Last month we talked quite a lot about learning a language through immersion in a foreign culture, but what if, for whatever reason, we don’t have the option of going to a country where our language of choice is spoken? In this post we’d like to think about ways that we can immerse ourselves in a language without leaving the country we live in, and we’d particularly like to hear people’s experiences of improving their command of a language by using streaming services like Netflix.
How have you used the internet for language exposure? What have you been watching, and how has this helped you? We’ll kick off with a couple of recommendations of our own, and then we’d love to hear what everybody else has been enjoying.
3% (Brazilian Portuguese) - This series follows a group of young people who have to navigate through a series of trials in order to secure their place among the 3% that gain access to a better world. The first season in particular is gripping, yet despite being very action-based, the series also raises a lot of philosophical questions, particularly relating to social inequality.
Atiye (Turkish) - The ‘Atiye’ series follows our heroine of the same name as she uncovers spooky goings-on around Istanbul and the south-east of Turkey. The plot can be a little difficult to follow at times, but some of the locations are stunning and there’s some very strong acting. Definitely a must for archaeology fans.
Now it’s over to you! If you’ve seen a great series on Netflix (or any other service) then we’d love to hear your recommendations. If you’re not a streaming fan, feel free to let us know about films that you’ve watched, songs that you’ve listened to, or any other ways that you’ve got into the ‘zone’ of another language. We’re really looking forward to seeing what everyone comes up with!
19 comments
Just finished watching "O Mecanismo" (The Mechanism), a Brazilian TV series depicting, in a fictional way, the "Lava Jato" corruption scandal that shook Brazil's political establishment to its core a few years ago. I'm learning Portuguese nowadays, so what I did was watch it in its original language and turn the Portuguese closed captions on to keep track of what was being said and how.
Being a native Spanish speaker, Portuguese isn't too far off, linguistically, but its peculiar cadence and slang makes it difficult enough to keep it an interesting learning experience.
I'll be looking forward to any good Brazilian TV series and movies anyone might recommend! ;)
Thanks!
I'm doing my best for being like Saul Goodman. You are my hero, Saul!!
davy.martinez - it's amazing how many great Brazilian series there are! The only ones that I've watched are 3% and Onisciente/Omniscient but it always seems like Brazil is creating so much culture these days, which will hopefully bring Portuguese and Brazil to a wider audience. When I got into 3% I started following some of the actors on Instagram (I'd also REALLY recommend this as an additional means of language/cultural exposure) and I saw that Cynthia Senek, who plays Glória, had spent time in Mexico, I believe, where she was learning Spanish to do the Spanish-language dubbing of the series. I think it's dubbed into English, too.
I think that watching a foreign-language series with closed captions or subtitles in that same language is a really good way of keeping up with what's happening while not losing touch with the language, since it can be really easy to lose focus if we have the subtitles in our own language - though I also think that if we don't know that much of the other language then listening with subtitles in our own language is still a good place to start.
Thanks for recommending O Mecanismo, davy.martinez, and as you say, let's hope that people keep more recommendations coming!
Carlos L. M. - I had to look up Saul Goodman! It seems that there's a lot written about his character, and for sure he sounds like a complex and very intriguing kind of a guy.
Absolutely. Seeing Breaking Bad helps a lot.
I've got some! First up is a very funny French comedy called Family Business. Season one and two are currently playing and season three is on its way. It's subtitled in several languages and dubbed in many as well, but I highly recommend watching it in the original French with subtitles.
Second is an American series called Messiah. It's in English but with snippets in several different languages. Again, it's subtitle and dubbed in several different languages. Unfortunately it wasn't picked up for a second season, so if you do watch it, be prepared to be incredibly disappointed after the end of the final episode because it will definitely leave you wanting more.
This is weird - why is my comment pending approval? I've never seen that before here.
Hi Katrina,
This is a great topic--to what extent can we improve our foreign language skills through the Internet while not living in that country? There must be quite a few people who have done that due to my experience encountering non-native but fluent English speakers on the Internet. I feel like maybe a motivated person learning on the Internet needs to find suitable materials for their level and have their own study and learning plan. It's like taking a class but you don't have a textbook. Instead, you have to find your own materials. It can be a bit inefficient if you're not sure how to learn, but if you're motivated and you have a personalized study plan, you could learn a lot. I'm actually an English teacher, and one of the things we learned is to expose students to authentic (not made for a classroom) materials, so I can imagine Netflix, Youtube or the Internet in general would be a good way to learn. One problem though is with speaking and also finding materials at the right level.
Hi there!
I've been living in Japan since 2008. Before I moved to the country, I had really had no contact with Japanese film, literature or TV, and did not speak the language at all (unlike so many foreigners here these days, who seem to move here expressly because of their interest in Japanese media...especially anime/manga/etc.).
Because the written language obviously took me quite some time to learn (especially because my job for many years there was all in English), using Japanese subtitles for Japanese films wasn't realistic for quite some time, so I actually didn't watch a whole lot of Japanese TV/film for the first few years I was here. Now I do watch it, and have been making a concerted push this year to watch a wider range of Japanese shows/films now that I can understand them without English. Weirdly, though, I now find that my reading has surpassed my listening skill in Japanese (partially due to my work translating on Gengo!), so I have now become over-reliant on the Japanese subtitles!! (Unlike in the West, lots of Japanese TV is also subtitled in Japanese). I try to turn them off whenever I can (for modern dramas set in domestic settings, this is fine, but if it's a show with lots of jargon like a legal drama or a samurai period drama or something...I find I really need the Japanese subtitles!). Another tricky situation arises is when non-Japanese, non-English languages like French or Russian (or aliens...) are spoken...then the subtitles are obviously necessary!
Anyway, here are a couple of quick Japanesey recommendations that should be available to stream (depends on country?). I don't think they'll necessarily improve your Japanese language, but a big part of the allure of learning Japanese is being able to access the country's wonderful cultural output, in my opinion! (Particularly under-appreciated are Japanese children's picture books, which are among the best in the world, I really believe).
1) Muddy River (泥の河) - film - set in the post-war grime of Osaka on the banks of a (very muddy) river, this film about a young boy who meets two other little kids who moor up across from his parent's udon restaurant (shack) on a river boat is one of the most moving films I have seen in years. Nominated for an Academy Award in 1981 (didn't win...but still!). Good way to learn Kansai-ben (Osaka dialect) too...
2) The Twilight Samurai (たそがれ清兵衛) - film - in my many years of watching samurai films/dramas of all sorts, this is by far the best. It shows the samurai much more as they really were (sort of...downtrodden bureaucrats...for the most part) but also creates a sense of timelessness through the pressure the society places on the main character to be a type of person that he really is not. Even the title is wonderful, as it reflects the twilight of the Edo period (it occurs right as it is sort of winding down/falling apart) and the nickname for the main character (his fellows call him "the twilight samurai" because he hurries home to his daughters after work instead of going out drinking and carousing with them). The main character (Seibei) is played by the guy who is second in command to Ken Watanabe in the (unfortunately) much more popularly known Last Samurai which was produced around the same time (apparently he was told not to kick Tom Cruise's ass quite so badly in their sword fights). It was also nominated for an Academy Award (2003). It is based on two wonderful short stories that I would one day love to translate into English (don't think they've been translated) if I ever get the chance. For everyday language learning, it's basically only useful to annoy your Japanese spouse with archaic phrases such as "nan de gozaru"/"nan de gozansu"...
3) Golden Kamuy （ゴールデンカムイ）- animated series - this is a new animated TV series (Netflix) based on the award-winning manga. I have always resisted manga/anime as I (quite stupidly and small-mindedly!!) associated them with nerds (otaku) and never wanted to be "that gaijin" reading manga on the train, etc. I discovered Golden Kamuy, however, on a research trip to the Ainu Museum in Biratori, Hokkaido, and began reading it as research into Ainu culture and the Japanese colonisation (of sorts) of Hokkaido in the Meiji period. It's a pretty wacky and strange tale, but I've enjoyed it overall. For language learning, it has definitely improved my knowledge of 19th century military terminology and words for Ainu hunting techniques (not so useful in daily life!).
4) Midnight Diner (深夜食堂）- pretty popular overseas...it has nice short episodes, relatable (if slightly melodramatic) storylines, some good laughs, and delicious food. The characters are also "types" you will immediately recognise to if you have ever lived in Japan for any period of time. One caveat in terms of language...some of the characters speak different dialects as many are outsiders who have moved to Tokyo (hence why so many of them are a bit lost in the city and want the "master" to make their comfort foods from back home).
5) An Autumn Afternoon (秋刀魚の味) - my favourite of Ozu's films (his best known being Tokyo Story, which is wonderful too). Ozu's films are set in quite domestic settings and the dialogue tends to be very naturalistic, so even though they are set in the 50s(ish), the language is quite accessible. I also love this film as an example of how titles shouldn't always be literally translated into English (the title is literally "A Taste of Sanma"). Sanma is a very tasty fish popular in the autumn in Japan. The first time someone cooked it for me, my dictionary told me in English it was also just "sanma" (a common occurrence when looking up fish in Japanese-English dictionaries...) and when I resorted to Wikipedia, it simply said "sanma - a fish eaten in Japan."
Hello - apologies to those whose comments got stuck on 'Pending approval'
This is something which happens automatically every so often, in many cases apparently for no particular reason, and while we try to check the folder that they end up in as often as possible, it seems that I missed the last couple. So, I apologise for keeping people hanging, but in any case, it's great that we can now start the week with even more comments on our discussion.
LB Translations - Family Business sounds like a really good series to watch, and it's great that they're continuing to make more episodes. It's a shame that that's not true of Messiah, since it's always so disappointing when we get into a show and then they stop producing it. That seems to have been particularly the case given restrictions placed on filming by the pandemic, and I'm sure a lot of us have shows that we love but that are on hold because of the way things are at the moment. (Derry Girls, in my case.) I wonder why they didn't create another series in the particular case of Messiah? But in any case, it sounds like a great watch. I'm also curious to see that you say both of the two shows are subtitled and dubbed in different languages - I always think that's a very interesting development, since it seemed to be that in days gone by we could only get things dubbed or subtitled into our own language, but now there seem to be many more options available (like 3% being available in at least Portuguese, Spanish and English.) Thanks for your recommendations!
connie.huang0784 - Very interesting thoughts! I'm always amazed by how good people's command of English can be on the internet, not least in these translator forums. I can't count the number of times that I've read somebody's word-perfect comment and then they've written something at the end of it like 'But anyway, I'm not a native English speaker.' I find it remarkable. I think your comments about different ways of learning a language (particularly in a country where it's not spoken) are really good, too. In some ways, learning a language in our own way, using our own resources, can be a challenge but at the same time I think it can encourage us to take a more flexible and creative approach. The whole question of resource availability is a great one (and one that it would be amazing to hear other people's experiences of), since some languages just don't seem to have that many resources for second-language learners, or if these exist then they're not always easily accessible. Netflix and the internet in general seem to have been great for bridging that gap. I think it's wonderful that you focus on working with authentic materials with your students.
kewtrevor - Thank you for your wonderful, and very detailed, descriptions of films and series to watch in Japanese. It's true that the cultural output of Japan is very impressive, and it's always great to hear about more underrated forms of culture as well, like the children's picture books you refer to. I've never been to Japan, but I think that all of us who have ever been involved with Gengo, in any capacity, are in some way touched by Japan because of the origins of the company, and I think that your recommendations will be great for all of us who have become increasingly curious about Japan through our work (or also through seeing the country in the media, as was the case during the recent Olympics and Paralympics). I also think it's great that translation has helped your reading ability in Japanese. There's a really interesting article written about this precise topic by an English lady living in Japan - I think I mentioned it in another thread, but you can find it here. She writes that translation helped her hugely in taking her Japanese skills to the next level. It would be great to hear more thoughts from people about this, since I think that one of the great (yet under-mentioned) benefits of translation is the extent to which it can help us improve our source-language skills.
Thanks to everyone who's left comments - and keep them coming!
kewtrevor - I'm still thinking about your comment about the children's picture books. Which are the best, or most famous, ones? Even though I (sadly) can't read Japanese, I'd love to check some out just to admire the artwork.
Katrina Paterson - sure! Here are a few good ones.
1) The "Guri and Gura" books are very well known and quite fun (and I think have been translated into English quite well).
2) Dosukoi Sushizumo (どすこいすしずもう) - my son loves this one about different pieces of sushi who fight each other in sumo bouts (it also performs the vital function of teaching Japanese kids about seafood...). The artwork is great. I think it has recently become an animated series but the art is better in the books.
3) "Inai Inai Baa!" (いない、いない、ばあ！) - This phrase is the Japanese equivalent of "peekaboo" but sounds better to kids I think! (literally it translates as "not here, not here...BAA!). Nice simple book for littler kids.
4) If you're more into the art side of things, one very famous guy is Mitsumasa Anno, whose books contain no or very few words. They are fairly available outside Japan and there are quite a few...Anno's Journey, Anno's Spain, etc., etc.
5) "Oshiri Tantei" (おしりたんてい）- this is my 6 year old son's current favourite (it's also a TV show)...and is extremely popular here right now in Japan. Tantei means "detective" and oshiri means "bum." Don't let you put that off! It's a hilarious and actually remarkably sweet set of mystery stories told in picture book or (sort of) comic book form. I expected it would be a typical gross-out boys toilet humour kinda thing, but this is done with a far lighter (and funnier) touch than things like Captain Underpants, etc. from the West. Girls seem to love it as much as boys here...which maybe says something!
Hi kewtrevor, these are very interesting recommendations indeed. I checked out all of them and I think Anno's Journey in particular looks gorgeous. To my untrained eye, it reminds me a little of those Hokusai paintings - and it's very reasonably priced online, at least where I live. I'm definitely going to treat myself to a copy.
That's really interesting to hear that you moved to Japan as a foreigner, but you're raising your son there. I've often thought it would be amazing to have a forum thread where people either talk about their experiences of raising bilingual (or multilingual) children, or talk about growing up in a multilingual environment, or both. Perhaps such a discussion will crop up one day.
Best wishes to your six-year-old son, and thanks for the lovely recommendations!
Katrina Paterson - that would be a great idea...I'm sure people would have a vast array of bilingual/multilingual child-rearing stories to share. One thing that can be hard for most people (i.e. non-translators!) to understand, I think, is how complex the idea of fluency in a language truly is. If I had 5 yen for every time I'd heard the adage "Kids learn languages so much more easily than adults," I'd be living in luxury by now. In terms of pronunciation/phonetics/accent and also to some extent basic everyday grammar, this is true. My son sounds far more fluent than I do in Japanese (I started learning at 27) and also more fluent than my wife in English. But my many years teaching bilingual/multilingual kids taught me that fluency in everyday conversation often masks very poor reading/writing/vocabulary (often in both/all of their languages), whereas adults who are strong in their own language can of course build their understanding of a new language upon this previous foundation (obviously time/willingness to try and fail/location/etc are all factors too though). That's why I force/bribe/cajole my poor little first grader to write in English at least a little every day...I know (hope?) one day he'll thank me for it!
Enjoy Anno! He passed away just last year in his mid-90s last year, I believe, so he had a long and productive career! There is actually a Hokusai exhibition (of originals) on right now in the Ryuji Kawabata (famous 20th c artist) Museum near where I live in Tokyo...I was shocked to find that the original Hokusai paintings were so small...all about A4 size!!! I guess it's sort of like when you see the Mona Lisa...it's so iconic and you've seen it on so many mugs/posters/shirts/etc. that it's quite weird to see the real physical object limited by its actual dimensions rather than the unlimited dimensions of your mind!
All the best!
All the best to you too, kewtrevor, and thanks for these fascinating insights into life in Japan :D
Hello everyone,
I will be slightly off-key in this small contribution to the "Tell me how you learn your foreign language" subject, but I would like to share it anyway. I just discovered the "Yes you can" Harrap's collection. When reading in an incompletely mastered foreign language, we all know how tedious it can be to have to open a dictionary every other page. With "Yes you can" (oops, it sounds very much like I am paid to advertise this collection), you can spare the trouble: clever notes in the margins explain tricky words and sentences along the way, keeping you afloat for a comfortable, uninterrupted read. Now, far from these reasonable means, looking for a website to learn Italian (we were celebrating yesterday September 14, the 700th anniversary of the death of Dante Alighieri, "Il Sommo Poeta") I was offered a miraculous pill to boost my learning ability and speak Italian in no time! Am I kidding? No. O tempora, O mores!
PS. Another must for archaeology fans (tongue-in-cheek humour way): Detectorists, on Arte TV, with German or French subtitles. Warning: I have only seen the first three episodes of Season 1...
Hello, Blandine! Thanks for the heads-up about the 700th anniversary of the death of Danti Alighieri - we'd totally missed that one. Definitely a remarkable day for fans of The Divine Comedy and the general works of this great thinker.
'Yes You Can' sounds really cool, since reading in other languages is a great way of improving BUT it's true, it can be really boring to be having to look up words all of the time, so having helpful key words in the margins definitely sounds like a great way to stay in the spirit of the story. In this same sense, I wonder if anyone has tried reading those parallel texts, such as those published by Penguin in the UK? When I was at university we were strongly encouraged to read them, but the problem is that it can be so tempting to only read the side that's written in our own language.
I also wonder if anyone's tried those short stories that are written specifically for language learners? This will probably also sound like a product placement, but I've tried Short Stories in Dutch by Olly Richards and I found it good (it also has important key words and the stories start easy and get more difficult, but they're written for learners, rather than original texts).
Detectorists looks really good fun. Also, what's the Italian-learning pill? Is it a Dante reference?
After Life
Very nice, Yasser! I didn't know Ricky Gervais was in that one. Thanks for commenting (and I'm sorry for missing your comment until now)