Best of the blogs: Power of (imperfect) language

January 21, 2012 at 6:37PM

My current fascination, Kato Lomb, taught herself 21 languages. I'm now devouring her book about how she did it. One of my favorite lines is, "Solely in the world of languages is the amateur of value." This is incredibly true. Being an amateur doctor, engineer or lawyer is of little to no value to society. By contrast, being an amateur in a language can build friendships and bonds, aid in difficult situations and open different doors. Trying to ask in broken French where to catch the bus to the airport is better than staying silent and missing your flight. "We should learn languages because language is the only thing worth knowing even poorly."

MARIELLE FOSTER

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