ambassador from a neutral nation rather than a native speaker, if one's accent is simply not up to the latter task.