http://concreteacademic.com/2009/11/nothing-means-what-you-think-it-does/ Think sharp: arts, culture, and ideas Mon, 24 May 2010 14:54:11 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 http://concreteacademic.com/2009/11/nothing-means-what-you-think-it-does/comment-page-1/#comment-249 Vlad Tue, 17 Nov 2009 23:21:26 +0000 http://concreteacademic.com/?p=618#comment-249 Plus the arbitrary spelling. Plus the arbitrary spelling.

]]> http://concreteacademic.com/2009/11/nothing-means-what-you-think-it-does/comment-page-1/#comment-248 jeffrey_d_starr Tue, 17 Nov 2009 21:43:52 +0000 http://concreteacademic.com/?p=618#comment-248 Another great article. I think what really supports what Eagleton was saying is the great challenge that faces anyone trying to become fluent in a foreign language (in my case, Japanese). It's one thing to learn the textbook version of a language, but then at some point you face the biggest hurdle - idioms. Every language has them, and if taken at face value can be very confusing: "he went the whole nine yards", "beating around the bush", "don't throw out the baby with the bathwater". I have always sympathized with anyone trying to learn English as a second language. Another great article. I think what really supports what Eagleton was saying is the great challenge that faces anyone trying to become fluent in a foreign language (in my case, Japanese). It's one thing to learn the textbook version of a language, but then at some point you face the biggest hurdle – idioms. Every language has them, and if taken at face value can be very confusing: "he went the whole nine yards", "beating around the bush", "don't throw out the baby with the bathwater". I have always sympathized with anyone trying to learn English as a second language.

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