foreign languages?

Question

why is it Americans dislike foreign languages. and by this, I mean languages not spoken in the Americas.
Examples would be French, Russian, Ukranaian, Hindi etc.

Answer 1

Politically speaking american is fond of following "isolationsism" in their dealings with the world. Spanish has become important because of the many spanish speakers. If the spanish people were not in a majority or such a big force, most american wouldn't pay attention to that. It is the simple concept of NIMBY (Not In My BackYard). If things aren't close at home, most people don't care about that. True for practically every country, not only the US.

The problem occurs when globalization sets in. Right now USA is doing well, what happens when these bi-lingual, multi-lingual people leave the US, and go to other countries where things are better? Either America will be in for a rude awakening and changing their education ways at the high school level and below, or get swept away and become a minor player in the world economy.

Most people from Asia, Europe, Africa, South America, may not speak flawless english. But they can operate well enough and speak their own language at the same time. That competitive edge is mostly missing in the educational system. That is why this "isolatinst" policy of USA has created a "dislike" for foreigns and foreigners, their cutlure and their way of life. Which results in everyone having to follow what people have been doing before them, learning english and only english. That is just one aspect of why people in USA don't learn foreign languages as a whole group compared with other countries.

Note to the person before me. I believe the question is not loaded because we are reffering to America as USA, and the people as a whole group, not individual cases. There are always exceptions, differences from the norm, but there are also general trends. Atleast that is how i understood the question. Most of the people i know from USA do indeed learn more languages, but take those people as a percentage of the whole number of people, and that is where we start to generalise.

Answer 2

Whoa! Not all Americans dislike foreign languages, but not being exposed to them at an early age, we are at a disadvantage. It is more difficult to learn a new language when your own language system, (grammar, syntax, lexicon) is very deeply entrenched in your brain. Language studies show that second and third language acquisition is in a different part of the mature brain than first language.
Think of how it was when they brought in the "New Math' a couple of decades ago. Older people couldn't grasp it at all, while the children being taught it had no problem. Language is the same way; it is a formalized system of describing the ethereal imagery of the mind.
Americans, given the chance to study language at an early age, have no more difficulty than Europeans studying at the same age.
That being said, I have traveled over three dozen foreign countries, and can speak a few different languages (with differing degrees of ability), and I have found that almost everywhere, I only needed to speak English. As the language of commerce, it is becoming more important to learn English than any other language today. Americans may see the need for world language study decline as the century moves on.

Answer 3

What makes you think that all Americans dislike foreign languages? Also, when you say "the Americas," do you not also mean Canada, where French is spoken? Does this loaded question include Spanish, as spoken in Spain? (Lo me encanta.)

Part of American public high school education is the requirement of two years studying a foreign language. After studying Spanish for four years in high school, I continued learning the language in college, because I love it.

Am I some sort of American exception, then? I don't tend to think so. My mother studied German; my brother studied French; my sweetheart studied French; my children are learning Spanish. The funny thing is, these are languages spoken in America!

In fact, there isn't a current language you could list that isn't spoken in the United States because this is a land filled with immigrants.

Answer 4

It's not that we truly dislike them; it's mainly that we're unfamiliar with them. People here are used to having everything in their mother tongue. It freaks them out when they see signs or hear people nearby talking in languages they don't understand.

Another thing to bear in mind is the general cultural mindset about learning a foreign language. In the US, a year (ONE little year) of foreign language is required for graduation from high school in most cases. In many school districts, one must have a certain minimum grade in English before starting on any foreign language. Foreign language is treated as something that is difficult. Therefore, many people think so. They don''t realize that they could become familiar with little bits of a language without too much effort. If we started much younger, we'd all have a different attitude toward foreign languages, I say.

I say that because I've seen it. I've worked extensively in countries where foreign language was taught from age 9 or 10 right along with all the other subjects in school and everyone learned it. Sure, some learned it well and some learned it only to pass the tests, but everyone got some exposure to foreign language from a very young age. They really didn't understand the US attitude, but then they also didn't know we never got it as kids. That sure explained a whole lot.

Answer 5

I think it has to do with the vastness of our country and Canada.

You can travel for days and still be in the continental US and hear the same relative American English.

If you travel for mere hours in Europe, you will encounter Dutch, French, Italian, Spanish and German. As a result, Europeans encounter "foreign languages" everyday and have been desensitized about them.

Until recently, most Americans didn't even encounter Spanish, much less daily. The popular perception soon arose that they were "unnecessary," and the "let'em learn American" mentality soon held sway. The truth is, Americans don't do a great job with English. Look at the assanine quality of the English in the questions and answers people unhesitatingly submit.

It's a great shame and embarassment for our country that Americans are unable to master anything but their own vernacular. It reinforces the notion that our nation is dumb and has been "dumbed down."

Answer 6

I like foreign languages. I speak french! and i will take spanish next year...that sux tho cause im goin to a new school and they don't have french(which ive been taking for 6 years)

Answer 7

Most of the Americans are lazy to learn another languages, they simply don't care.They think that America is the Center of the Universe

Answer 8

Because their language is a universal language. And they visitors understand their language. If they travel abroad, they will ben comprehended also. Good for them, but I love to study other cultures and other languages.

Answer 9

He propably Just used Yahoo Bablefish

Answer 10

They not interested in another languages and cultures.