The Detroit times., 1916-09-23
Learning Languages
~ DR.. FRANK CRANE
Copyright, 1915, by Frank Crane)


learn foreign language And there
are many wrong notions on this subject.
Wrong notion l. That it is of little
value to know another tongue than your
own; that ii is better to put in all your
time perfecting yourself in your native
language.
The advantages of learning another
tongue are many. IL is valuable means
toward cultivating the mind. 1t enables
you to understand better the niceties Of
your own idiom. IL is frequently helpful
in business. 1t is useful and delight
full avocation. 1t broadens you.
Wrong notion 2. That some individ-
uals and some races have natural gift
for languages.
This is not true. It is not a matter Of
gift, but of strong will TO learn. arising
from keen interest in the subject.
Those who cannot learn language are
thnSe who do net want to enough and
consequently are not persistent enough.
Those races. such rs the Hungarians.
Russians, and Swiss, who are supposed
to be natural-born linguists, are merely
those who live where various tongues
are spoken. They get used to different
dloms and lose their fear Of trying to
learn. Americans are the poorest lin
GUSTS simply because they live in a
country as large rs Europe where only
one tongue is spoken.
Wrong notion 3. That by Professor
somebody's method you can learn French
or German in three months or thirty
lessons.
1t can't be done. You can commit GER
tain conversational phrases to memory
md learn few rules. Learning q Ian
guage is a matter Of mental growth, and
the mind cannot be forced by any hot
house system. 1t takes two or three
Years TO acquire reasonable proficiency In
foreign tongue
Wrong notion 4. That you do not
need to study the grammar; continual
conversation is all that is necessary
Those who depend upon conversation
alone never learn another tongue well.
They are guilty of the most absurd mis-
takes which they have no means of cor
recting, and which therefore grow upon
hem. A knowledge Of grammar will
save years of practice.
Wrong notion 5.-That children learn
so much more easily than adults.
An intelligent adult if he will apply
less time than child, if he uses the same
lneessant practice.
Wrong notion 6. That one should not
try to speak language until he knows
Il thoroughly and is sure he will make no
mistakes.
This touches one of the most import-
ant points. The most valuable thing wa
can do is to keep trying We must put
aside our sensitiveness to ridicule and
constantly endeavor TO frame our
thoughts in the desired tongue. For
elgners learn English so much mora
readily than we learn their language be-
cause they are not afraid TO keep on talk
ing broken English. having their mis-
takes pointed out and profiting by them.
Wrong notion Z. That the most useful
language to know is French or German.
This used to be true when France DOM
mated Europe and when the youth flock
ed to German schools. 1t will be many
years before German universities recover
their prestige, and French is not nearly
so common thruout the world now as
English.
The most valuable language, on the
whole, for a young American to learn is
Spanish. The next thirty years will wit
ness an enormous increase in our COM
mercial and political intercourse with
Spanish speaking races.
In learning language pound of re
petition is worth ton Of intense study.
Four things are necessary: to speak,
to hear, to read, and to write Constant
practice in all these directions is neces-
sary.