Learning a Foreign Language and Truth

The practical benefits of acquiring a foreign language are vast and well-known, but little credence is given to the humane reasons for foreign language study. This series will explore the many ways in which studying a foreign language serves in the development of the human person and the cultivation of virtue, and in this first article I am going to describe the connection between stugying a foreign language and truth.

The impact of learning a foreign language can be illustrated through Plato’s cave analogy. Plato describes people who have been imprisoned in a cave their entire lives, bound in chains so that they are only able to look straight in front of them at a blank wall. Behind the captives is a small ledge and behind the ledge people carry cutouts of various forms of living things which, by the light of a fire, cast a shadow on the wall in front of the captives. As the people carrying the puppets march along, they say the names of the objects they are imaging onto the wall. Never having seen a real dog or a real cat, the captives believe the shadows on the wall of the cave to be the actual creatures. Plato hypothesizes what would happen if one of the captives were to break free of the bonds and ascend out from the cave and into the light of the real world. It is not until this captive ascends out of the cave that he understands the limitations of his knowledge living in the cave and the truth of reality. Through his ascension out of the cave, the prisoner gains an understanding of himself and his captivity (self-awareness) as well as an understanding of the world. Similarly, when students embark upon foreign language study, they begin to see their own language, culture, and way of life from an objective, outside point of view and they have a deeper understanding of the world. Below are five ways that students experience truth through the study of another language.

1.       Learning a foreign language allows the student to see truths about her native language that would otherwise remain hidden. Most students would not give thought to why the English alphabet has 26 letters, why adjectives are placed before nouns, or what it means to conjugate a verb. When we study the grammar of our native tongue, these rules are understood to be because they simply are. However, when studying a new language, students are faced with differences in these areas which forces them to think about the underlying structure of their primary language. Let’s begin by taking a look at the alphabet as an example. In the Spanish alphabet, not only are there more letters than in the English alphabet, the number of letters included in their alphabet may differ depending on who you ask. The phoneme “ch” was at one time a “letter” of the Spanish alphabet up until its recent exile. Understanding these facts about the Spanish alphabet elicits questions about our own alphabet. What sorts of different sounds does English contain that could be considered additional letters of the alphabet? Could we decide to change our alphabet by adding or deleting letters? Who would have such an authority? Who are the “keepers” of the English language?

Another difference between Spanish and English is that in Spanish adjectives, for the most part, are placed after the noun they modify. Why does English place the adjective before the noun? Does one way bring about greater understanding and ease of communication or is it simply a matter of preference and tradition? Further, in Spanish adjectives must agree in gender and number with the noun being modified. How can an adjective be plural? Why do words in Spanish have gender? How does classifying words according to gender change how a language is used?

Before I began studying Spanish in High School, I had no idea that such a thing as conjugating a verb existed. I knew that English verbs needed to match the subject, but I had never given thought to the process or rules for doing so. I knew the correct form because it “sounded right.”  In studying Spanish I learned that English, for all its challenges and difficulties, has a relatively easy system of verb conjugations, which explains why most grammar books do not teach the rules explicitly through conjugation tables. In English a verb is either singular or plural, depending on the subject. It’s as simple as that. Spanish, and most other languages, however, have complex conjugations that must be mastered in order to speak and write properly. Verb endings change according to whether the subject is 1st person, 2nd person, or 3rd person as well as singular/plural.

2.       Learning a foreign language allows the student to see truths about his community. When a student begins to understand the people who comprise the target language, he begins to notice truths about the people in his own community. In Spain, for example, the older generations still take an afternoon siesta; however, the younger generations do not follow this tradition. What traditions in my local community are becoming obsolete with the older generations? Are these traditions worth struggling to maintain, or is letting them go a sign of forward progression?

In Guatemala families share a large meal together at lunchtime whereas dinner is a light, simple affair. Is it healthier for the body to have the main meal in the middle of the day or in the evening? Dinner is served very late in Spain, sometimes at 10:00 PM, just before bed time. How do these different meal traditions impact community and fellowship? Physical health?

The Spanish language has a completely different verb tense for addressing people in positions of respect and peers. This gives students the opportunity to contemplate where to draw the line between formal and informal address, as well as how we might show respect for those in authority in our own langauge. In English, how does our language change when we interact with adults and people in positions of respect as compared to our friends? Does our grammar change or is it only word choice and tone that change?

3.       Learning a foreign language allows the student to see truths about his culture. Dancing is an integral part of Latin-American culture, but not as culturally significant to native English-speakers. How does dancing unite a culture? What does the lack of dancing in English speaking cultures reveal about our cultural identity, if anything?

Latin American culture as a generalization is more affectionate than that of the US. Spanish-speakers commonly refer to their children as “my love,” “my heaven,” “my precious”; whereas, in English calling someone “my precious” will likely connote an unhealthy possessive relationship. Even when not using an affectionate pet name, Spanish-speakers directly address their sons and daughters as “my son” and “my daughter” noting their placement within the familial structure. While English speakers show affection to children, it seems to be less so than in Hispanic culture. Is one way of interacting better than the other or are these simply differences?

Similarly personal space means something different in Spanish-speaking countries than in the US. What we might consider invasive, a Spanish-speaker might consider normal, and what we might consider normal, a Spanish speaker might consider distant or rude. The same goes for addressing another person. Whether in business or personal interactions, it is common etiquette in Spanish to speak around the topic at first rather than getting directly to the point. A personal connection must first be established before the business at hand can be addressed. Going straight to the point is considered uncaring and impolite. What do these differences show us about the priorities of each of our cultures?

4.       Learning a foreign language allows the student to see truths about humanity. When a student embarks upon the study of an additional language, the people who speak that language become real people rather than simply “those people over there.” The people of the culture being studied become 3-dimensional with increasing clarity as the student develops a deeper understanding of the culture. They become people with a history, with hopes, with struggles, and with stories, more similar to the student herself than not, because she realizes that all people share universal truths common to the human person. Students are able to form a connection with speakers of the target language in general by understanding the core of who they are: their language. These connections and ways of seeing others helps to develop empathy within the student.

5.       Learning a foreign language allows the student to see truths about creation. Humans are but a tiny part of God’s masterful creation, and as individuals, we are but a small part of the entire world. Studying a new language expands a student’s knowledge of the world, helping him to see that it is a much bigger place than the student’s own town/city/state/country and that the means of communication are much bigger than the student’s own native language. Understanding himself as a small part of God’s amazing creation helps to develop humility within the student.

As various studies have shown, learning a foreign language has many benefits from improving memory and cognitive ability to increased employment opportunities. While these benefits are good, they fall short of the greater purpose of education: to develop the whole person through the cultivation of virtue. Learning a foreign language helps to accomplish the true purpose of education within the student by inviting him to ascend out of the cave and see, understand, and participate in the beauty of a diverse creation.

Heather Magnuson M.Ed.

Heather is offering Spanish I and Spanish II through Kepler Education for the 2024-2025 academic year.