A Year in China – Using Translator Apps – by Matthew Breeze. The North Star Reports: Global Citizenship and Digital Literacy, at NorthStarReports.org and facebook.com/NorthStarReports
[My roommate Tyrone trying to buy a phone using only translator apps, facial expressions and hand signals.]
One important aspect of going to a new place, especially a new country, especially when living in a new country, is to be able to communicate with other people. Communicating with other people is one of the most important parts of being human. I am living in China for ten months and I do not speak Chinese. I am taking Mandarin classes while I am here in Zhuhai, a small Chinese city of about 2 million people, but I do not speak nearly enough Chinese to talk to the average person on the street. Yet I still must talk to people. I need to go to the market and buy food to cook, I need to buy water to drink and food in restaurants to eat. All of this requires communication.
Using translator apps on my smartphone is one very convenient and accessible way to talk to people who do not speak the same language as you. Here in Zhuhai I use translator apps almost every day. Google translate is useful if you can get it on your phone, Pleco is another amazing English-Chinese translator app. This app allows you to write Chinese characters and see what they mean, it allows you to speak into the app and then it translates it into spoken Chinese and of course it allows you to write words or phrases in one language and translates them into the other language.
The speaking functions is especially useful when trying to buy things whether that be fruit or phones. My roommate Tyrone needed to buy a phone about a week after we arrived in China. His phone that he brought from home would not accept a Chinese SIM card and thus he needed to buy a Chinese smartphone. Luckily my phone was able to take a Chinese SIM card and thus I was able to use my translator apps soon after arriving in China. These apps became absolutely necessary when Tyrone and I went to one of the local phone stores to try and buy a Chinese phone for Tyrone.
The store that we chose to try and buy a phone is near to where we live in the Zhuhai neighborhood or district called Tangjia. When we arrived at the store there was a lady behind the counter who was immediately ready to help us. She spoke no English and after being in China for only about a week, my friend and I spoke no Chinese. We were able to express through hand signals and pointing that we were there to buy a phone, but from there on out we needed translator apps. I took out my phone and the woman behind the counter took out her phone, she also had a translator app that was very helpful, and we began to communicate via our phones.
My roommate and I struggled with the translator on my phone because we needed to phrase things in a certain way to get a proper translation. There were many times where we would write something or say something and then translate it and show it to the lady and she would read or listen to it and then have a puzzled look on her face. She would then speak or write something into her translator and show us and we would be equally as confused. Luckily both she and my friend and I found the humor in the difficulty of this scenario and there was much laughter during the whole process. Eventually we were able to effectively use our translator apps to figure out how much things cost, what the best phone was for what we were looking for and a number of other crucially important things a person wants to know when buying a phone.
[My roommate Tyrone and a street vendor lady with looks of joy when buying stuff using translator apps goes well.]
Using translator apps to communicate, in this instance and others since I have been in China, has been a first for me. The simple fact that people all over the world have smartphones now makes this possible. I really am amazed by this technology that allows people to communicate in real time with people who do not speak the same language. The technology is not perfect, as was evident in our experience of confusion in using translating apps to buy a phone, but it works well enough to be effective. I have also learned that when you do not speak the same language as someone you are trying to communicate with, especially when trying to buy something or barter, everything will take more time. I have learned to give myself plenty of time to buy things because I now know that communication that would be quick and easy in an English speaking country is going to take much more time when one has to use translator apps.
Going to a place where I do not speak the language has been eye opening and amazing. I would recommend it to anyone interested in other countries and cultures. However, there are difficulties, such as communicating with others. This difficulty can be extremely frustrating, but translator apps have made the language barrier less of a problem than I originally thought it would be. My friends like Tyrone and I have been able to buy everything we need without many issues, and usually with lots of laughter.
Matthew Breeze serves as a senior editor for The North Star Reports.
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Matt,
What an interesting article! I am feeling intense anxiety thinking about the inability to communicate with the people around me. I think translation technology is one benefit from globalization. As the world as become so deeply interconnected, it is more essential than ever that people can communicate with one another across language barriers. Even so, the tech sounds like it is imperfect – how would you change the technology to make it more efficient?
Thank you for your comment. I would try and get more technology to recognize voices better. I think this would make everything faster and more efficient.
Matthew,
Thank you for sharing this experience you had while traveling! I can not imagine not being able to communicate with the people you need to in order to be able to function and live. I personally have never been in an experience where I needed to communicate with someone and they did not understand me. However, it happens all the time! Being a nursing major, communication is a topic that we discuss in length as it is so crucial to providing quality care to patients. In the hospital setting, there are translators in the hospitals that can usually assist if there are communication barriers. Also, within the past few years, technology has allowed us to skype with translators while in the patient rooms in order to better assist with translation and communication. In my world history class right now, we are learning about the Silk Road and how the development of that changed trade and communication greatly during that time period. According to Tignor et. al, the Silk Road transformed cultures in the east and west by bringing into contact “a dazzling array of peoples, languages, and cultural cross currents” (2018, p. 223). I agree with you, communication is so crucial in understanding what it means to be human.
Thank you for your post!
Hey Matt,
I enjoyed reading this article a lot, I myself have never been abroad in a country that I don’t speak the language of but have always wanted to experience something like that. I always find joy in reading the experiences had by those who travel I can’t imagine the difficulties of bartering in a different language that you are unable to speak in. I find it difficult to barter in spanish and I can communicate rather well in Spanish. I look forward to hearing more of your time in China
Thanks for sharing
Bartering is especially difficult, but once you know numbers and a few phrases it can be done. That being said I still probably just pay more than I should because I dont have the ability to barter as well as I should.
Hi Matt! Thanks for this article (I was looking forward to reading something about your trip)! I think it is so cool that you were able to communicate with people using translating apps. I’ve heard very little about them or things like them though (such as Google pods, I think, which were supposed to instantly translate spoken language from one language to another in earbud format, although I’m not sure if those were ever released or not). As you realized when it became a barrier, communication is essential in daily life and while translator apps are a good temporary solution, it is always best to learn the native language of the region you’re in. I’ve never been bold enough to go somewhere that I didn’t have at least somewhat of a grasp on the native language, but I might jump out of my comfort zone to do so soon. I think there is a lot to be learned from having to adapt to a culture that is not your own and not being able to rely on being an English speaker and hoping to run into someone else who speaks English as well. I hope you get the chance to share some more experiences with us soon!
Thank you for your comment and I would definitely recommend going somewhere that you do not speak the language because it is both fun and difficult.
Hello Matthew!
What a fascinating experience! It’s very cool that you can translate things on your phone and have a conversation whereas even 10 years ago that may not have been possible. Learning and speaking a new language comes with so many advantages that a lot of people over look sometimes. Even starting with the basic fact that it allows you to understand the culture through a completely different lens than you could have originally. It was nice to read that the Chinese lady at the store was about to laugh along with you because of how crazy the situation was! I hope you contiune to learn and succeed in your new environment!
Laughing in situations like these is one fo the best things to do. Laughter seems to make everyone involved realize that it is not really that serious and thus everyone can relax more.
Matthew,
Who knew smartphones could be useful beyond social media? I found myself in a similar situation as yours when I visited Paris and Luxembourg in the spring of 2018; however, I know a bit of french that helped me along the way. I found myself reaching for my smartphone as a crutch to help me understand signage and language around me. One thing I found interesting was that I became extremely dependent upon my phone as a translator. It’s easier for the short trips to foreign countries to use these apps, but I think for trips that extended beyond the one to two week vacations, smartphones should be pocketed unless absolutely necessary. Learning how to communicate with those that do not speak your language in an area foreign to you shows how little you know and how much knowledge you can gain.
Thanks for sharing your experience! I find it amazing how much technology has advanced to allow us to connect and have interactions with people we may never have been able to; especially when it comes to language barriers. Did you find that using the translator app actually helped you learn some basic mandarin? From my personal experience abroad, I’m always worried that I will not be understood or that someone would get frustrated if I was unable to speak the language fluently. Have you run into any situations where the salesclerk was unwilling to help you because it would either take too much time or just because you were unable to speak the language?
I think that using translator apps has helped me to learn basic mandarin, especially to recognize characters. I haven’t yet run into anyone that is unwilling to help me, but I have given up a couple of times when trying to buy things because I don’t have the language necessary to say what I am looking for.
Dear Matthew,
Thank you so much for sharing this story. What an amazing experience, I’m sure you will remember this time and these memories for ever. I think this is a great example on how technology can help us. I have always kicked around the idea if that smart phones are really making our lives better. This shows us how we can use technology to benefit our lives.
Hello Matthew,
What an awesome experience it sounds like you had! I have traveled to Mexico and the Dominican Republic where Spanish is the primary language, and I only know how to say “yes” or “no” in Spanish. So communication was interesting to say the least. I totally agree that communicating with other people is one of the most important parts about being human. Tignor (2018), mentions that “Language was a huge breakthrough, because individuals could teach words to offspring and neighbors and could use them to integrate communities for survival” (p. 24). When something as important as language is disrupted, like you not speaking Chinese, things don’t get done because of miscommunication. I am happy to hear that you found a translator app on your phone, and that it was able to resolve the miscommunication that you were experiencing. I’m sure you recognize the meaning of a lot more Chinese words now that you have lived there for ten months! Thank you for sharing your experience.
Reblogged this on Professor Liang 梁弘明教授.
Matthew,
Thank you for sharing your story. I think that the technology that was created to help with translation between languages is very beneficial. Especially for the people earning to travel. I was extremely nervous to travel to Costa Rica with only two years of Spanish, but thankfully, I had the translator with me that helped me in difficult situations. My background in Spanish made it a little easier to translate the sentences that had to be worded differently. I am sure that as time goes by, they will continue to improve the translators. The most difficult time for people is probably the first week or so trying to learn how the people in that culture communicate, but they tend to learn the longer they stay there as I am sure that you probably have improved with your time spent in China.
Matt,
It is truly amazing to read and see how far Scholastica students are traveling for internships and experiences. I have never been to China so I was immediately drawn to your article. I have traveled to several places in Europe and certainly understand how difficult communication can be when both parties are not fluent. I relied heavily on translator apps for reading menus and informational posters. Looking at this scenario more in depth it is amazing how far we have come as a species. With human origins all tracing back to Africa it is truly astounding that through migration and years of development we have adapted as a species to the areas we live in both in physical appearance but also in cultural dynamics and language. Although language began as “vocal-utterance speech,” according to Tignor et al. in “Worlds Together Worlds Apart,”and sounds it has now developed so far into natural language using more complex methods to create words from sounds of letters (2018). I know language barriers can create complicated situations at times, but it truly is admirable how complex we have became with distinct language in specific regions. I hope the rest of your internship continues to give you great experiences and insight into new cultures.
Sincerely,
Sarah Bowman
I also find it fascinating how diverse humans have become through moving and changing, especially with regards to languages. Thanks for your comment!
Thank you for sharing your story! I have been in this situation while traveling abroad and it is very frustrating and nerve-racking! Next time I travel abroad I will have to download one of these apps to help ease communication. As I read I found it so interesting how language has evolved since the early humans. In “Worlds Together Worlds Apart” by Tignor et al, it talks about early communication and how humans can understand around 50 phonemes which when arranged in different orders can produce over 100,000 words (p 24). Then when you take into account different languages and grammar the possibilities increase! It amazes me to see how humans have created different languages and accents from these basic phonemes which vary drastically across the world!
Matt, I am so happy to hear about your experience in China! I remember taking Martin’s Spanish literature class with you. The thing that really caught my attention about you was how willing and enthusiastic you were to speak in the class when there was that awkward dead silence. The most heart warming part of your story was reading about how many laughs you have shared with your roommate while trying to communicate with locals who do not speak English. Like you said, it can be very frustrating to communicate with people when you do not speak the same language. So it is very encouraging to hear how you can take a frustrating experience and turn it into a funny learning experience. I love the pictures too! The pictures help me create a scenario in my head of buying a phone in the market. Thank you for sharing a post that really made me see the positives of trying to learn how to communicate with people who speak a different language.
-Aleah
Matt, the stories you shared sound both exciting but also challenging at times. Next spring I will be student teaching in a different country, so language barriers will be present. I will make sure to check out the translator application because as we all know the language can be an essential way of communicating. According to Worlds Together Worlds Apart, “It is important to distinguish between meaningful vocal utterance speech, possessed by many precursor hominins, and natural language (the use of sounds to make words that when strung together convey complex meaning to others), which is unique to modern humans,” (Tignor 24). This goes to show how amazing language is and how it is important to understand the meaning of the worlds. I can’t wait to someday have an experience like you did!
Hi Matt,
Thank you for sharing your story. It reminded me of when I went to a restaurant that only spoke Spanish. Even with a little background in Spanish, my encounter was longer and more frustrating than it would be if we spoke the same language. Even when there is a barrier, we are able to find ways to communicate, like a translator app. Language is an important characteristic that makes us human. When reading “Worlds Together Worlds Apart” by Tignor et al (2018), it explained that language was a huge breakthrough that allowed individuals to teach words to offspring and other communities for survival (p. 24). Moving to a new place that does not speak your primary language can be scary, but we have the ability to learn a new language over time. With this in mind, a question I have is, “would it be beneficial for the apps to have tips on how to structure sentences and phrases in the desired language to make it less confusing for both parties (i.e, Spanish and ASL have different sentence structures than English)”.
Matt,
I enjoyed reading this report. It is truly fascinating how we can simply have a translator in our back pocket. This is a great example of how technology can be beneficial on a global scale. I spent in a month in Germany the summer before last and I used a translator app as well. It is an indescribable experience to be in a country where you know virtually none of the language spoken. I also experienced issues when it came to sentencing structure and phrasing. It makes me wonder if there is a way that these apps can update to aid in this issue?
Thank you for sharing your experience!
Ashley
Hello Matt,
Your story was very interesting to read as I have had some similar experiences in my past. When I was in high school, I traveled to China for a month to learn about the culture in Guilin. I had a tough time negotiating transactions in stores with the locals. The experience helped me to think about how strange our languages are. As discussed in page 24 of Tignor’s “Worlds Together Worlds Apart” verbal communication requires an ability to think abstractly and to communicate the abstractions. By acknowledging the similar abstractions, we are able to share experiences with people we may never fully understand. Maybe soon we will be able to rely on our phones to translate more easily and reliably between the languages that connect our world.
Thanks again for the great story.
Dawson
Hi Matt,
Awesome job, really enjoyed the read. I too have been in the same situation before, and it was really awkward. It is crazy to think how important communication is, and its almost impossible to function. I had no idea but those translation apps, so for next time I can at least talk so someone a little bit. Hopefully by then the apps will be a little more advanced. How bad would it have been if you didn’t have the app? I am sure it would be terrible.
Thanks for sharing your experience, I hope next time things will work out a little smoother for ya.
Kyle
Matt-
What an eye opening piece that you have shared with us! While you explain this challenge you have overcome I find myself pondering how I would be in that same situation. In my experience I have found certain apps, Google Translate particularly, to be slightly inaccurate. For example, while studying Spanish, I have had instructors inform us that they can tell when something was translated using that platform, because it is slightly different from what they teach. I would image some of those translations would lead to humorous encounters similar to what you have shared in this report. Now imagine a time such as in Mesopotamia when there was no established language or written text shared between city members at their beginning. Although it may sometimes seem like there are still milestones to be taken when it comes to language barriers, at least we have come as far as having fluid ways to communicate with members of our own culture.
Sarah
Matt,
Thank you for sharing your experience! Using translator apps is a great idea. I ran into the language barrier issue when studying abroad in Morocco, where most people only speak Arabic or French. I never thought to use a translator app, although had similar encounters where they ended in laughter because we didn’t understand each other. It’s amazing how you can still connect with someone even when you don’t understand each other’s language. This makes me think of my world history textbook by Tignor, the language of the early Happonan people has never been deciphered. So, we still don’t know what they were communicating to each other. Communication is important in our world today and it can be intimidating when you’re surrounded by people who don’t speak the same language as you.
Morgan
Matthew,
What a joy it was reading your post! I was really fascinated reading about your interaction with the phone saleswoman and the use of translation apps. I recently took Latin as my language course requirement since I didn’t take a language in high school, and it’s amazing how translating between languages can be for lack of a better term, unclean. With the differences in the way sentences are formed between languages, with subjects and verbs being in different places in a sentence, to translating words that don’t have a good word to translate into, I definitely can understand the struggles you guys go through with these translation apps, not to mention that they aren’t perfect. Your article reminds me of something I read in Tignor’s “Worlds Together, Worlds Apart” that mentioned humans can create more than 100,000 words with fifty phonemes (Pg. 24). With so many word possibilities, it’s no surprise that when we hear another culture speak their native language, it sounds like random gibberish to us because there are so many possible words humans can say. Amazing job on the article Matthew!
Evan
Matthew,
Thank you for sharing your experience with us! I can’t imagine how eye opening but enriching that must be for you and your friends to experience. I had a similar experience recently – my boyfriend plays hockey at MSU Mankato, and there are many players on the team that are not from the US. One of his teammates is dating a girl from Germany, and she came to visit for a weekend while I was down there. I went to ask her if she wanted a ride to the rink, and she had to ask her boyfriend what I was saying. I panicked a little and worried that I would have to use Google translate with her the whole night, but she ended up holding conversations with me using the little English she knew – but she did a great job!
Your experience reminds me of a topic discussed in Tignor’s Worlds Together Worlds Apart. Chapter 2 of this textbook talks about the first recorded words and early texts, and how the Mesopotamians had to use stones and wet clay to convey messages (Tignor et al., 2018, p. 54). After reading this, it really opened my eyes to how far technology has come. Things like Google translate have revolutionized how we communicate, and allow us to interact with people from all around the world. I hope you had a great trip!
Sincerely,
Anissa Jones
Hello Matthew!
First off, I want to say that it is very brave and super cool that you are living in China for ten months! Especially when putting the language into perspective and not knowing how to communicate with people. I am sure that the importance of communication became a lot more known throughout your journey in China. I do not think that we realize that almost everything requires some sort of communication. In my history class, we just read about communication and this reminded me of the Harappan City and their writing and ways of communicating. People have been studying their culture and language for a very long time, but are still unable to really decipher their writing. I think that this is amazing and proves how different cultures are. I also was amazed to read about the app in your post called Pleco. I didn’t even know that this app existed and it seems that it would make life a lot easier for a traveler. Thank you for your post and story! I love hearing about different adventures that people partake in.
Justice Bauer
hello,
Very interesting article you have posted here. I have never travelled to a place where I didn’t speak the primary language and I couldn’t imagine how hard it would be to do everything with being able to speak the language. Its very cool that we now have technology that can help us travel and survive. Years ago before we all had cell phones something like this would never be able to happen. I bet that this has opened a lot of doors to people travelling to places they might not of before this option was available. Thanks for sharing.
Matthew,
Your story is great, and you make a good point about communication. It really is necessary for any daily activity. In my history class right now we are talking about nomads and migration. One of the biggest things that happens when people migrate is either the invaders must learn the language of the civilization or the civilization must learn the language of the invaders. In our textbook, it is the vanquished who most often learn the language of the invaders (Tignor et al., 2018). Interesting that we have similar things now. A lot of English people assume that everyone knows English, when really, if we are in a foreign place we should be attempting to speak that native language instead of asking if they know English.
Thanks for sharing,
Kasey
Matthew,
I really enjoyed reading your story and after recently traveling to Guatemala, I can relate to a lot of what you said! Though I spoke some Spanish, it was still typically difficult to converse and communicate with others, and sometimes people would speak the Indigenous language of Kaqchikel. This barrier of communication can be difficult and frustrating, but as you also stated it can be humorous and you can almost find a new level to connect on due to the miscommunication issues. I do find it very interesting however that no matter what, whether it be through gestures, facial expressions, body language, or translator apps, people always find a way to communicate no matter the barrier. I also find it interesting that people in other countries are so willing to communicate with foreigners and so patient to listen and help figure out what is trying to be said, it’s welcoming and honestly quite refreshing. It’s like in the book “World’s Together, World’s Apart” by Robert Tignor when Mycenaean expansion is being discussed. They “created colonies and trading settlements, reaching as far as Sicily and southern Italy. In this fashion, the trade and language of the early Greek-speaking peoples created a veneer of unity linking the dispersed worlds…” and the same can be said about language in today’s world (Tignor, p. 112). Whether we speak the same language or not, we find a way to communicate even through nonverbal language if needed. Language and communication unite all people, and you truly realize how much we rely on easy communication when you go to a foreign language speaking country.
Thank you for sharing your story, I truly enjoyed reading it.
~Felicity
Matthew,
Thank you for sharing this experience you had while traveling! I can not imagine not being able to communicate with the people you need to in order to be able to function and live. I personally have never been in an experience where I needed to communicate with someone and they did not understand me. However, it happens all the time! Being a nursing major, communication is a topic that we discuss in length as it is so crucial to providing quality care to patients. In the hospital setting, there are translators in the hospitals that can usually assist if there are communication barriers. Also, within the past few years, technology has allowed us to skype with translators while in the patient rooms in order to better assist with translation and communication. In my world history class right now, we are learning about the Silk Road and how the development of that changed trade and communication greatly during that time period. According to Tignor et. al, the Silk Road transformed cultures in the east and west by bringing into contact “a dazzling array of peoples, languages, and cultural cross currents” (2018, p. 223). I agree with you, communication is so crucial in understanding what it means to be human.
Thank you for your post!
Hi Matthew!
Thank you for sharing your experience! It has been hard for me to use google translate before because it seems like you need to enter in certain words and phrases that the other language has in order to get the correct translation. It is a good tool to have access for no doubt. I have learned the importance of communication and going into the nursing profession I will face situations where I may need to use google translate or the interpretation services most hospitals provide. At my time at CSS I minored in American Sign Language. As a freshman I decided to minor because of the stories I read about regarding Deaf people on their experiences and healthcare. I realized that if I can make one person’s experience better, that is one less person that is misdiagnosed or does not get pain medication. Reading Tignor et. al has exposed me to many different languages. For example, recently I read about the Hellenistic culture and the common language known as Koine. People in Egypt, Judea, Syria, Sicily, and Afghanistan who each had distinct languages and cultures were able to communicate more easily. Many people who came in contact with the Hellenistic culture accepted the benefits that it provided because it expanded a network of communication and exchange (Tignor et. al, 2018).
Alli
Hi, Matt!
Thanks for sharing this experience. I have been abroad as well and had similar experiences! Pointing and gesturing can only get you so far, so I also found translator apps to be extremely useful. I agree with you; it truly is amazing how technology allows us to communicate with people who do not speak the same language as us. It definitely helps when the other person is patient and can find humor in those situations of mistranslation. Whenever I encountered people who were not so willing to spend more time communicating, I often wished that there was a common language we shared. An international language did actually exist in the 300s BCE: Koine Greek. According to Tignor (2018), it was advantageous because it expanded a network of communication and exchange (p. 205). Having an international language such as this one would eliminate many barriers to communication in our world today. Do you think this would be beneficial to have, or do you think there is more benefit to spending more time and effort to interact with a person? I think that having to download translator apps and slow down to order food is all part of the experience of traveling to a new country and adjusting to a new culture. Thanks again for sharing!
Tessa
Hello Matt,
Thank you for sharing your experience in China! I’ve always wanted to go there but the language barrier, as well as the size of the country, makes me a little nervous. Maybe when I learn a little bit more Mandarine! I too have the google translate and I have had to use it a couple of times when I went to Dubai! Anyways, I agree that our technology today is pretty amazing. They make my life easier every day! But even though I love getting all these new technologies, I couldn’t help but think of some of Professor Liang’s words about interconnectedness. That the easier it is to connect with everyone, the less connection we usually have. An example I could think of comparing the Trading system back then to now. According to our book Worlds Together, Worlds Apart by Tignor et al., back then, some people would travel to trade their stuff along the Silk Road. Here, people truly connected by learning new beliefs, practices and different languages. Today, we have Amazon or eBay. In my opinion, although it’s easier and more efficient, we don’t get the same interaction so we are less connected with each other. Overall, thank you for sharing your experience! 🙂
-Kristel
Hi Matt,
What an unbelievable experience it must have been to spend ten months in China! I totally understand the anxiety-inducing nature of going to live abroad in a country in which English is not the first language. I lived in Finland for two years. I was able to pick up the language eventually but the first two years were tough. People often say that technology is detrimental to society and that it has ruined human interaction but here is a perfect example of technology being extremely useful and beneficial. I imagine your experience would have been much more frustrating if technology like this did not exist.
Thank you for sharing,
Karl
Matt,
I found this article very interesting, and well put together at that!
Being a person that can speak two languages, I find interest in submersing myself much like how you did. I spent two weeks completely culturally submersed in the magnificent country of Spain. I can tell you, as you probably know, it is not an easy task, but it is well worth it.
However, as I spent time there I had to continually battle the urge to reach for my phone to translate a word that I was unfamiliar with; the unknown brought overwhelming discomfort. We have become accustomed to relieving that discomfort through technology. Citizens of the United States have become acclimated to having things formed to benefit us. Unlike many other countries of our size, the United States does not require the acquisition of a second language, unless attending a private college like our own. It is important to recognize that in this situation, we are only making the extent of possibilities when traveling limited. We are only thickening the language barrier, that we could be diminishing. Communication is a huge part of what connects us as humans, but if we cannot communicate, we lose a huge part of ourselves. I believe that we need to work to overcome this barrier, through language books, through language submersion, through language apps on your phone. We as a country owe it to our citizens and to the rest of the world, to take a step in the right direction, in the direction of unity.
Great article Matt, it provided for great conversation.
Best,
Anna Becker
Matthew,
Thank you for sharing about your experience in China. It sounds like a really cool trip. The communication aspect would have been very scary if we did not have the technology we have to day. It is cray to think what would people have done 20 years ago. You said you could use your hands and body language a little bit but that can only go so far. Smartphones have become so helpful I do not know what many of us would do without them today. It is very fascinating that we can just type what we want to say into our phones and it can translate it to another language. Thank you for sharing your experience and your advice. I hope I can travel like this and the apps you shared will be helpful in the future.
-Ben
Matthew,
Thank you for sharing such an interesting tid bit of your time in China. Your emphasis on the importance of communication between humans was very succinct and useful to remind readers of. This entire scenario is rather incredible I’d say. Something that stuck out to me was how much longer these types of interactions take. In distinct contrast to the speeding bullet like structure of American conversation. If we slowed down more with all people we choose to engage, I truly believe the perceived value of exchanging even the most surface level conversations would increase. I’m not so sure we pay close enough attention to how important our ability to connect with others truly is, in our day to day life.
Matt,
I first detail that struck me was the “small” city. Two million people?! Wow, I have been to small towns in Minnesota with a population of five. It is brave of you and your friend to live in a foreign country without knowing much of the language. I would imagine I would depend on my translator app. I am assuming one of the issues with miscommunication is that the translator app wasn’t grammatically correct. This can happen with Google translate, where it is an exact word for word translation, rather than converting the grammatical structure. Maybe in a way it was a good thing that it didn’t work perfectly, forced you to think outside of the box and really get comfortable with who you’re talking to. I hope you had a good rest of your trip!
Lili Tapper