By continuing you agree to eChinacities's Privacy Policy .
Sign up with Google
Sign up with Facebook
Q: To those studying/fluent in Chinese: does it feel like a neanderthal language?
Don't get me wrong - I think Chinese is the most beautiful language on earth (especially when my wife speaks it), but I can't get over the idea that I'm speaking caveman. The grammar, and the way words are created/strung together, makes me feel dumb. Really dumb.
I love the language and all, but has anyone else experienced this? I actually feel pretty bad for thinking this way, but it's how I feel. If you experienced this, how do you get over it?
11 years 10 weeks ago in Teaching & Learning - China
i did attempt to study it. and yes it does. when i was younger we would joke around and talk like tarzan "me tarzan, you jane" and when you look at chinese in english, it sounds just like it.
chinese does not have many articles and particles (i know very little terminology) and in many cases leaves out the verb.
so it is actually funny to me to watch the behaviors and then relate back to the language. a perfect fit.
Yes, it is as 'caveman' as it gets. But like you Hulk, I still love it.
It's really caveman style, mixed with some Yoda. You think that would make it an easy language, but then KAPOW! Here's 100+ different "measure" words!
I might be a caveman, I've never felt this way in my few years of studying.
Probably the most common skipped would be 'to be' so you would say "I at home", not I am at home...
As well as a lack of a plural form, meaning you would say "I have 5 apple. "
To me it only sounds caveman if you directly translate this way.
I am interested in which words make you feel dumb?
Hulk:
Actually, everything makes me feel dumb. EDIT: And that's the problem, really. I can't help but "directly translate" it. If it's any consolation to Chinese readers, they think the same about me when I use English grammar to speak Chinese.
Flemingo:
I studied and majored in Chinese at university at home, but it has taken nearly two years in China to get past translating everything I say, but now, well, I'm by no means fluent, but I do think a lot in Chinese, when I talk to people at home sometimes I trip and use the Chinese in the middle of my English sentences.
beautiful language,,, really ? To me one of the most grating noises I have ever heard in my life is that screeching noise Chinese females make. sth like 'eeeeyang' or sth like that,,, it cuts right through my brain! Sounds horrid to me, as does most all the sounds of the language. Granted, most of it is Cantonese, but I am not sure Putonghua sounds any better.
Hulk:
When my mother-in-law speaks Chinese, all I hear is a monkey hooting. AROOOOOOOO ARAHHHHHHHHHH AROOOOOOOO AROOOOOOOOOOOO.
When my wife speaks it, it's incredibly beautiful. When others speak it, it sounds good. Also, the hanzi (pictographs/characters) are really beautiful as well.
Hulk / Pogger,
I am really not one to talk about Chinese as I am still a beginner after two years, but I have studied languages and I've talked to many linguists, and I suspect you are making a very common mistake, (btw one that I too make) and that is translating. If you want to get to a decent level in any language, according to the linguists, the most important thing to learn is NOT to translate, you need to think in that language, you will have noted when your thinking in English, as you walk through life you look around and see trees, buildings, houses, food etc etc and you 'think' about them in English. When you can do that in Chinese (or any other language) then you will learn quickly, and I suspect, then you won't feel so 'dumb'.
NOTE: As I said, this is what I've been told, personally my Chinese is still way too poor to do this.
Hulk:
Yeah, I know this is my problem and I definitely agree with you. However, I can't seem to get past the translation phase. It's like a mental block... "ME TARZAN, YOU JANE."
I think the language is actually quite ingenious. No tenses, no need to change the words, no plurals, no sexes (like in French), no a/the. The fact that the language doesn't have any of these, and the fact that the exact same characters and pretty much the same words have been used for thousands of years makes it, in my opinion, quite an amazing language. If you've just started learning it, it might seem a bit "basic" or whatever, but once you really get into it, it's beautiful. Chinese poetry is absolutely great. I can't even begin to describe how amazing it is. The meaning that one character can contain is just crazy, and so beautifully deep poems can be created with just a few characters.
Stick at it, and it gets really good. You'll start to see the problems with the English language after a while, and the beauty of its simplicity.
xunliang:
Erm....... I said as in French like Le and La. Obviously you didn't learn a European language at school. All nouns in French are either male or female. For example for "the church" ( church is female) you say la cathedrale. For male things you use le. Nice try though, lol. I obviously knew the Chinese could tell the difference between a male and female person.
Hulk:
Correct. I've never even looked into french or any other european languages. It's never had any appeal to me. That's interesting to know, so thank you.
I also find the Chinese language interesting, but at the same time infuriating. It is very economical with the way it uses it's tones and recycles it's words When my wife speaks Chinese to her friend, it sounds like they are making music. One the other hand, the local dialects are like screeching animal sounds in comparison. I hate listening to local language.
On another hand (I have three), it is very ambiguous at times. Have you ever listened to people carry on an extensive conversation over what should be a very simple statement? Sometimes several confirmations are required before a conversation in Chinese can be closed. I think this is do to the vagueness of some of the terms and the similarity of some of the tones. Very interesting to observe.
Hulk:
LOL. Animal screeching sounds.
That's exactly it. The MIL sounds like a monkey since she almost never speaks Mandarin.
If your Chinese level is anything like my own, I think I can understand. I'm capable of dealing with most situations and being understood, but in comparison to native speakers it is still relatively elementary. Kind of caveman. Just gotta keep pushing on with it till you're able to express yourself more articulately.
