Obama Expects Americans to Learn Spanish
United States Presidential Candidate Barack Obama recently shocked the world by proclaiming his view that learning other languages was vital. Coming in stark contrast to what is viewed elsewhere in the world as a tendency in the United States to remain intentionally ignorant of other languages and cultures, Obama’s remarks insightfully reveal what is becoming a necessity in a global marketplace: knowledge of other languages.
Although English remains the language of businesses in most instances, it is no longer a possibility to expect partners in business deals from other countries to speak English well enough to hammer out the details and complexities of a business deal. Instead, a truly competitive business person will see it as a necessity to learn as many languages as possible to as great a degree possible in order to better facilitate business transactions.
Deciding to learn Spanish is a good starting place, not only for businesses or professionals but also for holiday-makers and those just looking to expand their verbal and mental horizons. Indeed, to learn Spanish, the second most widely-spoken language in the world, can be an almost inestimable boon in many aspects of life. From having a better understanding of a different culture to being able to more effectively communicate with others, anyone attempting to learn Spanish will find a number of incredibly beneficial reasons for doing so.
When even the United States is waking from its linguistic isolationism, now is that time to recognise the steps to take to learn Spanish. Not only is it fun, it can be extremely useful.
There are many non-business reasons to learn Spanish, which range from reading Spanish literature in the original tongue to watching Spanish films without English voice-actors. For the avid literature fan, reading a work in its original language is remarkably different from reading it in translation, and reveals perhaps a more “pure” version of the authorial vision. Films, likewise, utilise certain rhythms of speech which are often lost in the different cadences of the English language. Learn Spanish, though, and you can enjoy these aspects of films and literature in the way in which they were meant to be understood.
It is not always an easy thing to learn Spanish, and in fact you will no doubt encounter rather many difficulties along the path. However, if you truly do want to learn Spanish, perseverance in your attempts will show that difficult hurdles will grow smaller and smaller as the accumulated knowledge of the language grows and interconnects. It is worthwhile to note that the Anglophiles amongst us will surely enjoy their attempts to learn Spanish, as even a precursory knowledge of another language reveals untold new ideas about our own language.
There is no better time to learn Spanish, so why not check out our Learn Spanish Resources?
