My commitment to Spanish/ Spanish movies
Hello there,
I moved to South Korea 6 weeks ago, teaching English to Korean students of all ages. As you may well know, they don't use romanization here and so everything is written in alien text to me. This however, has for some reason sparked a fire and I now have a strong urge to continue my Spanish. It's very strange that you have to fly half way around the world to then be prompted to practise Spanish every night. I am surrounded by people speaking Korean and I really should be learning Korean but I have real problems listening to the syllables.
I think it's really funny that no one speaks English here and I am learning Spanish and not Korean (lol). In the 6 weeks I've been here I've learnt the numbers. hello, thankyou and goodbye as well as "how much is it"?
In the same time I've learnt an awful lot of Spanish, I speak to various people on Skype and I constantly listen to latino music on my mp3. What I have been attempting to do also is watch movies like "pans labyrinth" first with the subtitles on and then afterwards with them off. I am trying to memorise each seen so I know whats happening so that when I watch again I can understand in Spanish. My problem is that I am having problems connecting the spoken words with meaning. I should be able to understand more words then I do but it is spoken so fast I miss a lot of stuff. I am looking for a film script in Spanish so that I can match the dialogue with the text. Do you think this is a good idea?? I will have to pay for the film script but I am more then happy to if its worthwhile. Any thoughts would be great, thanks.
3 Answers
You're the best judge of how you like to learn, so I'd say yes, that could be great for you. I'd suggest that you consider the type of language in the movie when choosing. For example, I'd choose a screenplay with fairly ordinary people and situations rather than say, science fiction. On the other hand, just liking the movie a lot might be the most important consideration for you. (When you get back to a place with Spanish language TV programs, you'll LOVE closed captioning option, because it gives you exactly what you want: the chance to SEE the same words you're hearing. It's perfect!) Good luck with your Spanish, and I hope you're enjoying the Korean experience. Aren't the bright colors of the temples great?
Jonski, be sure to go to a noraebang--song room/karioki room--with some Koreans while you are in Korea. The Koreans are great singers--get your students to sing for you. (This may not be politically correct, but the joke is that they are "the Irish of Asia:" lots of drinking, singing and fighting.)
You can find many film scripts for free online, whether it be an actual script or just a text document of spanish subtitles. I read along sometimes to movies when there are parts I just cannot understand at all.
