Exploration of language as an exploration of culture

Abstract

We look at each other. We eat together. We begin to talk together. We start to get to know
each other. This paper will present a foreigner’s view on the value of exploring the languages of the
people we live with and interact with. It will also highlight the usefulness of sharing something of
our own language with others.
Language is presented as a powerful expression of culture. Much of what we say and how we
say it reflects aspects of our culture. From the order in which people speak, to the words they use, to
the way words are arranged in sentences, to the emphasis and stress given to particular words, to the existence or absence of specific words for detailed descriptions, even to the length of spoken
exchanges and the use of pauses and silence, we express our culture through language. There is a dangerous assumption that language is a neutral medium in which to explore cultural difference and that all that is needed is a common language for our cultural similarities and differences to be revealed. The paper argues that through sharing language we can at least begin to unravel some cultural complexities.