My French teacher always says “Je vais vous expliquer une chose” which is translated literally to “I’m going to explain you a thing” and it’s a perfectly valid expression in French
in Portuguese too
“eu vou te…Yeah, and I’m a medical translator and interpreter, what is your point? Is this a swinging dick contest where only the people with the best linguistic credentials get to intervene? I’m commenting on the tumblr trend of laughing at how other languages work by comparing them to English, and how it annoys me because it makes it look as if English were the norm and all other languages were quirky oddities. You can take it or leave it, it wasn’t a personal attack (I don’t know you) but rather an addition to a theme that has been largely discussed on my blog. As an ESL speaker it bothers me when my language is mocked because it doesn’t work as English, and I’ll keep on complaining. I don’t think commenting on a growing Tumblr trend that laughs at my language is being high and mighty. As I said, it wasn’t a personal attack.
I simply said that I was a French major to give some perspective to my argument, I’m not trying to make this a contest of “linguistic credentials.” I’m also not mocking French in my post, and neither are any of the people who reblogged it. When people make these posts they’re not mocking the language for “not working in English.” No one is laughing at your language, that’s an exaggerated accusation. They’re laughing at the irony that a stupid expression in their own language, English, is totally valid, acceptable, and not funny in another language. No one thinks that other languages are “quirky oddities” or that English is the “norm.” This isn’t as arrogant as you’re making it out to be. I’m sorry that you’re offended by my post but we’re not making fun of any languages. If it comes across a different way to you I apologize, but there’s no mocking going on here. I just want that to be clear for myself and for those who liked/reblogged this post. There are a million posts on tumblr pointing out ridiculous things about English as well.
No as I said it wasn’t a personal attack, nor did I feel offended — it was a comment on a trend where speakers of English laugh at how other languages work because when it’s literally translated it sounds odd, which is becoming viral and is receiving hundreds of thousands of notes to the bafflement of native speakers who don’t get why it’s so funny. I know there’s also posts mocking English but I hope you’ll agree with me it’s a completely different case, because they’re injokes where everyone is part of the joke, whereas posts (not yours specifically) where the OP is not a native speaker put the speakers and its language in question as the but of the joke. As I said, it wasn’t about your post specifically nor it is the worst I’ve seen, it just gave me a chance to rant on one of my pet peeves.
When you put it that way it’s understandable. Your response just struck a chord with me because laughing at another language is the last thing on this earth that I would want to be accused of, because learning a second language has a become a huge part of my life and has helped me grow as a person in more ways than one. I still maintain that my post is not mocking French and that there’s nothing morally wrong with it, but I totally understand your explanation and can sympathize with why you felt the need to say it.
My French teacher always says “Je vais vous expliquer une chose” which is translated literally to “I’m going to explain you a thing” and it’s a perfectly valid expression in French
in Portuguese too
“eu vou te…Yeah, and I’m a medical translator and interpreter, what is your point? Is this a swinging dick contest where only the people with the best linguistic credentials get to intervene? I’m commenting on the tumblr trend of laughing at how other languages work by comparing them to English, and how it annoys me because it makes it look as if English were the norm and all other languages were quirky oddities. You can take it or leave it, it wasn’t a personal attack (I don’t know you) but rather an addition to a theme that has been largely discussed on my blog. As an ESL speaker it bothers me when my language is mocked because it doesn’t work as English, and I’ll keep on complaining. I don’t think commenting on a growing Tumblr trend that laughs at my language is being high and mighty. As I said, it wasn’t a personal attack.
I simply said that I was a French major to give some perspective to my argument, I’m not trying to make this a contest of “linguistic credentials.” I’m also not mocking French in my post, and neither are any of the people who reblogged it. When people make these posts they’re not mocking the language for “not working in English.” No one is laughing at your language, that’s an exaggerated accusation. They’re laughing at the irony that a stupid expression in their own language, English, is totally valid, acceptable, and not funny in another language. No one thinks that other languages are “quirky oddities” or that English is the “norm.” This isn’t as arrogant as you’re making it out to be. I’m sorry that you’re offended by my post but we’re not making fun of any languages. If it comes across a different way to you I apologize, but there’s no mocking going on here. I just want that to be clear for myself and for those who liked/reblogged this post. There are a million posts on tumblr pointing out ridiculous things about English as well.
My French teacher always says “Je vais vous expliquer une chose” which is translated literally to “I’m going to explain you a thing” and it’s a perfectly valid expression in French
in Portuguese too
“eu vou te explicar uma coisa”I think in Spanish too
“Te voy a explicar una cosa”…………………. Still don’t get why tumblr thinks it’s funny to laugh at how other languages work.
…we’re not “laughing at the way other languages work.” No one is questioning that it’s valid in another language, it’s just funny because it’s unusual in English. Don’t act all high and mighty. And the ironic thing is that the people who commented clearly know a thing or two about languages… I’m a French major and I have the utmost respect for language. No one’s laughing in a disrespectful way here.
[12 year old kid from the 50s who plays baseball voice] why i oughta
HES NOT UGLY HES BEAUTIFUL AND FANTASTIC SO FUCK YOU ALL, YOU’LL NEVER KNOW WHAT THOSE YELLOW TEETH MEAN TO ME
In the beginning it was us against them. Most of the audience were not on our side. They wanted to fight you ‘cos you were punk, or you looked punk…Hence having cages over the front ‘cos of the glass and bottles, that’s partly why we moved around so much!
Paul Simonon
