In which language do you prefer doing the following things?

Question

In which language do you prefer:

reading poetry?
reading fiction?
reading non-fiction?
listening to music?
writing?
having a debate?

Why?

Here are what my answers would be (keeping in mind that I only speak English and Spanish with any proficiency):

reading poetry? Spanish
reading fiction? Spanish
reading non-fiction? English
listening to music? Depends on the kind of music, but mostly Spanish
writing? I express myself better in English, but it's more fun and challenging for me to write in Spanish
having a debate? English

Why? In my mind, Spanish is more artistic and beautiful sounding, I hated poetry until I read it in Spanish, for example. English seems more exact to me, which is why I prefer to debate in English (and also because I like to choose my words with care and precision, and I can only do that in English at this point because it's the only language I'm fluent in)

Answer 1

Actually I agree with everything you wrote, except reading fiction, I'm 3x faster at reading in English than Spanish and I like my stories to "boogie along."

But just a little "irrelevant trivia" for you, the reason that English has such a precision is that it has both Germanic and French/Latin roots (dating from the Norman invasion). It is this duality which has helped English to develop its ability to express in many ways. ( I read too much...)

y por cierto habra muchos ignorantes que van a escribir que deberiamos usar solomente ingles...blah, blah, blah

Answer 2

Reading poetry: Spanish (the same reason you used)
Writing poetry (I know you didn't ask it, I don't know why I wrote it, still, her it is) : English because the words "flow" better that way
Reading fiction: Spanish mostly, English is ok too.
Reading non-fiction: Spanish because it is easier for me to understand it
Listening to music: Italian, Spanish and English mostly, though French is good too
Writing: Spanish because I can express better all my ideas, English is (again) ok too, though I prefer my native language
Having a debate: English or Spanish, it's the same. I would also love to debate in French, but I am not able of it yet.

Have a nice day! and, by the way, excellent question

Answer 3

My own language, English, except possibly listening to music. The reason is because I'm more confident in it. I love to read because I get lost in the story. I have a harder time getting lost in the story when I'm reading French, the only other language I'm proficient enough to actually read a book in. When I debate/argue with my husband, I always lapse into English even if we start in French because I can have the upper hand that way. (I'm terrible, aren't I?) Poetry is all about the power of language, and I don't have a good enough grasp on any language but English to fully appreciate its power in poetry. However, listening to music is sometimes nice in another language. And it's usually best if I never get the translation. One of my favorite songs is by a local artist from my husband's country. It's in a language I don't understand. When I asked him what it meant, (I thought it was so romantic) he told me it was warning students to stay in school and study. I wish I didn't know that because now it isn't so beautiful to me. Then there was this compelling song that was popular when I lived in Greece. I bought the CD and listened to the song over and over until I was able to translate the lyrics. It was about a little red car that had been wrecked and how much the singer missed her little red car. What a disappointment.

Answer 4

Reading poetry/fiction/non-fiction? Any language. It depends on the writer, of course. But I'll read the original rather than a translation, if possible.

Listening to music? Italian. That's a beautiful and musical language.

Writing? It depends. If I'm writing ideas, I'd rather use my language, Spanish. If I'm writing emotions, I'd rather use English, which I feel more detached from. And if I'm writing for the fun of it, I'd rather use Ido, an international language, which lends itself more easily to literary experimentation.

Having a debate? Preferably Spanish, for the same reasons as you, but if the debate is good, I'll learn the language...

Answer 5

Reading poetry: Russian and English equally
Fiction: English
Non-Fiction: English
Music: DEFINITELY Russian. I hate american music (at least modern american music).
Writing: English
Having a debate: Russian and English equally. Spanish too.

Oh and in case you haven't figured out, I know Russian and English and I also know some spanish.

Answer 6

reading poetry? spanish
reading fiction? english
reading non-fiction? english
listening to music? spanish, though i love italian as well
writing? english
having a debate? probably english...maybe spanish

Why? i love spanish music and poetry...its sounds better? like you said.

Answer 7

English and Spanish. Except i don't read poetry. For music mostly spanish.

Answer 8

reading poetry: persian....there are really nice and meaningful poems in farsi

reading fintion and non-fiction: english...

listening to music: arabic...really gets one moving plus its soothing not a headache

writing: french, arabic, urdu, english, spanish, and punjabi....there are some words in all of these languages that the other does not contain.

having a debate: sign language, doesn't create a scene and no noice what so ever! :P

Answer 9

Since language is a tool for communication, it would make no sense to give any answer but my native language. I speak Russian, Hebrew, French and English, and I've read, listened and debated in all of them. It's impossible to become more comfortable with a foreign language than your own.

Answer 10

English to all except music... I do like a good Italian opera.

Why? It is the language I am most fluent in. Plus, it is the language that most people speak as a second language.