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revenge-of-the-shit · 3 years

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Writing Chinese characters set within Western worlds

If you don’t want to read it on tumblr, go check this out on medium or go follow me on instagram at @annessarose_writes!

Alright. You know what. I’ve seen plenty of stereotypes in fiction (and in social media) that are so incredibly pervasive I’ve seen many Chinese people within the western world internalize it themselves. So here’s a rough guide on writing Chinese characters in an English-speaking Western setting, written by me, a Chinese Canadian woman.

If you’re here to say something racist fuck off. Otherwise, welcome! This is not a comprehensive guide by any means. This is merely a brief overview based on my own experiences. My experience (as someone in North America) will differ from someone living in, say, Europe or South America. I’m not representative of every Chinese person because everyone’s experience is unique. So here were are.

1. Our names

Chinese names are usually written as follows: [family name] [name]. Let’s take a Canadian historical figure as an example: 黃寬先. In Chinese, it’s pronounced “Wong Foon Sien.” On Canadian documents — which are written [First name] [Last name], he’d be called “Foon Sien Wong.” He went by “Foon Sien” for most of his life. That’s his full “first name.” Nobody would call him Foon because that’s just half of his name (unless given permission). It’d be like meeting a stranger called Alex and calling them “Al” right off the bat. Sure, they could go by Al, but you don’t know that.

For those of us living in the Western world, some of us have both a Chinese name and an English name. In these cases, our Chinese name becomes our middle name in English (e.g. a character could be called John Heen-Gwong Lee).

For some people who immigrated to the Western world but were born in China, their legal name would be their Chinese name. Some choose to keep that name. Some choose an English name as their “preferred” name but keep their Chinese name on legal documents. It varies.

2. Parents & Stereotypes

There’s two stereotypes which are so pervasive I see it being used over and over in jokes even within Chinese (and, to a larger extent, asian) communities:

The [abusive] tiger mom and the meek/absent dad

Both parents are unreasonably strict/abusive and they suck

I have yet to see any fiction stories with Chinese parents where they’re depicted as kind/loving/supportive/understanding (if you have recommendations — please do send them my way). Not all Chinese parents are tiger parents. Chinese parents — like all parents — are human. Good god. YES, they’re human! YES, they have flaws! YES, they are influenced by the culture they grew up in!

That isn’t to say there aren’t parents like those tropes. There are. I know this because I grew up in a predominantly Chinese community where I had many a friend’s parent who was like this. Parents who compare their kids to the best kid in class. Parents who force kids into private lessons and competitions that the kid despises because the parents think it’s for the best. Parents who have literally called their kid a disappointment because they didn’t get 100%.

But please, also consider: there’s parents who support their child’s goals and who listen. Not all parents force their kid into the stereotypical trifecta of lawyer/doctor/engineer — I know of a good number who support their child in choosing the path they want. There’s parents who make mistakes and learn and try their best to support their child. So please, for the love of god, if you write a Chinese character, don’t reduce their parents to stereotypes.

3. Language & Learning

When I first read The Son of Neptune by Rick Riordan, I was so excited to see a Chinese Canadian character in Frank Zhang. Finally, there was someone like me. Finally, there was representation in well-known western media.

While I do appreciate that RR added in Frank Zhang, it’s pretty obvious that he didn’t really know how to write a Chinese Canadian character. One of the most glaring examples: in The Son of Neptune, Frank reveals he can’t really read Chinese. In like, the next book (I think — it’s been a while since I read it), Frank is suddenly able to read Chinese because he “learned” it in two week’s time.

Nope. Nuh-uh. Learning Chinese is a pain, let me tell you. There’s thousands of different characters and it is something you need to devote a lot of time to learning (especially if you’re progressed past the best childhood years for learning a language). So if you’re writing about a Chinese character living in the western world, here’s what you need to know:

A character who was born and raised in the western world does not necessarily know how to read/write in Chinese.

If they were raised by their own family, the character would very likely know how to speak their own dialect. They’d be able to understand the language used in movies/TV and they sound like a native speaker, but they may not know how to use language outside of certain contexts (the term for this is heritage speaker).

They probably went to Chinese school. They probably hated it. Chinese school is usually universally hated and does not teach you jack shit other than a hatred for the place and a vague memory of learning how to read the language without actually retaining knowledge of what you learned.

Most of my friends who know how to read/write in Chinese learned from tutors, parents, or were born in China.

There’s two main types of written Chinese: Traditional (used by Cantonese speakers) and Simplified (used by Mandarin speakers).

There are MANY other dialects (which I don’t know much about). The most common ones are Mandarin (usually spoken by people from the mainland), then Cantonese (usually spoken by people from Hong Kong).

4. Fitting into the community

Usually, the story is one of two things: they’re the only Asian kid in the entire school, or they grew up in a predominantly East Asian community. Things to consider for both of these when you’re writing:

Growing up the only Asian kid

They’re “that Asian kid.” They’re different. They walk into a class and feel weird and out of place.

They bring food from home (usually ethnic cuisine) to school. Other classmates stare at it, make fun of it, demand what that strange food is.

“Where are you from?” “Here.” “No, like, where are you really from?”

“Your name is funny.”

People literally never getting the character’s name right.

And that horrible, horrible feeling: wishing that they were white so they could avoid all of this.

Growing up in a predominantly East Asian community

It’s not uncommon for Chinese cuisine to mix with other east Asian cuisines. For special occasions (or just for a casual night out), your character could very well go out to get some sushi, or go for some KBBQ, or get some Vietnamese noodles.

Screaming “AIYAA” at/with their friends unironically if they’re annoyed (I’ve done this a lot with Cantonese friends. Less so with Mandarin friends).

Slipping into Chinese for like, two words, during a mostly-English conversation to talk about food or some other topic that can’t be adequately conveyed in English.

Reading books by white authors and learning about white history and growing up thinking white names, white books, and white history is the norm and standard even though the community is surrounded by East Asian people.

When the character leaves this community, there’s a brief culture shock when they realize how sheltered they’ve been.

Things in common for both of these:

The character has grown up on ethnic cuisine. Yes, Chinese people do eat rice with many of our meals. Yes, boba (bubble) tea is extremely popular. No, rice isn’t the only thing we eat. No, not all Chinese people love boba (though as a Chinese person I admit this sounds sacrilegious to say…)

The character likely grew up watching film/TVthat originates from East Asia. It’s not uncommon to watch Studio Ghibli films. It’s not uncommon to watch Japanese or Korean shows with canto/mando dub (examples: Ultraman, Kamen Rider). If you want to see a classic Chinese film from Hong Kong that’s fucking hilarious, watch Kung Fu Hustle.

The character has felt or been told that they’re “too westernized to be Chinese, but too Chinese to fit into the western world.” They’re torn between the two.

5. General portrayal

It’s quite simple, really. We’re human. We’re regular people. We have regular hobbies like all people do. We’re good at some subjects and bad at others. We have likes and dislikes like all people do. So here’s a list of stereotypes you can avoid.

STEREOTYPES TO AVOID BECAUSE WE’RE REGULAR HUMANS AND WE DON’T FIT INTO A SINGLE COOKIE CUTTER SHAPE, DAMMIT.

The character is a maths whiz and perfect at all things STEM.

The character is a straight-A+ gifted/IB/AP student.

The character is the next coming of Mozart and is amazing at piano/violin.

The character’s free time is spent only studying.

The character is insanely good at martial arts.

The character is either meek and submissive or an explosive, dangerous force.

I’m not going to mention the other stereotypes. You know, those ones. The really obvious ones that make fun of and demonize (sometimes through multiple untruths) how we look and how we live our lives. You should know.

Of course, there are people who fit into one or more of these. That’s not the point. The point is: molding all Chinese characters to these stereotypes (which white media tends to do) is harmful and reductionist. We’re more than stereotypes.

—

6. Conclusion

We need more diversity in portrayal of Chinese characters. Reducing us into one-dimensional caricatures has done nothing but harm us — look at what’s happening now. This guide is by no means comprehensive, but I hope it has helped you by providing a quick overview.

If you want to accurately portray Chinese characters, do your research. Read Chinese fiction. Watch Chinese films/TV. Initiate a conversation with the community. Portray us accurately. Quit turning us into caricatures.

#non sw #writing #writing reference #reference #writing bipoc characters #Chinese representation #asian representation #asian characters #chinese characters #stop asian hate #chinese diaspora #chinese american #chinese canadian #writing guide #abuse tw #racism tw #long post #annessarose writes

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xenowingfield · 3 years

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linguistics headcanons

BECAUSE THE CANON WONT GIVE US ANYTHING ABOUT LINGUISTICS

so. in the anime, when they flashback to when byakua and co were starting their little tribe, byakuya remarks that 'its difficult to write all these tales in english'--which means that lillian doesnt speak japanese, or at least not well enough to communicate--so theyve been speaking in english. logically, then, the language that was passed down to the kids and the rest of the generations would be english--not japanese. therefore, the ishigami tribe doesnt speak japanese, they speak english with sprinkles of japanese words, AND their language has undoubtedly evolved over time from the modern english we know.

its also completely logical for a decent chunk of the main cast to be able to speak english well enough to communicate (it not being modern english aside).

senku wants to be an astronaut, english is one of the languages you need to learn in order to do so, theres no way he doesnt have a decent grasp on english. i could very much see him studying english in his off time alongside whatever school is teaching him.

we just flat out know gen is conversational in english (he has a conversation w/ ukyo in english), and i figure thats from his job.

ukyo is the same, we know he speaks english, and id wager hes the best at english in the whole crew.

ryusui probably speaks english, hes hella rich, theres no way they wouldnt teach him english. hes probably not the best at it, but gets by ok with slang.

francois would, for basically the same reasons as ryusui. high class, high class people usually know a few languages, and its possible japanese isnt even their native language.

so sure, they can speak english, but theyre speaking modern english. 3,700 years is a long ass time, plenty long enough for the language to change. its not too dissimilar from the timeframe of shakespearean english and modern english. shakespearean english is VERY far off from what you or i speak, and is gradually getting more and more incomprehensible to modern english speakers. if someone came up to you on the street and started speaking shakespearean english, youd be confused, but vaugely understanding, right? thats about the gap that the ishigami people and revived people would have in their english language. the 100 tales are excluded from this, just because im under the assumption that they have been passed down word for word, so stuff like 'speaker' wouldnt get corrupted beyond maybe some pronunciation differences.

I JUST WANT SOME FUN COMMUNICATION SCENES DAMN IT

#i like linguistics can u tell #i was talking to my boyfriend about this and i said #imagine ur just a small little community of people living out in the wilderness like ur ancestors did #and there's all these funky ass rock people but that's chill! they just hang! and then one day some dishevilved japanese guy with cracks in #and co fuckin went #how do u think we got toyotas #anyways i want the fucking revived group blundering over words in english and huddling to chat in japanese about how to phrase it #i want the ishigami tribe to have some fucked up slang thats like clearly derived from japanese pop culture but makes no sense #weve never seen the ishigami tribe write shit i wanna see fuckin senku write ramen in japanese on some signs and theyre all WHAT #i like your words funny magic man #dr stone #dr stone headcanons #dr stone gen #senku #dr stone senku #dr stone spoilers #dr stone ukyo #dr stone ryusui

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rodpupo2 · 3 years

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Research: Persona Project

Ronin by Frank Miller

Ronin was a comic released by DC comics in 1983, and was created by Frank Miller, who besides having worked on the script, also worked on the illustrations.

Ronin is a internal evolution of the author, something that translates into a leap in quality in his work, transforming and aesthetically renewing his work.

It’s like stepping out of his comfort zone to face challenges to innovate.

Frank Miller stood out for his ability to break models, to shape a canon to a new look. And when he got to DC, he had a lot of new ideas involving the past and future, honor, society, discipline, technology, science and ecology. Miller’s mind amalgamated all this essence that culminated in this miniseries, overcoming any obstacles and marking the industry.

Ronin is the story of a past and a future that come together through science. From feudal Japan to the most decadent and technified New York, a samurai without a master, will return to solve the mistakes of the past, and do whatever it takes.

Miller brings with Ronin his interest that he already showed in other comics, which is the Japanese tradition, molding a crucible in which the past and future are mix organically, when technology is the next step in evolution. New York is engulfed by artificial intelligence that replaces the obsolete, the rotten and the dead, with the new and pure.

But for me, the best part of the comic, apart from the script and the whole idea of setting, is certainly the art.

The art of Ronin, maybe not for everyone’s taste, because it looks quite experimental and surrealist.

However, Miller broke new grounds with new page layouts, playing with the text, the thickness of the lines, close ups, cut plans and pictures, violence, death and pain like never before seen and felt in a comic book.

With a super stylized, bold and almost surrealistic streak. This led to a rejection of the miniseries, but it was necessary because Miller opened up, a new path in terms of narrative and composition of art, and invented new graphic tools with which he went in the direction of the unknown.

Josan Gonzalez

Josan is a renowned for exploring themes related to science fiction, dystopia, and above all, cyberpunk. He has already stated in an interview that he is strongly inspired by big names like Moebius, Katsuhiro Otomo - creator of Akira - and Geoff Darrow.

Gonzalez likes to create characters full of personality and compose scenarios rich in details. Josan has a very characteristic artistic artistic style: he uses complex line arts, flat colors and limited color palettes.

Being born in Spain, Josan starts reading comics since he was a teenager and this will influence later in his artistic aesthetic.

Initially he adopted a more painterly style which evolved later in the line work. Despite being always passionate about art he never thought it would make a real career from it. He succeeds in publishing his own books and working for big names such as Dark Horse and Boom Studios.

People is considering Josan’s work as being part of Cyberpunk genre, but the artist doesn’t like to classify them. He enjoy creating illustrations without establishing rules, just giving shapes to a futuristic world. Many of Gonzalez characters are linked by cables, which are a perfect metaphor for linkage human-technology. For a lot of artwork the artist get inspiration from religious imagery. Providing his characters with catholic and Hindu symbols. Mostly this happens, because of his catholic background in Spain. Another aspect, is showing people’s addiction with technology, which keep them repressed. Even if the artist explores different social questions his main goal remains the illustration and making interesting and timeless.

some of his most recent works are, for example, is the cover of the new edition of the science fiction book Neoromancer, and the steelbook art of the game Cyberpunk 2077.

The Story of Miyamoto Musashi

Miyamoto Musashi was Japan’s most famous samurai. He is credited with authoring the most important treatise in Japanese strategy, the “Book of Five Rings”.

Musashi Sensei, as his disciples still call his fighting style, lived from 1584 to 1645.

Musashi dedicated his life to reach perfection through the art of the sword. He fought and won more than 60 life and death duels, and was never defeated. He made contact with other art forms, such as painting, sculpture, calligraphy and poetry, in addition to Zen meditation and Buddhism.

Musashi was born in the province of Harima during one of the most troubled periods in the history of Japan, when the last great battles of the time of the samurai took place.

At the time, it was common in Japan for the same person to change his name at different stages of life. In childhood, Musashi Sensei was called Shinmen Bennosuke. It is believed that he received the first Kenjutsu (famous Japanese martial art) instructions from his father,Shinmen Hirata.

At the age of 13 he won his first duel, and won the second duel when he was 16 years old, as reported in The Book of Five Rings.

In his book Musashi says that his strategy to deconcentrate the opponent and beat him was to arrive late at the place of the duel. On the way, Musashi carved a sword out of a broken paddle and with this sword he dealt a blow to Kojiro winning the duel, which, although fast, is one of the most famous in the history of the samurai. The duel was immortalized in a monument on the island of Funajima representing the figure of the two warriors.

The Funajima duel was a turning point in Musashi’s life because from then on he began to reflect on how he had won so many duels and to dedicate himself to the task of leaving a legacy for future generations. It was from there, too, that Musashi began to dedicate himself to other arts such as painting and poetry.

He worked primarily with a style of ink painting, creating minimalist, monochromatic works portraying nature.

The last years of his life, Musashi spent as a guest with his friend, and then isolated himself in the cave of Reigando where he dedicated himself to meditation and practice of his art writing his Book of Five Rings right there.

Ned Bear Mask Artist

Sculptor Edward (Ned) Bear has combined study in Native education with an Honours Diploma from Vancouver college.

He has an extensive knowledge of Native art and culture, Bears has also made contributions to change as a curator, guest speaker and juror.

Bear was born in the town Frederecton, New Brunswick, Canada. When he was young boy he was inspired by a Native elder carver, and later on he received a formal training at New Brunswick College of Craft and Design, where he became the first aboriginal student to graduate. Bear received additional training at a Indian Federated College in Nova Scotia.

Bear created sculpted masks and marble or limestone figure forms. His masks are approximately three feet high and are usually carved from butternut. Each mask is adorned with horse hair ( symbolizing the free spirit), bear fur ( symbolizing healing) and metal ( symbolizing something which is of the earth). Each mask tells a story and offer a modern interpretation of traditional spiritual beliefs.

When creating art, Bear considered himself to be simply a vehicle through which energy flows from the eternal Great Spirit to the medium he is using. He doesn’t create any sketches for the masks, he said that he allows the great spirit to guide him through the process.

Ned Bear made significant contributions as an instructor of Native art and culture, a curator, a guest speaker, and a juror.

The indigenous sculptor died on the Christmas evening of 2019, at the age of 65. “ We delve into so many past wrongs of our lives that we forget to revel in the present. Learn to capture what you may never have again, now. Do what makes you content for this time, and begin to realize the true purpose of life”, said Bear.

Jim Henson

Jim Henson was an American puppeteer and filmmaker, and most known for creating the Muppets, and directing most of their movies and tv shows.

In the 1960s Henson and his future wife, Jane Nebel, created a puppet show on Washington television station and kept their jobs through the school years, developing the first Muppets (including Kermit) on a one minute television show called Sam and Friends.

The success of Sam and Friends led Henson to create his own company in 1958, initially called Muppets,inc. and many years later, The Jim Henson Company.

Part of the resounding success of Henson’s puppets was due to their innovative view that puppet controllers did not need to be hidden by physical objects while controlling them.

By instructing the camera controllers to focus on the puppets and keep the controllers out of sight, he allowed the puppets to dominate the TV screen and acquire more lively and similar behaviors to real people.

From the productions of Sam and Friends, many characters emerged who became famous over the years and who would become part of the famous cast of the Muppets, including their most famous member, Kermit the Frog.

The Muppet Show, which premiered in 1976 and was produced in England, gained an international audience ( it was shown in about 100 countries) and was soon followed by the film The Muppet Movie (1979).

Henson was able to create an interesting set of characters by developing innovative ideas with a sense of rhythm and humor that won an audience for both children and adults. His works are remembered in part for promoting positive values in childhood such as friendship, magic or love, themes that appeared in most of his works.

Research: Persona Brazilian Folklore research- Lobisomem

The legend of the werewolf is known practically all over the world. It defines him as being, part man, part wolf, who was cursed with lycanthropy ( the act of becoming a wolf).

The one who is cursed, becomes the werewolf on the nights of the full moon. Some variations of the legend say that lycanthropy was the result of the pact of one man with the devil.

Once transformed into a werewolf, the person frantically sets out in search of victims to kill them. Modern popular culture has spread the idea that the werewolf is vulnerable only to silver bullets or sharp objects made of silver.

Naturally, the legend of the werewolf arrived in Brazil through Portuguese, during the period when they colonized Brazil, in our country, the legend arrived and took on different characteristics in each region.

Some studies have concluded that there is no such legend among indigenous people. The closest to that were legends who believed that men or women could become some animals of the forest.

This legend in Brazilian folklore ended up acquiring elements present in its Portuguese version. Thus, it was common to believe that the werewolf was the man born after the mother had seven daughters, although versions of the legend say that if seven sons were born, the eight son would also be a werewolf.

In the north, of Brazil, the werewolf was the man who was in poor health, and the one who was anemic would eventually would become him. Once transformed, it feeds on the blood of other humans to make up for the poor diet as one of them. The transformation took place from Thursdays to Friday nights.

In the south, in turn, the fact that turned the man into a werewolf was incest. In Brazil, there was no record in the folklore of the belief in transformation of women into werewolves. In the folklore, only men becomes werewolves.

In the interior of São Paulo, it was believed that this being tried to invade the houses to eat children. Many believed that the werewolf went after, especially, unbaptized children.

One of the ways in which the person turned into a werewolf, was if he seriously injured with certain objects. One of these objects was a bullet bathed in candle wax from an altar.

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konpithepuppy · 3 years

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[TRANSLATION: anan No. 2231; 12.2020]

7 MEN SAMURAI SOLO INTERVIEW + MESSAGE + CROSS TALK

Scans not mine

Neither an English nor a Japanese native speaker

Feel free to correct me, thanks

7 MEN 侍

Dignified and Bold

7 MEN 侍's long-awaited first appearance on anan. Experiencing a turbulent 2020, these 6 people are pursuing a new entertainment. Challenging the stage play 「DREAM BOYS」, looked closer at their real selves.

Nakamura Reia

I like to make each of my choices the correct answer.

I was originally a kid who skateboards wearing a cap over a long hair and loose jeans. That's why I didn't have interest in being an idol, rather, I thought that having a neat appearance was lame. But, when I unwillingly went to the audition, I was selected to be a member of Snow Prince choir so I couldn't quit...My awareness changed when I started working as Sexy Boyz with Kishi (Yuta) and Jinguji (Yuta). It was different from my lenient and care-free self, I am positive and had the desire to improve myself with my works, I really got motivated. During the time when Sexy Zone who is close to me also debuted, I am the only one who didn't feel impatient or frustrated, rather, I felt "yabai". Since then, I started to think to do my best to be an idol seriously.

I am happy that Johnny-san chose me to be the center of 7 MEN 侍, but I am not the type who pulls everyone, the other 5 members have better skills than I am, they are also reliable, and on the contrary, I am being supported by them. It's just that, only my mental strength is strong. I totally don't care about things like criticisms from the society. Something like it is better to say bad things about me rather than attacking the other members. Because more than those criticisms, the fans are telling me that they like me. Or rather, this toughness might be my unique talent (LOL).

Since I came to like acting because of「Koi no Yamai to Yarougumi」, I want to try playing NG guy who has an older girl as the partner kind of role like「Himemon」or 「Kimi wa Petto」.

Is becoming an idol my fate...? But after all, everything is from the choices that I made by myself. I decided to go to the audition, I was taught by Johnny-san about how wonderful to be an idol, and I've continued being an idol up to now. From now on too, I would like to make each of my choices the correct answer.

Q. To have the luck on your side, do you have your own ritual?

Before the live, with the meaning of "please look over us", I talk to the photo of Johnny-san that is placed in the backstage room, I also put my hands together. I am the type who is moderately nervous but I don't hate that feeling of being encouraged.

Motodaka Katsuki

It seems that the feeling of home when the 6 of us gathers is very valuable.

I started singing, dancing, and playing on stage when I entered Johnny's. But, being completely absorbed in an instant than being skillful is my strength. But, with the keyboard I am in-charge of, my experience playing the piano since I was 3 years old was put into use. At that time, I really didn't like playing the piano. It was like that but I got the sense of perfect pitch. I am thankful to my parents to let me, who hates playing piano, attend the class.

I am attending college now but during my high school, I got a lot of advices from Snow Man's Abe (Ryohei)-kun. Since I have been chasing him on his back for a long time, I have been encouraged on how he flapped big his wings as Snow Man. Honestly, 3 months before the first concert as 7 MEN 侍, I wanted to see the world from the different point of view so I planned to study abroad in New York. At that time, I once again tried to think about this job. And then, I realized that I grew to love this job. The good sides and the bad sides, as a human being evaluated directly, there's a sense of accomplishment in here. That's why, studying abroad became not necessary for me until I take a break from the work that I love.

This year, I had a lot of chances to be in quiz shows alone, and I thought "Is being not with the members this disheartening?"...To that extent, I can feel that the feeling of home when going back to 7 MEN 侍 is very important. The members often tease me, but since I am not a talkative and interesting type of person, I become happy too when I made them laugh when they tease me. But behind the scenes, the members are relying on me and I often receive personal consultations too. 7 MEN 侍 who is in the process of exploring it's form, now and from now on too, I want to support everyone. And in the year 2021, even if we encounter struggles, this may be the year where we can have a firm grip to make great strides!

Q. To have the luck on your side, do you have your own ritual?

This is just my own value but I don't believe in luck. Everything is result of my own decision and it is my own responsibility. I don't want to blame "luck", and I also don't want to think that what happened is thanks to "luck". Suppose there is luck, pulling that luck towards yourself is a great deal of effort.

Sugeta Rinne

An idol is a wonderful job that has the charm to inspire people's hearts.

When I was an elementary student, I went to Hey!Say!JUMP-san's live and when I saw a girl who is in front of Yamada (Ryosuke)-kun cry and laugh, I thought that an idol is a wonderful job that has the charm to inspire people's hearts. Rinne also wants to be like that so Rinne uploaded everyday in ISLAND TV during stay home. I had worries like, "Won't they get tired of me?" but it turned to "I am sure the fans are happy with this, right?"

Rinne's special skills are acrobatics and sports, and I was able to appear in shows like 「Honoo-no Taiiku-kai TV」や「SASUKE」. For me, I think a person who is athletic is cool, and since you will want to support a person who is working hard, from now one too, I want to appeal as a Johnny's who can do sports. It would be nice if I can also appear in 「Run for Money」this 2021.

The senior that I admired is Ueda Tatsuya-kun. There was a time during a race in 「Honoo-no Taiiku-kai TV」, I showed off to hype up the audience and my time got slower. During that time, I really got scolded by Ueda-kun saying, "You can't win like that." Since that was the first time I got scolded throughout my Johnny's life, I think a senior who can properly scold his juniors is cool.

In 2020, I got 1 million yen when I guested in 「Quiz! Only 1」, I think Rinne is a guy who can grab luck. Before, when the my previous unit was gone, it felt like I have lost my chance...Given that I thought of quitting Johnny's if I am not going to be put in a group until 2020, I am so glad that I went to talk directly to Johnny-san. Since I now have a group original song and individual job, I think this is really the time to give my all.

Q. To have the luck on your side, do you have a ritual that only you doTo have the luck on your side, do you have your own ritual?

Before the actual show, I watch videos of my senior's lives starting with Hey!Say!JUMP-san's. Since I think having a proper image of "idol" as " a work to make people happy", I can do a better performance.

Sasaki Taiko

The 6 of us, even though we are late bloomers, I believe that we can definitely bloom.

The one who opened my path to Johnny's is Takahashi Kaito-kun. I also sent my resume when I heard that Kaito-kun who I thought cool when I saw him in a dance contest. With that, now that I am working as the same Johnny's, this is an amazing fate! I talk about music with Sato Shori-kun who likes the same band as mine, and I also receive dishes that he makes. Kishi (Yuta)-kun who Shori-kun is good friend with, took me to a his favorite soba stall saying, "It's a delicious shop." Since then, I've been addicted to that shop too.

I have been practicing dancing and playing drums when I was a kid, but Johnny-san chose my drumming skills more. At first, even though I am very thankful to be able to show it, I have become greedier and greedier, and I honestly thought that "I can also dance"...But 3 months before Johnny-san passed away, I heard from Oriyama (Nao) of Shounen Ninja that Johnny-san said, "Sasaki is good at dancing too." From here, I want to say with confidence that I am also good at dancing that Johnny-san had recognized. After all, dancing is a must in Johnny's! In addition, while polishing thoroughly my singing and acting too, I want to reach for something extraordinary.

With 7 MEN 侍 changing the members twice, a self-conscious was born each time and I have come do develop mutual trust with them. Even if these 6 people bump into a big wall, if these 6 people are together, they will be able to cross over it, they are probably late bloomers but I believe they can be successful and well known. (T/N: lit. 花を咲かせられる (flower can bloom; it is like an "idiomatic expression" for becoming successful and well known) In 2021, if possible, I want to do a live where 100% of the audience can go. It is going to be a live where they can think "I am glad I am supporting 7 MEN 侍." I'll cry if that happens (LOL).

Q. To have the luck on your side, do you have your own ritual?

I do things as I please like how I kissed Hamada Masatoshi-san of Downtown in a variety show, but I am really very nervous...Before the show, I am the type who right the character "人" 3 times on my palm, I do it seriously (LOL).

Konno Taiki

I think I could grab the chance because I was able to meet Johnny-san.

I like Kimura Takuya-san since I was 3 years old, and thinking that I want to be like him, I sent my resume to the agency. In year 2020, when I was able to go and see Kimura-san's tour, I told him those feelings, he said, "Let's take a photo together." I thought that a star is different after all.

From the start, even before joining Johnny's, with singing as my strong point, I love singing in front of people. I often sing Misora Hibari-san's 「Kawa No Nagare No Youni」. But when I hit the puberty, I came to hate my own voice. I stopped singing for a while but during my 4th year in Johnny's, when I casually hummed to Kinki Kids'san's 「Anniversary」near Johnny-san, he praised me saying, "You're good in singing!" More than anything else, I am glad that Johnny-san who loved me like a parent recognized my singing which is something that I am trying to make as my strong point. From that moment, I worked hard because I wanted to be praised by Johnny-san, but when he passed away, it felt like I have lost my aim. But for Johnny-san, he hates negative remarks the most. That's why it is not the time to feel down, aiming seriously for this group to debut, I feel like that timing completely changed my awareness towards work. I think I could grab the chance because I was able to meet Johnny-san after all. If that didn't happen, no doubt I am not here now.

2020 is the year where I got to experience a lot of things for the first time. Especially with the stage play 「The Happy Prince」, I was able to feel the enjoyment of plays. I think it would be nice if I can challenge campus love story in a drama or movie this 2021.

Q. To have the luck on your side, do you have your own ritual?

When I want to calm down, I use a perfume that has a sweet vanilla scent. Since「The Happy Prince」is my first stage play, I was very nervous. When I used this perfume during that time too, it was able to relieve my nervousness.

Yabana Rei

A performance that will also remain to the memories of those who are not knowledgeable about music.

I took the audition 4 times. For the details, you can try watching the episode where I talked about it in YouTube channel (LOL). Even if I passed the document screening but I couldn't go to the practice, I will repeat the cycle of going through audition again. If ever I continued [being a Jr.] during my first audition, I might be dancing and I might not had been able to make an appeal with musical instruments as my special skill during the band boom of Johnny-san. I am being told, "You're not Johnny's-like" because I say that I am better in playing instruments than dancing. It's just that, if I didn't enter Johnny's, I won't be playing instruments until now. So I can say that it feels like a wonderful destiny to be playing instruments as 7 MEN 侍.

Other than the bass that I am in-charged of playing, I also play guitar and harmonica. The first instrument I started with was drums and I got very hooked with 「Taiko no Tatsujin」(LOL). If you play different things, you will pick up the characteristics of each sound and you will be able to make songs too. I also want learn about the theories so I am attending college of music. I am a complete geek as regards to music (LOL). Me going on a rampage on stage is the result of me thinking on how I can show 7 MEN 侍's style. In the letters from the fans, letters with "you are cool playing the guitar" is not few even though I am playing the bass. Since there was a time when I also don't know clearly the difference between the guitar and the bass, so I can understand that feeling. That's why I want to do a performance that will remain to the memories of anyone.

With the aim "to be not less than what I am now" for next year, I want to be able to do more work than I did for this year. ...by the way, this is not a prank, right? I am very overwhelmed lately and I still can't believe that I am having an interview for anan (LOL).

Q. To have the luck on your side, do you have your own ritual?

Going to this certain shrine. Since I visited there alone during New Year, we had talk about changing the instruments we play and I have luck on my side. I like that it is quiet there even though it is located within the city, when I found that shrine, I prayed to the god of works.

Message

To Nakamura

To stand as the face of the group, you stand as the center of the group. His personality is my pace and gentle-mannered. Since you are not the "follow me!" type, that's why I think the members with strong personalities are also kept in place. Because I get stiff in front of seniors, Reia's sense of "being loved by everyone" is really nice. Even though you have the longest history in agency in the group, you are not prideful at all, Reia who can understand the things he can't do and who can rely to others is amazing. (Motodaka)

To Motodaka

Our overwhelmingly highly educated member. And yet, you are not annoying because you are a cute guy who is an overeater and carelessly says foolish things like "therefore!?" (LOL) Before the group was formed, you are a companion who I find easy to talk with, but you see me as a senior, right? The way you call me too was "Reia-kun". But I am happy that you interact with me on equal terms lately. (Nakamura)

To Yabana

Banasan is seen as someone reliable, and among the fans, I think they see him as peculiar, funny, and has a lively image. But unexpectedly, he has a delicate side too, and he is fairly a considerate person.He is really a very nice person that sometimes he looks pitiful. Well, I also usually tease Yabana (LOL). That's why, everyone too, please take good care of Yabana more! (Konno)

To Konno

He doesn't seem elusive at first glance, but I think he is stubborn. Konpi definitely won't cross the line he can't compromise with. And, he hates lounging around doing nothing. When work is done, he will be the first person who will say "I'm going home." At the start of 2020, when we changed the atmosphere of our band, I was struggling with the hook part's harmony, but Konpi can properly play the sound. I am super jealous of his talent! (Yabana)

To Sasaki

Among the members, he has the biggest gap. Despite being called as "mad dog", he still makes weird faces and also jokes around doing things that are not Johnny's-like. Since he is a youngest child, he might also have an impression of being a brat and naughty. But in lives, he shows a sparking cool dance, and he has a excellent style too. Since his range is really amazing, I hope you can enjoy his both sides! (Sugeta)

To Sugeta

You have the cuteness like an idol. Especially you like Yamada-kun, you have Hey!Say!JUMP's DVD and there was a time when we enjoyed watching it together. Also, your muscle is amazing, you are really healthy (LOL). But in reality, you are the type who will be silent when you get mad so I will ask Reia, "Why is he mad? Did I do something?" (LOL) Thinking of the members, I think the member who likes 7 MEN 侍 the most is Rinne! Since you always listens to our original songs. (Sasaki)

Cross Talk

Motodaka: anan is the magazine that my mother often buys. Thus, I am happy to be able to appear in anan! At home, I am always being asked, "Are you going to work today?", but this morning I said, "No, it's not for work" (lit. it's different). I want to make it a surprise [for my mom] once this issue is released.

Yabana: It would be funny if she didn't notice it even if it is already released~!

Nakamura: Even when they have the magazine at home LOL.

What is the history of your group name?

Sugeta: At the time we got the group name, I was doing activities with another 7 people. Rinne and Reia went to Johhny-san asking "we want a group name." And then, Johnny-san told us "I understand, I will think about it."

Nakamura: And then we thought that day was already over.

Sugeta: 5 minutes later, we got called "Samura~i!"

Nakamura: I thought, "Who is he calling Samurai!?" but when I looked around, it is only us who were there.

Sugeta: When the 2 of us went to Johnny-san, he asked us, "Do you know Kurosawa Akira's 「Shichinin no Samurai」?" Then, when we answered, "We know that film," he told us, "Then, how about being called 7 MEN 侍 from now on?" Each of the samurai who appeared in the movie are properly...like this...

Konno: Having strong personalities and skills.

Sugeta: Yeah

Konno: I am grateful that 7 people like that (having strong personalities and skills) were gathered.

Have you seen the movie?

All: ...(Only Nakamura-san raised his hand)

Nakamura: Wait a minute!

Sasaki: Everyone has not seen the movie except for Reia LOL.

Nakamura: It is the origin of our group name so let's watch it~!!

Yabana: Gerin-san (Sugeta) lying to Johnny-san saying "I know the film" is the worst LOL.

Nakamura: It is a wonderful film and you will learn something from it so please watch it!

What is 7 MEN 侍's strength?

Motodaka: Our difference from the other groups is that [playing a] "band" is our strength. As idols, we don't only play as a band but we can also show our dance.

Sasaki: Yeah, having both band and dance as "weapons" is huge, isn't it?

Motodaka: Yeah, since our first original song 「samudama」 is a band song, and our second original song 「Siren」 is a dance song.

Konno: When our next song was thought to be a band song too, our next song came out as a cool dance song.

Nakamura: With this, our third song became something incalculable. From now on too, I want for the fans to look forward to what our new song is each time we announce our new song.

Within the group, who is the member who has the element of "samurai" the most?

Konno: It's either me or Yabana, right?

Sugeta: Is it about the appearance?

Konno: In the sense of sticking with the will.

Yabana: Don't say that yourself!

In Yabana-san's solo interview, he described Konno-san exactly the same way you with what you (Konno) have said...

Konnp: Is that so? Then I shouldn't have said it. Please tell me properly about it. This is embarrassing!

Motodaka: Konpi dragged Yabana with guarantee LOL. For Yabana, getting dragged is just a trouble.

Yabana: Don't drag me into it~!

Nakamura: LOL. I love kanji, I wonder if that is samurai-like. I also play Sengoku. But, if we talk about the body, then isn't Rinne the one who is samurai-like?

Sugeta: Rinne thinks that more than being a samurai, I am more like a ninja.

Yabana: What is that? A self-awareness of a secret mystery from your heart LOL.

Nakamura: Of course we are idols, but I think it is also good to show the manly side of us exclusively during our band performances.

Yabana: We will go on a rampage like Sakamoto Ryouma who tried to change Japan!

Sasaki: For me, changing...or rather it's more like I want to create a new path.

Konno: Defying the public belief.

Yabana: The awareness that we don't want to go with the typical type is something we all have in common, right?

Motodaka: All 6 of us have different personalities but we that the same awareness.

Konno: We don't want to pretend to be someone else.

Sasaki: It's a subjective image but I think protecting a girl is an element of a samurai. It is gonna be a cheesy talk but I want to be an idol who can protect the fans.

Motodaka: You just said something really good! But, what would be the good thing to do to protect the fans?

Sasaki: I think making them happy.

Sugeta: By making our fans happy, as a result, we are able to protect them!

Motodaka: We are saying good things today, aren't we?

Nakamura: With what said earlier , it doesn't feel like you worked LOL.

Currently, you are in the middle of practice for the stage play 「DREAM BOYS」.

Konno: I watched the DREAM BOYS 2019 where Reia and Taiko appeared, and since I thought I wanted to appear on it again, I am so happy to be able to appear on DREAM BOYS again.

Sugeta: Since there is already a vision in Domoto Koichi-san who is directing the play, I am looking forward to recieving direction and guidance even before the practice.

Sasaki: Reia will stand in front of the audience after a while, right?

Nakamura: Yeah. I currently have a feeling like I am seeing the person I love after a while that my heart is throbbing.

ALL: OH~!!

Sasaki: Rinne made a face that he doesn't want to lose [to Reia] after hearing Reia's comment LOL.

Nakamura: Probably, this comment will be used by Rinne on a different interview, right? LOL.

What is the charm of 「DREAM BOYS」?

Sugeta: The burning passion of two men towards boxing is its charm after all, right?

Nakamura: Yeah. The feelings are delivered in a straight manner.

Motodaka: It is a story that firmly depicts humans and their relationships with each other.

Sasaki: Youth! It has the entertainment that is unique to Johnny's so you won't get tired of watching it. Oh, which minds me, as soon as the practice started, Kishi (Yuta)-kun asked, "Is Yabana not around today?"

Yabana: He told me "teach me how to play the guitar please." It is an honor to be needed by a senior.

Sasaki: But (Iwasaki) Taisho is a strong opponent. It looks difficult to keep up with him LOL.

Yabana: Taisho mistook me for a nourishment or something and my energy gets absorbed.

Konno: It looks like Yabana has no time to rest LOL.

By the way, 7 MEN 侍 still does not have a leader, right?

Sugeta: *raised actively his hand alone*

ALL: *roar of laughter*

Sasaki: If our leader is like Rinne, 7 MEN 侍 is seriously over LOL. This is different from asking in in the werewolf game on who is the fortune teller and you will say, "I am."

Yabana: I think it is his win because he said it first LOL.

Konno: Announcing it during the anan round-table discussion which is a big occasion LOL.

Yabana: Doesn't it feel like the same thing for the MC part in YouTube channel...?

Nakamura: When Rinne realized that being the MC is not that great...

Sugeta: Well, whatever!

Sasaki: Since he stopped doing the MC, he wanted to have punishment games so that he would be shown in the camera even just for a little LOL.

Sugeta: In the filming recently, Rinne is always beside Yabana, right?

Motodaka: Don't tell me that's because if you are standing next to the MC, you will be in the camera too...?

Sugeta: Yup. I revealed this for the first time now.

Konno: In a sense, you are a genius LOL.

#7 men 侍 #translation

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phonaesthemes · 4 years

Link

A new bill on Indigenous language education is sparking concern for St. Thomas University professor emeritus Andrea Bear-Nicholas.

Bear-Nicholas, who was the chair of the Native Studies department at St. Thomas University for 20 years, says the new bill undermines the critical need for Wolastoqey immersion classes for Indigenous students.

"I'm concerned, because it will require more speakers to be in more schools and to be teaching more students," Bear-Nicholas said.

"The plan to require [Indigenous] language in all public schools may actually draw away the resources we need, financial and human, into doing the immersion kind of project that is desperately needed before our language is going to be gone."

Bear-Nicholas said there are barely enough teachers who can capably teach the language to the members of the Wolastoqey nation itself, and fears this may spread those teachers even thinner if they are to teach in other provincial schools.

The Indigenous languages bill was put forth by Green Party MLA Megan Mitton last month. A week ago, the bill was given unanimous support by an all-party committee of MLAs.

"It's important that there be some basic exposure to these languages" Green Party MLA Megan Mitton said last week.

"If [the members of the legislative assembly's] purpose is concern for the language or respect for Indigenous peoples, we far more need to have language opportunities for our own children to be increased," Bear-Nicholas said.

Green Party leader David Coon said the intent of the bill is to foster an appreciation of Indigenous languages in students.

"The intent is not to put Indigenous teachers into the schools to teach all peoples Indigenous languages in New Brunswick," Coon said. "It's simply to foster an awareness among all students in our school system that Indigenous languages actually exist, are spoken, here's what the language sounds like and maybe just pass on the notion of how to say 'thank you,' to say 'hello,' and say 'welcome.'"

Bear-Nicholas said early childhood immersion is the only way to save the language, which has fewer than 100 fluent speakers remaining.

Prefers focus on Indigenous students

"We probably only have, if at all, five years left of being able to mount a reasonable immersion program in the preschools because all of our speakers are over 65 or 70," Bear-Nicholas said. "It just doesn't make any sense at this point to be sort of saying 'OK, here's a gift for every student in the province to have a right to our language' when our own children don't even have enough support to maintain the language."

"15,20,30,40 years ago this might have been fine, we would have had plenty of speakers," Bear-Nicholas said. "But even then, it was really critical that we start immersion programs while our kids were still in communities where there were still some speakers."

"Right now, our speakers are so few, we really are on the verge of extinction."

Bear-Nicholas said early childhood immersion programs are being used all over the world in places such as Hawaii and New Zealand to revitalize languages that are on the decline.

Coon said the implementation of Indigenous immersion programs is something he would like to see through, but at the moment is unable to put forward such a bill.

"We would have brought in a bill to drive immersion programs for Indigenous students in Indigenous languages if we had the ability to bring in bills that had financial implications," Coon said. "But as an opposition party, you're actually not permitted to bring a bill forward that has implications to the budget."

"That would have been my dream," Coon said.

Bear-Nicholas said crucial funding has been difficult to secure for an early childhood immersion program to be able to respectfully pay teachers and elders who hold the language.

Province not keeping promise

"This province has agreed to support a program in early childhood immersion five years ago," Bear-Nicholas said. "They funded our little project then for a year and since then we've been begging for more funding to make this possible."

Bear-Nicholas says if the province wants to give more exposure to First Nations cultures or languages, they should begin with treaty education, teaching the history on how the Peace and Friendship Treaties came to be signed.

"We need to be focusing more on our traditions and our history," Bear-Nicholas said. "In fact, if we were to be teaching Indigenous history in this province, it would be everybody's history anyway."

Coon said it was a bill he put forward a few years ago that made it mandatory that Indigenous history be taught in the provincial school systems. Coon said it was a discussion with Dave Perley of the Mi'kmaq-Wolastoqey Centre at UNB is what sparked the bill to add languages to that.

Coon said the concern should be on how the Indigenous languages bill is implemented, and not on the bill itself.

Bear-Nicholas said she thinks the bill should be withdrawn or suspended for further discussion.

"I think there should be a consultation in our communities, an open consultation, not a private one, that basically evaluates the effectiveness of that initial bill in the Education Act 7b."

The bill will be voted on by members of the New Brunswick Legislature this fall.

#indigenous languauges #language revitalization #language policy and planning #long post

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feingeister · 5 years

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As a german, what do you think are characteristics druck’s characters have but you wouldn’t notice as a non-native speaker? I read Matteo mumbles but i wouldn’t have noticed myself. Do they have accents? Does the way they speak tell you anything about their personality? Idk if this makes sense but i’m curious cause i get a much stronger feeling about people who speak my language.

oh this is super cool and there is no way i’m going to cover everything in this ask but i’ll try. also a lot of it might just be me rambling about language quirks that everyone can pick up on.

- first off: matteo. i’ve said this a lot but i absolutely love the way he talks and it adds a LOT to his character imo. he mumbles, which would usually be annoying and maybe it’s me and my rose-tinted glasses but it’s just super charming with him. it fits his vibe. he sounds cool, chill, awkward and quiet all at once.

- you know how in the early, awkward flirting stage matteo lights up like christmas tree when he talks to david? you can hear it too. i made a post here about matteos voice getting higher (that still makes me laugh every time), another clip where it’s pretty noticeable is the “kranker turn-up” one. when he invites david to his party, he sounds a lot perkier, his voice is slightly higher and he’s generally more enthusiastic. still mumbles tho.

- when matteo is nervous, he slurs his words even more, and he gets quieter, and sometimes his voice is a little higher. you can heart it when he compliments david on his drawings, when he greets the boys in his coming out scene, when he explains to sam how to measure a dick and in the “arschloch der stufe” clip where he apologizes to sara. that last one is especially bad, he sounds so apathetic and monotone and his words are a lot more slurred than usual.

- special shout-out to the “kann ich mir jetzt was wünschen?” (“can I wish for something now?”) line. i don’t know if you can hear it but the way he says it..... it’s all in the tone of his voice: the neediness, the vulnerability, the softness. he also kiiind of sounds like that in the coming out clip with jonas. it’s just…. in these scenes his voice carries the vulnerability of his character and it’s INCREDIBLE.

- now that we’ve discussed matteo being baby, here’s a thing people often forget: he’s also a bastard. and i don’t mean his general brattiness. he’s a softie but he has a bit of an edge to him that I think probably get’s lost in translation. some of his remarks, especially with the boys are downright mean, but not in a way that sounds intentional. it’s just that his tone sometimes misses the mark of friendly teasing and he ends up sounding like a bit of an ass lmao. it’s fine tho, we love him and forgive him.

- okay now david: lukas is someone who doesn’t slur his words at all and he speaks very clearly. this is especially obvious because most of his scenes are with michi who is the opposite. it might be the fact that he’s from hamburg (northern varieties of german are said to be closer to the ‘perfect’ hochdeutsch) or it’s just lukas being lukas

- you want to know what my first impression of david was when he and matteo first talked? this boy is afraid to speak up. if i look back at that clip now, i can barely believe it’s david. he is VERY quiet, his voice is very monotone and he just sounds… totally different, he even slurs his words in that clip. he warms up around matteo a little bit, but still in that entire clip his voice is a lot less melodic and he just sounds a lot less… alive than he usually does.

- the line that carries the most emotion in that scene is not “best music city ever” it is “what would you have wished for?”. when he said that he sounded a lot more like the david we know: kind, gentle and very clearly giving in to matteo.

- in the joints and sandwiches clip, david is a whole other person. i know you can see it but you hear it in his voice too. it’s seriously crazy, the way he talks is a lot more enthusiastic and not reserved at all

- the shy, monotone voice comes back a couple times in school, when he doesn’t seem to be entirely comfortable. i think it’s (again) most evident in the “kranker turn-up” clip when he gets his beanie back. he’s obviously trying to stay cool, calm and collected.

- again, special shout-out to two lines: “aber manchmal ist das anders” (“but sometimes that’s different” in his coming out scene) and “und unten weiß ich nicht” (“but bottom i don’t know” in the morning after clip). i don’t know what it is about these lines, but he says them in exactly the same way and it’s a tone/voice we don’t hear any other time. he sounds kind of… choked up, a little like he’s about to cry (even though he isn’t). he just sounds especially vulnerable when he says it, but it’s not like matteo who’s vulnerability sounds hopeful, desperate and kind of begging for love, for david it’s quiet, still holding back and like he’s afraid to get hurt. yes, i am most definitely reading too much into this, you’re welcome.

- i don’t know if we have successfully conveyed that “na?” is the stupidest conversation starter that could possibly exist. you could just as well say “hello i want this conversation to go nowhere”

- speaking of, their first conversation cracks me tf up because the whole “krass” “geht” exchange is SO awkward. david is actively working against having a proper conversation. god bless.

- the award for “character that is most lost in translation” will go to carlos. you know he’s funny but you don’t know HOW funny he is. people say germans have no sense of humor and they’re right. but i’ve found that very often, we’re funny not when we make actual jokes but when the way we say things are funny. it’s hard to explain but a particular choice of words can make a statement hilarious and i think i only ever laugh at german comedy when it’s that kind of funny. instead of “hey it’ll be cool if you could fix things with kiki” carlos says “das wär echt ‘n feiner, korrekter zug, wenn du mal die wogen ausbügeln würdest”; instead of “i’m not that ugly” jonas says “als wär ich so’n krasses gesichtsgulasch” and instead of “it matter how you say it” Kiki says “der ton macht die musik, ne?” (i’m quoting this from memory btw). so yeah. carlos is very funny and the way he talks is just… very unique to him.

- anselm is one of the best actors in druck. his lines always sound 100% natural and he makes jonas just… sound really cool.

- everyone has an accent. your mama, your cousin, you, me, everyone. but i know the question is if any of the cast have noticeable regional accents and the answer is no. they all speak a variety of german that is called “hochdeutsch” aka standard german. i’ve heard some mixed opinion on whether or not you can hear where everyone is from but the consensus is probably that it’s hard to tell. in my opinion, anselm and michi have the most noticeable accents, but if i just met them randomly i would never be able to tell that they’re from berlin.

- fun fact: out of the girl squad, the person who uses the most slang and gets closest to boysquad levels of dumbassery is…. amira!! actually, don’t quote me on this but i definitely feel like she says “digga” the most and she’s just generally… more slang-y idk. it makes her vibe a little more chill and less “proper”.

- OVERALL: i don’t think there are any character traits that get completely lost in translation but i think there is some stuff that just… enhances the characters and gives them a tiny bit more nuance if you understand the language. oh and a lot of the humor gets lost.

also, these are not facts, it’s all just personal observations and opinions.

#druck #language stuff #ask #german #i was mid mental breakdown when i wrote this at like 4 am #full on going feral #spiralling #so if you're german and think i'm reaching... you're probably right #feel free to argue

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purplesurveys · 4 years

Text

853

1. What is your first language? Filipino.

2. How many languages do you know currently? (Even if you’re not fluent) I can read and speak fluently in Filipino and English. I can slightly read Cebuano and Spanish if there’s enough context and if I recognize enough words haha. There are also phrases in other Filipino languages that I’ll be able to catch but they are very few and far between, like Kapampangan and Ilokano.

3. If your first language is not English, when did you start learning English? If your first language is English, have you ever picked up another language and when? I started reading from a very early age and since all the books my parents got me were in English, that’s where I learned my first English words. My grandpa also always preferred speaking to me in English so I learned more phrases and sentences from him. Then the ball rolled when I learned even more English once I started going to school, and then I got exposed to TV shows and movies.

4. How do you feel about films being dubbed and voiced over? Do you prefer to have it in its original language with subtitles or does this not bother you at all? Dubbing is very important at least in the Philippines because we don’t have a completely literate population, especially in the lower classes. It helps them a whole whole lot to just hear voiceovers speaking in Filipino when watching movies that are in English. But for my own personal consumption, I prefer subtitles.

5. Speaking of subtitles, have you ever read them and disagreed with their translation? Yessssss. Some Filipino phrases can be super harsh and when I read the English translation they just don’t pack a punch as much as it would have in Filipino.

6. Do you listen to music with lyrics in languages you do not understand? What draws you to it? I never do that. I personally don’t enjoy listening to music I don’t understand.

7. Do you try to learn a language through music and films? Well I don’t specifically *try* to learn Korean through films and shows. It’s just that I watch too much Korean media that I just kinda pick up words and phrases and end up learning.

8. What is a language that you’ve always wanted to learn, but feel that you would never be able to learn? Any Philippine language other than Filipino.

9. Is your household bilingual? Yes.

10. What languages sound harsh or rough to your ears? Probably German and Russian. Sometimes French. Chinese people also always sound like they’re mad when they’re really just having a normal conversation haha. Koreans sometimes do it too.

11. Do you think the native speakers of the languages that you find rough to be rough as people or have a “harsh” personalities? Not necessarily. Like what I observed from the Chinese and Koreans, it’s really just how they normally speak. They can be completely calm but sound super pissed off to a non-native speaker. Takes a bit of getting used to.

12. In your opinion, what languages sound pleasant? Japanese sounds incredibly soothing to my ears, as long as it’s not a squealing schoolgirl/anime girl talking.

13. What accents and/or regional dialects do you have? I speak Philippine English. Sometimes I’ll codeswitch and speak Taglish, but I only save this for informal settings like if I’m with my friends.

14. Do you think that there are certain situations where it is necessary for a person to speak “properly”? In your opinion, what does it mean to speak properly? I guess. I speak ~properly when I’m in a formal or serious situation, like when I was attending my internship, or when I’m in an oral examination, or when I’m speaking with my friends’ parents.

15. Do you believe that a structure of a language shapes the way a person thinks and conceptualises the world? For sure. For instance, Filipino’s a gender neutral language. We have no term for ‘brother’ or ‘sister’ or ‘she’ or ‘he,’ and instead we simply have a term for sibling and the pronoun they. That’s why I was puzzled for quite a while when I saw that other languages had gendered nouns even for inanimate stuff, like Spanish. Your social standing will also dictate the language that you speak and the words you choose to say.

16. What do you find most beautiful about your first language? It’ll be hard to explain to a non-speaker but deep Filipino sounds very poetic. I’m very envious of those with an exceptional command of the language. Also, we have a billion verb tenses and while that’s not necessarily beautiful, it’s fun to see non-speakers get tongue-tied about all of them HAHAHA.

17. How do you feel about linguistic erasure (when certain countries deliberately try to eradicate a language that isn’t considered the standard)? Do you think it happens in your country? Yeah Filipinos act so embarrassed about Filipino and always prefer English. That’s why so many kids now are more fluent in English – some even have a British accent thanks to Peppa Pig??? – and I think that’s even more embarrassing.

18. Can you roll your ‘r’? Yes.

19. Can you pronounce the French ‘r’? How about the German ‘r’? I can do the French r in a way that will probably be considered stereotypical. I’m not claiming that I can do it 100% because I don’t speak the language. I don’t know what the German r is.

20. What grammatical rule or feature in English do you find most bizarre or fascinating? Probably double letters. Thankfully I was always good at spelling, but I know it’s difficult for non-English speakers to memorize the double letters in words like committee, obsession, commemorate, bookkeeper, etc.

#survey #surveys

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renegade-is-in-my-blood · 5 years

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Summer 2019 is almost over and I got my days off from work in the last week of August. It was a time well spent as I got to travel a lot and visit new places. I’m gonna take you at my quick trip to salt mine Wieliczka in Poland with me.

It’s been a while since I’ve been home at Slovakia, therefore the choice where to go from Prague was quite simple. My family convinced me to spend the whole of my holidays at Slovakia, but I had one condition though.

We were not to sit at home.

I bombarded our family chat with links and recommendations of what to visit nearby Slovakia. There’s plenty to see in our neighborhood even though I’m a sucker for long-distance travels.

My younger sister took the responsibility of preparing point by point plan of our wide adventure. She actually emailed us a word document with the time schedule and pinpoints. To be fair she was quite upset we did not memorize or at least printed out our plan.

It’s easy to create a plan. Much harder is to stick to it.

We prepared 2 countries and at least 8 major sighs to see. To share it all with you is gonna take more than just one article. So much has happened. Now I’m gonna tell you all about our trip to the famous salt mine called Wieliczka.

Wieliczka is a small town in the south of Poland with one of the oldest salt mines in the world. It’s origin tracks back to 13 century and nowadays is a popular tourist attraction as over one million tourists visit Wieliczka salt mine every year.

The start of our journey began at 3 in the morning when me, my parents, my sister, and her boyfriend started our road trip. Unfortunately, my youngest sister was unable to take this trip with us as she had to work.

First stop: Salt mine Wieliczka

From my hometown of eastern Slovakia to Wieliczka town it took around 5 hours. We spend our time listening to the audio of Agata Christie’s detective stories and stand up comedy podcasts. Due to our early start, we arrived pretty early I would say, judging from the number of people we saw on our way out. From afar you could see many car parking spots and young boys in neon vests signing you to park there. Working on commission obviously.

Don’t worry you don’t have to park at the first one you see. For example, we continue further and we got a parking spot much closer to the salt mine entry. Parking cost 25 zlotys, aka the currency of Poland, which is like 0.25$ or 0.23€.

After a quick breakfast, we headed out of parking lot to the Wieliczka salt mine. It was easy to find as it’s this big ass building with a huge fence around it. The whole orientation over the areal was pretty clearly marked and we went straight to the foreign language tickets.

The line in the morning was very short, just like 2 people in front of us. I was the spokesman for our group and it was so easy to communicate in English. We got tickets for 5 adults with English speaking tour guide that costed 95zlotys per person. There are certain places inside of the caves where you’re not allowed to take photographs unless you get a permit. Photography permit costs just 10 zlotys so we got one and it was worth the photos.

I and my family choose an English tour but there are other languages to choose from.

Obviously, polish, then Italian, French, German, Russian and Spanish. Polish and English were the most frequent so there was a new tour starting every 30 minutes. Therefore we didn’t have to wait long till our tour started. Other languages tours started like every 2-3 hours. Spanish for example just like 2-3 times per day.

In the inside, we got a recorder and one headphone. We were told which frequency to type so we all hear our tour guide speaking into her device.

The tour guide was a young girl with very clean English and pronunciation.

The one you learn from school that’s very easy to understand even if you’re not a native speaker.

There was an obvious temperature difference from outside august day to 10-100 meters below the ground deep salt mine. For my surprise, it wasn’t as cold as I was expecting it to be. I was wearing jeans and a jacket and I was ok. After a while of walking, I even took my jacket off and walked around just in my tank top.

Tour begins with the hardest step. Well around 800 steps to be precise, as you’re about to walk down 55 floors. The whole way down would not be much of a problem but the wooden staircase goes in a circle and it’s all very narrow. Long story short you have to focus on each step very carefully and it’s hard to do when you get dizzy from going in the circles. It took just like 5-8 minutes till we were all down below and the temperature lowered. My legs were shaking so much from all of those stairs and the more walking followed.

We moved through the mine as a group of around 20-25 people and the whole tour took 2,5 hours judging by the first photograph I took at 9:30 and the last at 12:00. Thank you apple, now it’s much easier for me to track my movement.

Wieliczka salt mine was beyond my expectations.

I didn’t think there would be many exciting things to see in a salt mine. Couldn’t ever imagine being interested in salt.

The great tour through the mines proved me wrong. It’s really hard to grasp the whole size of the mine as the visitors gets to see just the glimpse of 1% of it all. Tourists are allowed to 3 floors of grand 9 floors below the ground. The distance is even more incomprehensive. Stunning 300 km long.

It takes hearing about how our ancestors actually dig through those tunnels to a whole new level. You get to hear how they made the chambers by blowing shit up. How they managed to bring horses into the mines. Tourists get to see actual devices people used to create all of their surroundings. Seeing huge ass barrels of slat that back in the day could be used to buy a whole village with people and livestock.

The whole experience is supported by visual aids and shows besides explanatory from the tour guide. We went from chamber to chamber, each named after an important person for polish history.

The most famous chamber got to be the wedding hall that’s justs stunning. There were few of them actually. For obvious reasons, they were the most crowded ones. I was fascinated by the chandeliers that were made out of salt crystals. Just like the rest of the place that has been all made out of salt. The floors, the walls, the whole supporting system.

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I’m sure you expect the place to be the clear white color as the salt is supposed to be, but those were the purest salt barrels missing the minerals that actually whiten them.

You are free to convince yourself of the salt origin of the walls. Lick them all.

But remember that each year those walls gets licked by one million visitors. I personally didn’t dare. I was willing to taste the salty mineral water erupting in the caves. One drop that was so concentrated and salty I couldn’t even swallow it.

Along our tour, we came across more stairs and we kept going deeper and deeper. The original salt stairs were so slippery we had to be extra careful. More so when the tour guide told us that back in the day, when there was no proper ventilation in the caves and it got very hot, the stairs that got very slippery caused several accidents and even death on miners.

More death stories were heard when we came across one of the salty lakes inside the Wieliczka salt mine. Some time ago the part of the tourist attraction was a boat trip over the salty lake. One day a group of 7 people were enjoying themselves and rocking the boat. Unfortunately, they rolled over and due to incredibly high saturation of the water, they were unable to swim up and drowned int he mines. The attraction is now forbidden.

A lot of action for a salt mine don’t you think?

Wieliczka is definitely more interesting than it seems.

I was expecting to feel some pressure difficulties as we were so deep underground, but nothing happened. Little kids were able to take part in the tour and there are even special tours for families with kids. Also, for my big surprise, even handicapped people or people on wheelchairs are free to take the tour. It’s much different from the regular one and they are getting all the way down by elevator, but the halls are wide enough for everyone to enjoy.

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Along the way, we had 2 bigger breaks. One at the main wedding hall, to look around and take photos. Then in the middle of the tour in another big chamber where we could use toilets, but those were along the way as well. There were also smaller shops with food, drinks or souvenirs. You could buy packs of pure salt, salt crystals, jewelry made out of salts, bath salts and beauty product made out of salt.

My favorite was the display of different salt crystals.

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We parted our ways with our guide and group in another shop chamber by the end of our tour. We were left with several options. There is a lift back to where we were already for some extra money. We could also continue with the tour to the lower level on our own but as the tour guide explained, there are not chamber mostly just salty halls. The best to see is already on the floors we’ve been to. And at least we could follow the signs out.

We choose the last option and headed out as our schedule was quite busy and we were already late for our next stop. I couldn’t leave without getting myself a magnet from the place. There is even a buffet restaurant in the Wieliczka salt mine where we got quick lunch. Then we followed the exit signs until we get to the last big chamber where we were picked up by the tour guide.

Luckily there are no more steps to conquer on the way up.

Another tour guide lead us through the labyrinth of salt mine halls to the elevator. Thank God the guide was with us cuz it was such a maze.

The elevator was just a small iron square space that is supposed to carry 15 people. No propper closing door, just something like a barrier. We were all squished together and another wave of dizziness followed. We were up in an unbelievable 30 seconds but I had to keep my eyes closed the whole time.

On our way back we hung up the recorder and headphone, went through another gift shop and were out of the building. That’s when the huge crowd of people hit us. Definitely, recommend getting to Wieliczka much earlier in the morning to avoid waiting in the line.

To sum it up.

It costed us around 200zlotys with parking, tickets, food, drinks, and souvenirs. Took us 3 hours with parking and toilet breaks. The temperature inside the mine is around 17°C and I would recommend taking a jacket just in case. There is no bigger baggage allowed. I had a small backpack and they didn’t even search it.

Worth it. Never knew salt could be that interesting.

Quick trip to Salt Mine Wieliczka in Poland Summer 2019 is almost over and I got my days off from work in the last week of August.

#adventure #aesthetic #exploring #personal #poland #reading #salt #salt mine #story #travel #travel blogger #trip #wieliczka #wieliczka salt mine #writing

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leilas-digital-scrapbook-blog · 5 years

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Giving Love a Bad Name – Confessions of a Fanfiction Writer

I know we’re supposed to blog about our major projects this week and I promise I will get to that soon, but I’d like to go off book for a moment to address something that’s been bugging me since last Thursday’s class. As someone who’s always tried to engage with fandom in as creative a way as possible, I hoped a class on user generated content would offer a fresher perspective than the usual amount of prejudice and self-righteous superiority that sadly seem to accompany the subject of fanfiction even amongst people that make stories and their passion for it their bread and butter.

Guess I should have known better.

In the world of professional writers, fanfiction is still a filthy word. It sums up everything that’s wrong with the people you’re sharing your stories with: the obsessiveness, the entitlement, the disregard for boundaries, the penchant for making everything about sex. Worse, gay sex, as unspeakably dirty as it’s hilarious. Be warned, writers: if you make it big, your stories will inevitably become a free-for-all at the mercy of those people. A worse fate than even George R. R. Martin could wish on his own characters.

I’m used to seeing the world of fanfiction belittled and disparaged, of course, and I’m the first to admit that the community is often its own worst enemy. But for some reason it still hurt a little to sit in class and listen to people I’ve come to like and respect during these past few months buy into every bad stereotype associated with the form. Not because I felt called out (though yes, I do write fanfiction from time to time, and I happen to quite enjoy reading it too), but because of the underlying assumptions that 1. something that’s not 100% original cannot be art, it’s a violence in fact, especially if it twists someone else’s creation into something it was never meant to be (in this case, queer representation); and 2. there’s something wrong with creating exclusively out of love, without ever expecting to be paid for it. And I have Strong Opinions on that.

So let’s talk about fanfiction.

Actually, scratch that, let’s talk about my favorite subject – yours truly. As you may have gathered by now, I love fanfiction. A whole fangirly lot. My gateway drug into it was my obsession with Lost about 10 years ago and its pesky habit of offing every character I was foolish enough to get attached to. But lo! Someone was keeping them alive through their stories! I felt blessed. I got to spend more time in a world I loved, and I stopped flirting with the idea of giving up on the show every time another character I liked bit the dust. Everybody won.

Even more than as a fan, though, I appreciated the world of possibilities that fanfiction opened up to me as a non-native speaker. I come from a small town in the north of Italy; the access I had to foreign books in their original language was limited, and if I wanted to read something in English I’d have to spend quite a lot of money on one of the very few novels (usually chunky airport bookshop thrillers or housewife romances – not exactly my preferred genres) that shared a single shelf in the bookstore with German, French, Spanish titles. But fanfiction was free, accessible, and there was so much of it. If I didn’t like a story, all I needed to do was move on to the next. Suddenly there was an infinite library of engaging stories to help me make my English better. True, they didn’t all read like a published novel would – there’s a lot of unpolished, error-plagued, stream-of-consciousness-y material out there. But there are also so, so many beautifully written works, and believe me, even for a non-native speaker it’s very easy to spot the difference.

Fanfiction also gave me the chance and motivation to practice my English writing in a way school never could have done. I’ve been writing my own stories since I could hold a pen, but I didn’t dare write in English until I was a fanfiction-loving teenager. It was a marketing decision, really – my first foray into writing fanfiction was for a fandom so small that I wouldn’t be surprised to find out I’m the only Italian representative, so if I wanted any kind of feedback on my work I’d have to suck it up and try my hand at writing in a language that didn’t come natural to me. I would never argue that the feedback I got on my works made me a better writer – contrary to popular opinion, the fanfiction community is made up of the nicest, most supportive people, and alas, you’ll never get a comment on everything you did wrong with your structure or even just pointing out common grammar mistakes from them (though I was lucky enough to have someone explain to me how dialogue punctuation works differently in English than in Italian, so I guess something can be learned even from the Internet). It did motivate me to keep writing, though, and that made me a better writer. If you think I’m being too dramatic, dishing out this monster of a post nobody asked for just to declare my eternal devotion to fanfiction, it’s because it’s personal to me. I can’t even count the number of times I’ve been told that I write in English as well as native speakers, and fanfiction is a big part of why that’s true. I doubt I would even be in this course if it wasn’t for it.

And then, of course, there’s the gay thing. I’m not going to argue about how heteronormativity sucks and representation matters because I’m sure everyone’s as sick of talking about it as I am, but please try to understand how it felt for a gay person like me, used to be depicted in media as a plot device or token secondary-character representation if at all, to be able to step into a world where queerness was the default for once. Where queer protagonists had meaningful queer love stories and queer friends and got to save the world from the Apocalypse too. Or to fight the Empire or go to Hogwarts or everything else fictional straight people have had a right to do since the dawn of storytelling in addition to romancing the hottie of their choice. I’m not asking you to feel as passionately about it, of course, but (especially if you’re straight) you might try and empathize the next time you think a fanart of two boys kissing is something deserving of your amused contempt.

I hope I’m not coming across as the person that screams “homophobe” at everyone who disagrees with her because I guarantee that’s not what I’m trying to do here, but I think the general distaste for slash says a lot about the way our society sees heterosexual relationships as love and homosexual relationships as sex. Yes, there’s a lot of gay porn in the world of fanfiction. But you know what you’re most likely to find? Romance. Not in the saucy literary sense of the word, but in its simpler, most literal acceptation. Fanfiction is just one more way for humans to express themselves, after all, and love has always been front and center in our art. Love, not sex – even if it’s gay. In fact, explicit material doesn’t even make up the majority of what you’ll find on a fanfiction website. Don’t worry, I don’t want anyone to taint their souls by visiting one of those dens of iniquity so I pulled some stats myself. Here’s the number of works for each rating in three of the most popular fandoms on Archive Of Our Own, the current go-to website for the fanfiction community (sorry Fanfiction.net) – Harry Potter, Supernatural and the Marvel Cinematic Universe as of 9/3/2019:

Even counting both Mature and Explicit works as straight-up porn (which I don’t think is quite fair, but that’s a discussion for another day), they only make up less than 1/3 of the material. Kinda disappointing, for a medium that’s supposed to be all about filthy graphic gay sex. Imagine if only one in three musicals actually featured singing and dancing, or superheroes weren’t in the majority of superhero movies. They’re lucky fanfiction is shared for free, or I’d be screaming for my money back.

Maybe I’ve just been brainwashed by SJWs, though, and this has nothing to do with my being an immigrant or a lesbian. Maybe my inability to see what’s so bad about appropriating someone else’s intellectual property for your own amusement is a cultural thing. I apologize – as mentioned, I’m Italian, and we all know Ancient Roman culture was basically just a ripoff of everything those inventive Greeks came up with. It’s in our blood. Hell, our 2€ coin, the biggest, has the face of Dante Alighieri on it, a writer most famous for having written 14.000+ verses of self-insert real-person-fic in which the girl he fancied as a teenager, his favorite author, and God himself all fall over themselves to tell him how awesome he is and he gets to prophesy an eternity in Hell for his political enemies. Talk about wish-fulfilling entitlement. Not to mention all those creatively arid Renaissance “artists” celebrated for stealing characters from the Bible and Greek mythology (seriously, the fact that Greece hasn’t unleashed an army of lawyers on us yet is nothing short of a miracle) and putting them in their cheesy paintings. Other countries can rely on a much stronger moral backbone and endless imagination – I’m sure Shakespeare, Milton, Goethe, those creative geniuses at Disney and countless others never had to resort to something as cheap and despicable as borrowing other people’s characters to tell the stories they wanted to tell.

Either way, I can’t help it – I see the prospect of creating something that will resonate with people so strongly that they’ll make it a part of themselves, that it’ll compel them to make more art, to reach out and connect with other fans, as something incredibly beautiful rather than scary. Maybe this is my usual naiveté speaking, and I will come to eat my words. It’s certainly disturbing that a bunch of entitled fans bullied the Mass Effect developers into changing the series’ ending, and sending actors explicit fanart of themselves is straight-up harassment, but is fanfiction really the problem here? Or is it social network culture, with its power to destroy all barriers and foster hive mind? To give resentment a platform to spread and be heard? I promise that the average fanfiction writer wouldn’t campaign to get an ending changed. They’d just roll up their sleeves and write a better one themselves.

#my thoughts #aka leila goes off about her life story #user generated content #fanfiction #fandom #tmi alert

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96thdayofrage · 5 years

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Four hundred years ago on Aug. 20, 1619, the English warship White Lion docked at Port Comfort (now Fort Monroe), Virginia. It carried “20 and odd” Angolans who had been prisoners on a Spanish ship that was captured by the White Lion’s crew.

That day is universally recognized by historians as the beginning of the trans-Atlantic slave trade, in which millions of Africans were enslaved and sold to do labor in America and elsewhere.

The slave trade is the first modern American business model, and must be recognized for its impact on the world, said Lonnie Bunch III, the first African-American Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution and founding director of the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

“The slave trade helped many parts of Europe become Spain, Portugal and the Netherlands, so in a way it helped create modern Europe, and it obviously helped begin a long, slow decline that really continues to affect both Africa and the United States,” Bunch said.

This year is “a time to commemorate and to remember that there are people on whose shoulders we are standing, whose labor and whose belief in a country that ultimately didn’t believe in them ultimately made America live up to its stated ideals,” Bunch said.

But, for many, commemoration is not the same as celebration.

“You are not going to see me jumping up and down with joy over this,” said historian Charles L. Blockson, for whom the Charles L. Blockson Afro-American Collection at Temple University is named.

“We have a statue of a phony prize-fighter at the steps of the art museum. So what? Where is the statue of the Black architect who was responsible for designing the Art Museum? But this is the way it has been for African Americans during those 400 years. Slaves. Indentured servants. Jim Crow. Segregation. And now look at the racist, Donald Trump, that we have in the White House on the heels of the first Black president in more than 200 years. What is there to celebrate? We are history. But we would be foolish to celebrate the racism of this country.”

Ironically, it was Trump who in 2017, signed the 400 Years of African-American History Commission Act, establishing a 15-member commission to coordinate the 400th “anniversary” of the arrival of those enslaved Africans in the English colonies. Bunch is a member of the commission, which has had events across the country to mark the occasion, including symposiums, films, exhibits, festivals, lectures and poetry readings.

Efforts marking the commemoration also have been initiated in Africa. Ghana last year launched a year-long marketing and reunification initiative aimed at boosting tourism and further strengthening ties with people of African ancestry in the United States, South America and the Caribbean. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi recently went to Ghana for some of its events.

Debate about the date

Some historians note Africans had a presence in the Americas before 1619, and those are the dates that should be recognized.

The first African to arrive in America, Juan Garrido, came here as a free man, according to an article on The Root by Harvard historian Henry Louis Gates Jr. Born in West Africa, Garrido moved to Spain where he met Juan Ponce de Leon. They sailed together to Cuba and Puerto Rico, and in 1513, while sailing with de Leon in search of the Fountain of Youth, he arrived in what would later be called Florida. He continued on to Mexico and later died in what is now Mexico City.

Estevanico, a Moroccan slave owned by Spanish explorer Andres Dorantes de Carranza, was part of an expedition to colonize Florida and the Gulf Coast in 1527. Estevancio, Dorantes and two other Spanish explorers were captured and enslaved by Native Americans who lived on the Louisiana Gulf Islands. After they escaped in 1534, they headed west and helped chart parts of what is now known as Arizona. When others fell ill, Estevancio continued alone into what is now New Mexico. Some historians believe Estevancio was killed by Native Americans in New Mexico; others believe the Native Americans helped him fake his death and he continued to live in the West.

It is believed that some Africans accompanied English explorer Sir Francis Drake on his North American expeditions in the 1570s and 1580s.

But the key differences between the Africans who came to America in the 1500s and the “20 and odd” who arrived in 1619 is some of the “20 and odd” were sold into slavery or indentured servitude and stayed in America.

“In essence, from the beginning of what became America, there were Africans involved in shaping a nation,” Bunch said.

“This gives us an opportunity to say this is not an ancillary story. This is an opportunity to think as Americans how issues of race and culture have really shaped this country and continue to be a part of what we celebrate, but also a part of the ongoing struggle to help America live up to its ideals.”

Shaping the nation

The African population remained fairly small in the years that followed. A muster from 1620 showed 32 Africans living in Virginia and a muster from 1625 counted 23, according to The Jamestown Rediscovery Foundation. Hundreds and thousands more would follow.

The Southern enslaved population exploded after Eli Whitney’s invention of the cotton gin. Data from Weber State University show the number of enslaved people in the South was 654,121 in 1790, had increased by almost 68% to more than 1.1 million by 1810, and reached 3.9 million by 1860.

Historians estimate that as many as 12 million enslaved Africans were dragged across the Atlantic Ocean and exchanged for goods via the triangular route between Europe, Africa and the New World (North and South America and the Caribbean). America’s involvement in the brutal system lasted until 1866.

Field slaves mostly harvested cotton, tobacco and sugar cane, and performed manual labor. House slaves generally worked in the master’s quarters and lived easier lives.

According to James H. Sweet, professor of history at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, slave resistance began in British North America “almost as soon as the first enslaved Africans arrived in the early 17th century. This took the form of slowed work production and even theft by the enslaved.”

At least nine insurrections occurred between 1691 and 1865, the most famous being Nat Turner’s 1831 rebellion in Southampton, Virginia that left 60 whites dead and resulted in the deaths of 100 enslaved by combat or retribution.

So divisive was the issue of slavery that it led to the bloodiest war in American history, the Civil War. Slavery’s aftermath produced a potholed history that gave rise to domestic terror groups such as the Ku Klux Klan, which lynched thousands of African Americans; resulted in the denial of constitutional rights such as voting; created separate and unequal schools; and led to the denial of basic human rights such as African Americans being unable to drink from the same water fountains as whites.

Even today vestiges of slavery hang over the nation, from the debate over whether the descendants of slaves should receive reparations, to the stubborn racial wealth gap between Blacks and whites, to the over-representation of African Americans ensnared in the criminal justice system.

“We have many unhealed wounds as a people,” Blockson said.

“I think about everything we had to sort of overcome as a people to get to this point,” said Ibram X. Kendi, director of the Antiracist and Policy Center at American University and author of the National Book Award-winning “Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America.”

“So I stand in appreciation of our ancestors to be able to survive and thrive so that we could all be here at this historic moment.”

Kendi said now is a time to honor our ancestors for the “strength they exhibited” to survive slavery and all of the residual pain associated with being “in a country that has rejected Black people whenever possible for centuries.”

“If you were to ask me the word that describes African Americans in this country, one of the main words would be resilient,” Kendi said. “I think you just don’t survive upwards of 250 years of enslavement, another 100 years of a second trauma of enslavement through Jim Crow, and another 50 years of mass incarceration and hyper segregation and police violence without being extraordinarily resilient.”

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olatokunbo · 5 years

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The growth of the English language

Chinese parents are paying for their kids to learn English from US online tutors. Here's how the job works Elementary school teacher Stacie Baur in Pennsylvania teaches English to Chinese students via Skype to make ends meet. Jack Gruber, USA TODAY Every morning at 5 a.m., Autmn Fletcher walks into her home office in Monmouth, Illinois, and switches on her laptop, just in time to teach English to Chinese children arriving home after school in Beijing. “Elephant!” the child says through the computer screen, prompted by a hand puppet that Fletcher displays to a web camera. “E-le-phan-t,” Fletcher responds, correcting the pronunciation. Sometimes, she uses a whiteboard and flashcards to make her point. Fletcher, 31, a mother of three, has worked as an online English tutor for five months, teaching Chinese students who are mostly 5 to 11 years old. Using her laptop, headphones and web camera, she teaches basic English grammar, the idioms of daily conversation and songs. In March, she worked up to 30 hours a week, earning $2,100 in this small town in western Illinois. Tens of thousands of Americans are teaching English remotely, connecting to a massive Chinese population eager to learn the language, and aided by advances in global communication technology and huge investments in Chinese online education companies. Proponents say tutoring can offer meaningful work from home in rural communities far from major job markets. Many such towns have lost residents and jobs in recent years. Autmn Fletcher, a mother of three who lives in Illinois, teaches English remotely to young students in China. Using her laptop, headphones and web camera, she tutors elementary-age students in basic grammar, the idioms of daily conversation and songs. Autmn Fletcher, a mother of three who lives in Illinois, teaches English remotely to young students in China. Using her laptop, headphones and web camera, she tutors elementary-age students in basic grammar, the idioms of daily conversation and songs. (Photo: none) More companies, more tutors The trend is also adding an international flavor to a U.S. gig economy that has seen a growing number of Americans juggling freelance and contract jobs, often from home. There are about 100 Chinese-based online education companies, estimates Quincy Smith, founder of ESL (English as Second Language) Authority, an online teaching job board. And the firms are always hiring English teachers, making online tutor among the most common U.S. jobs workers can perform remotely, according to FlexJobs, a job search site specializing remote, part-time, freelance and flexible positions. VIPKid, which employs Fletcher, had just 10 teachers and a handful of students when it was founded in 2013. It's now one of the largest China-based online English tutoring platforms, with around 70,000 teachers in the U.S. and Canada, up from 20,000 in 2017, and 600,000 students online, mostly in China, up from 200,000. Teachers are required to be native English speakers, hold a bachelor’s degree and live in the U.S. Working experience with children is a plus. Average pay is $12 to $20 an hour, with most teachers starting at around $14 an hour, Smith says. Each tutoring session lasts 30 minutes. Autoplay Show Thumbnails Show Captions Last SlideNext Slide Most of the online teachers are independent contractors, which usually means they don't get health coverage or 401(k) plans. “The online tutoring jobs are particularly well suited for college-educated Americans looking for jobs with lower barriers to entry,” says Sara Sutton, founder and CEO of FlexJobs. It is also “a really compelling option for people who live in rural areas, have long commutes or places with less economic opportunity,” Sutton adds. The number of remote job postings in the education field in FlexJobs’ database jumped 37% between 2015 and 2018. 'Can't pay their bills with love': In many teaching jobs, teachers' salaries can't cover rent Thank you! You're almost signed up for Keep an eye out for an email to confirm your newsletter registration. The best and worst cities for teaching: Where in the country will your pay stretch the furthest Before she started tutoring, Fletcher worked in sales and marketing and endured more than an hour-long commute. “I spent countless hours away from my family, and my son was constantly getting sick from being in day care.” Then she got in a bad car accident nine months ago. As she lay in a hospital bed with 13 shattered bones, wondering if she’d ever walk again, Fletcher thought: What would she do for a living? She noticed on Facebook that a friend was tutoring Chinese kids in English online, and it piqued her interest. She applied for the job and, aided by a walker, went to an interview and training session last December in Chicago. Fletcher earns about $18 per hour and can choose to be paid monthly or bimonthly through PayPal or a bank transfer. The job helps reduce or eliminate expenses related to commuting, buying work clothes, child care and other costs. Fletcher works until 9 a.m., then plays with her kids. “I am now able to put my family first and still have a rewarding career,” she says. She says the job has helped her provide for her family and recover from the accident. The online tutoring companies, meanwhile, are highly profitable. Chinese students pay what amounts to $49 to $80 an hour for the classes, significantly above the $12 to $20 tutor wages. VIPKid is valued at over $3 billion, according to a Forbes report in March, and has well-known investors like Kobe Bryant. 51Talk, another leading Chinese online education company, has 14,800 English teachers in North America and other English-speaking countries. Bling ABC, launched by New Oriental , a large private educational company in China, attracts over 1,000 American applicants a month for its online tutoring jobs. Countries like South Korea, Japan and Russia also have strong demand for online English tutoring, but “China remains the biggest market,” Smith says. His company, ESL Authority, lists 100 to 300 tutoring openings each month. A drive to learn English Several trends are driving China’s voracious demand for tutors. More than 17 million babies have been born in China each year since the government began allowing two children per household in 2016, up from one child. “Chinese parents remain enthusiastic about English language acquisition and the monotonous public education couldn’t satisfy their diverse demands,” says Jianglu Wang, a scholar of educational financing in Beijing. At the same time, the Chinese government has invested $182 billion since 2015 to boost internet speeds. From 2015 to 2017, broadband subscriptions in China increased to 394.2 billion from 277 billion,according to the World Bank. Online tutoring also has been boosted by a 2016 law allowing private investment in the education industry. The industry's growth has led to vigorous competition among companies trying to recruit online English teachers in the U.S. “The newer companies ... drive the majority of new jobs because they need to build up their teacher roster," Smith says. "They will typically try and offer higher wages (and) lower requirements for the initial hires." Many tutors are retired teachers and stay-at-home moms. Embracing another culture Sarah Keane, a mother of two who lives in Oakville, Connecticut, began working as an online English tutor last October. She works from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. most days, and 8:30 p.m. to midnight or even 2 a.m. on Friday and Saturday. Last December, she left her full-time job as a day care worker to stay at home with her children and rely on the tutoring for income. She says she believes the work “has been a financial blessing,” adding that she has found her “dream job." Keane’s youngest student is 3 and her oldest is 14. She tutors them in grammar and test-taking, among other subjects. Many students have given her tours of their homes remotely and introduced her to family members online. One student had a class with her while he was out at a restaurant in Beijing. He stepped outside and showed Keane around downtown Beijing. “All the lights and buildings were amazing to see,” Keane says, “You are able to embrace their lives and cultures.” Nicholas Jiang, a Chinese elementary school student who lives in Hong Kong, has taken online English tutoring classes from 34 teachers the past 11 months, including 30 in the U.S. “I treat it as a small talk but not a class. It’s very fun.” Jiang says. Sometimes, he plays online games with teachers to improve his English proficiency. His parents paid nearly $1,000 for 26 classes. Yet it’s hard to tell if the online courses improve the English skills of Chinese kids. It could be tough for companies to monitor the quality of the education as the number of tutors grows rapidly. Chinese parents complain that the teachers vary in their skills and it’s hard to make reservations with popular tutors. In response, Magic Ears, among the online tutoring companies, has toughened the application requirements for teachers. Thousands of U.S. teachers are taking their talents abroad. Here's why. USA TODAY Read or Share this story: https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2019/06/11/chinese-learn-english-online-us-tutors-remote-jobs-rise/1356821001/

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oneshortdamnfuse · 5 years

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@mototwinkclub replied to your post: Ok so this was a blessing to my ears… His Arabic...

@oneshortdamnfuse What do you mean he wasn’t able to learn it after a certain age?

I can’t say 100% that this is the case for him, but I don’t think that Rami got much if any academic support for learning Arabic in school. I teach English to new Americans (immigrants, refugees, asylees) and first generation Americans, similar to what Sami does for a living. So, I’m used to seeing the following:

1) It’s very common for these students to have what is called Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills (BICS) in their language, but if they are unable to access bilingual programming then they are never able to fully develop what’s called Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency (CALP).

BICS is everyday language needed for daily communication. CALP is academic language, which needs to be taught across disciplines such as math, science, or history in order to gain proficiency. A lot of that academic vocabulary is missing from Rami’s spoken Arabic, because it’s not everyday language.

2) There’s a huge stigma against immigrants speaking their native language, especially to their children. There’s a common myth that continuing to use one’s native language will prevent one / one’s kids from learning English. So a lot of families stop speaking to their kids in their native language.

Rami’s family seems pretty proud of their identity, but at the same time that stigma also prevents a lot of first generation Americans especially from feeling comfortable learning their native language beyond a certain point. It’s very common for kids to stop upon entering middle school/high school.

3) We do have some bilingual programs for Arabic speakers, but a lot of that programming is brand new and/or it’s offered through Mosques and Islamic community centers, which isn’t closed off to non-Muslim Arabic speakers but it might not be as accessible to him / his family ???

There are a lot of dialectal differences in Arabic as well, so when Rami says he has trouble understanding the interviewer it’s most likely because their dialect is different. If he was taught standard Arabic in an academic setting, though, he would most likely better understand other Arabic speakers.

TL;DR

He definitely learned Arabic at home, but it was most likely every day language even if his parents are well educated. He never really had the opportunity to learn all of his subjects in Arabic, so that makes using it in all settings challenging. Plus, there are dialectal barriers.

#mototwinkclub #rami malek #a lot of my students speak arabic #i don't really speak arabic #beyond like... greetings and food and stuff #just as a disclaimer

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pisati · 5 years

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I did write some comments on your post, but that was an initial reaction after one read-through, and of course it was a lot to take in. I went to my guitar lesson, ate a little bit, dicked around for a bit, and read it through again. what’s on my mind is too much for character-limited replies so I figured I’d just write a post.

if you’re serious that the amount of stuff you told me is maybe 10% of all the things her parents did, then... holy shit, dude. it’s hard to imagine anyone growing up with that and not being completely brainwashed. I feel for her daughter too. hopefully once she gets her degree and gets a job she can get away from that bullshit. most people, I think, are reasonably paranoid about the possible threats that come from strangers on the internet, but that’s just extreme. the scottish mafia??? is that even a thing?? I’ve never even. heard of that, lmao. jesus.

I want to say when the internet was in its infancy, a lot of scammers saw it as an opportunity. that’s where the whole Nigerian prince thing and all that came about. first rule of the internet was not to trust anyone. no personal information, to anyone, ever. the thing is, the internet has changed drastically since then. social media has revolutionized the way everyday people use the internet, and very, very many everyday people use it. the chances you’re likely to run into a normal person just like yourself vs. a scam artist today are much, much higher than they were even a decade ago. some people don’t want to accept that things have changed. I mentioned my Brazilian friends on your post; my mom was pretty nervous at first when I told her about them. I met them just before I graduated high school, so I was 17. I actually was on Omegle (which was WAY worse than tumblr or twitter???) and I talked to a kid named Matia. he was a few years younger than me but his english was very good and he was a cool kid. we followed each other on twitter, and then his friends saw and a bunch of them followed me, asking him “quem é essa gringa matia??”-- who’s this foreign girl? they’d talk to me in english about music and ask me what it was like in the US; they were fascinated. they affectionately nicknamed me ‘gringa’; in Brazil it doesn’t have the same negative connotations as it can in Spanish-speaking countries; it literally means ‘foreginer’. I learned Portuguese inadvertently just from reading all the tweets they posted. they’d mess with me and tweet in slang and typo-ed Portuguese so I couldn’t google translate it, but when I learned enough Portuguese and read back on their old tweets, I had a good laugh because it was all stuff like “lol let’s mess with her so she can’t translate it, that’ll be so funny!” and they knew I’d get all frustrated because I didn’t know what it said, lol. like, just pure, innocent interactions between strangers on the internet. I had a ton of fun with it. and Portuguese even ended up being my best language, because I learned it not only in natural, informal contexts (rather than “hello, how are you?”), but I learned it through drunken slang and intentional typos and a whole assload of cursing, lmao.

I was nervous to tell my mom about it; I knew how she’d react. there was no way to tell her about all the jokes and conversations and how all of it was harmless. how I just knew they were real people like me (they were all around my age too). she didn’t want me to study abroad there, when I brought it up, or at least... if I did, she’d rather I’d have picked somewhere in Europe instead. I told her I’d skyped with my friend David, and once I even mailed him a package with an old shirt of mine (because I’d tweeted about how I had this IUP shirt and once I transferred I knew I wasn’t gonna wear it anymore, but I didn’t want to donate it; he said he wanted it and I was like well if you’re serious lol). I skyped another friend Guilherme once because he said he could help with an assignment I had for researching the grammar of non-native speakers of english, or something like that. she warmed up after a while. I think she realized that, hey, most normal people are also on the internet now. and there’s normal people in other countries, lol. but like. people in that generation are from a different era of information-sharing. it’s a totally different perspective. and if you’re the kind of person who worries entirely too much... well, you’ve seen what can happen.

you said it in your other post too (which, first of all, I’m really proud of you for opening up, as painful as I’m sure all this is, and second of all, I’m honored that you’re comfortable enough to share with me)... the thing about sounding ‘weak’ and ‘pathetic’. and... maybe it does feel like that. but given the circumstances? I think reacting like that is perfectly normal. I’m sure you know, but this kind of situation, all the things that happened... none of that is normal. you had a perfectly normal reaction to seriously abnormal events. it’s only natural to want to know why. when you love someone so much and think they love you too, and have your whole perception of the world turned on its head... it’s absolutely devastating. you don’t want to let it go. what else is there? you didn’t picture it vanishing so suddenly, and you feel like that’s it.

I just want you to know, I don’t see weak or pathetic. I see someone very much like myself. who genuinely cares and feels so intensely and deeply and is sometimes even afraid of being too much. a lot of people don’t understand that we have pure intentions. they don’t understand how we feel because they don’t have that depth.

anyway, I understand a little better how you feel about it. a lot of it wasn’t her fault; she pretty much had a gun to her head. or, multiple, depending how you want to look at it. she grew up with that bullshit. you said it wasn’t even the first time something like that happened to her. it’s really, really hard to defend yourself or stand up for yourself when that’s what you know. when that’s your family, who is supporting you and your daughter, and threatens to kick you out if you follow your own will. she was playing a losing game. it made me a little sad to read how hard you tried to make it work, when clearly you were being pushed away, but I understand, man. I’ve done the same thing. you want so badly to make it work, you feel like there’s always a way you can. the most devastating part of it all is realizing you can’t. and it can’t be fixed.

the thing that puzzles me, though, and please tell me if I cross a line here. I really don’t want to. I respect your feelings and I understand that your relationship with her lasted a long time; there’s so much packed into that time. I’ve told you a lot of the shitty parts of my relationship with A, and you’ve wondered why I didn’t kick him to the curb; I didn’t tell you about all the good parts there were too. I know how complicated and difficult those things can be. despite how much they hurt you, how they did it, how much more pain you were in because of what they did than anything you could ever do to them... you still care about them. a lot.

I just... I guess I’m not 100% clear on the purpose she serves in your life at this point. of course you care about her. it’s only natural to, when they’re your best friend. you know so much about them and they know so much about you and you’ve shared so many good things and you just enjoy them as a person. god, I even remember writing some sappy poem or blog post or something about how, even after everything, A could have stabbed me in the gut and I would have apologized for getting my blood on him. but he also did more damage to me than anyone ever has. I realized this past summer (that’s a story for another time) with such sudden, horrible clarity that I burst out sobbing while I was driving home on the highway; what he did was irredeemable. there was nothing he could do to fix it. I had done everything I knew how to do to even stay his friend, and I finally told myself that it was either I continue to pursue this and make myself miserable and make him miserable (because he was allowed to have feelings for whoever he wanted; me getting upset over every new one would hurt him too), or I could just. let go. finally. and that was not a decision I ever wanted to face. I put it off for so long. I told myself there could always be a way to fix it. but it always came down to him putting in the effort. he was my best friend. he knew me better than anyone. a lot of the things you said about M, I’ve said about A. I’ve never been able to be that close to anyone before; he’d seen much more of me than I was comfortable showing anyone else. I didn’t know if I’d be able to be that close to anyone else. making the decision to let go of the one person I was that close to was the hardest thing I had to do this past year, right up there with having to talk to the team from the cremation place not 15 minutes after learning my dad was dead and watching them take him away in a body bag.

anyway, I guess what I’m getting at is... you can still love her, and still care deeply about her, but also keep her in the past. this is just my conjecture, given that I don’t know anything about your relationship now, but it seems to me like trying to keep her in your life is not beneficial to either of you. I know you said you don’t keep people around based on the purpose they serve in your life, and that’s a good philosophy to have, for sure. I’m not arguing that at all. but I think there’s a lesson to take from Marie Kondo here (ha); when something has served its purpose in your life, you should understand when it’s time to let it go. thank it for all it brought to you, all it did for you, of course; there’s apparently a lot of Shinto traditional beliefs that influenced her organization philosophy that would be really interesting to read about. but anyway I don’t think it just applies to the physical clutter we all accumulate in our homes. we weigh ourselves down with all the things we keep. especially those that don’t ~spark joy~, lol. if she’s really as brisk with you as you say... do you think she would be bothered if you disappeared as well?

I know it’s never just that easy. I made that decision, and then later I learned that A had a whole clusterfuck of mental illnesses that he wasn’t even aware he had. it was bad. worse than he thought. but once he finally got into therapy and started journaling his moods, it became more obvious. he realized a lot of how he treated me came from that. when he told me, I felt just a tiny bit of my resolve crumble. how could I drop him like that, when he was clearly struggling and needed something stable? even just a good friend, who was patient and understanding, like I’ve always tried to be? I’m not the only friend he has, of course. he has plenty of people around. I don’t have to go back to trying so hard if I don’t want to, but I also felt like I couldn’t just abandon him. I realized it wasn’t entirely his fault. he still did what he did knowingly, he still knew how it hurt me, but it still wasn’t entirely his fault. I know you’ve seen that in M as well. it’s so complicated, I know.

I’m not trying to convince you of anything. maybe just trying to get you to think about it another way. you’ve got a lot of pain that you’ve buried and try your hardest not to deal with. I’ve done it too. get to it when we get to it, except we hope we never have to. but it makes healing so hard when we don’t address it and subsequently deal with it. I wonder if you think it’s possible to heal the way you hope to and also keep her in your life. I’m sure in some way it is, but I wonder how you picture that possible future. I’m still trying to work that out for myself, with my situation.

anyway, I really do appreciate you taking the time to help me understand your demons better. and... if it means anything, I don’t see you as broken. even if that’s how you feel. I mean, shit. all of that is enough to break anyone. I’ve never even been in a relationship, let alone had one that got to the marriage-talk, engagement-ring, wedding-dress, baby-name point. for someone that feels as intensely as we do, no less... I can only imagine. I see how the innocence, so to speak, was ripped from your hands. I understand how you feel changed by it. I see the darkness in you that I’ve seen in myself, but I see the light there too. you need to feel safe so that light has time to heal and grow again.

#and like sorry for talking about myself and my experiences so much LOL #just trying to use examples to illustrate my line of thinking

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indadeamo · 3 years

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About Mothering a Foreigner

When my daughter was younger, we went for a pram ride one given Sunday. A woman passed by, walking her dog. I stopped, went on my knees, pointed to the doggie and said: “Look! Au-au!”. My baby looked at the dog, with the excitement only kids have and said: “Woof-woof!”. Perhaps a small detail to some, but I remember my astonishment and sadness when I heard that. That is not how dogs bark to me. I have not lived in my native Brazil for almost a decade and honestly, to this date, I cannot hear a “woof-woof”, no matter how hard I try. My eardrums just vibrate a crystal clear “au-au”, every single time. She did not learn that from me, but from others. It struck me like a lightning: I am mothering a foreigner.

I am not in the slightest nostalgic, left alone patriotic, but that made me realise how very little childhood references my daughter and I share. For instance, I do not know virtually any nursery rhyme she sings. I mean, why are the three blind mice running? But then, equally, how to explain why the carnation fought the rose under a balcony? She does not recreate the indigenous legend of the cassava or of the Amazon dolphin at school, and, chances are, she will never really see any of them in her lifetime. Maybe much later: I saw a squirrel for the first time when I was 15; she runs into them every morning in our garden. She spat, disgusted, feijoada when I tried to offer; I have eaten it pretty much weekly growing up. I felt victorious I could influence on her liking of Turma da Monica as opposed to Cloudbabies, but do not know if this small victory will last until Reception. Talking about Reception…Grammar School, sixth form, GCSE, A-levels? I flip nervously through all brochures, trying to trace parallels in my mind with the education system I did attend. In her “Ser mãe de gringo”, author Liliana Carneiro (@li.carneiro) list a multitude of differences between her upbringing in Brazil and, now as an expat, her daughter’s: Mother’s Days are celebrated in different dates, while Grandparent’s Day don’t have any equivalent up here; she does not know if it is acceptable or creepy to invite kids over for playdates. She insists on celebrating Carnival Tuesday when everyone else is doing a way (waaaaay) less exciting Pancakes Day. She struggles to pronounce her daughter’s surname, just like I do! The list goes on.

Motherhood, by default, brings along countless internal conflicts. For me, this experience has been topped up with a whole bunch of other challenges. She will have to brush her teeth again at noon and will never have a birthday party before the actual birthday. She will always have a prayer next to her bed to prevent the evil eye - as she will have rue branches behind her door to prevent evil eye (ok, maybe Brazilians are a bit too obsessed with evil eyes!). I will watch her hockey games but will probably not have a clue if she is good or not, so little I get about the sport’s rules. I will do my best to help homework, from correct spellings to solve algebra problems, in a different language. I will challenge the Imperialist approach of her History books but might hear a “No, mummy, that’s not how WE tell the story here!” back. I often hear I am short-fused even when I think I am just being assertive! I am frequently tempted to nickname people immediately. In Brazil, if you meet a Camila, you instantly start calling her Ca, Camilinha, Mila, Caca etc.. Whatever you decide and you can change it anytime. In the UK, you must wait for coordinates: “I am Camilla, but I go by Milla”. It blows my mind you get to decide your own nickname! Or that you do not give a lengthy hug (pandemic aside) and invite someone you just met over for a BBQ when you literally have no food in the fridge. “Just come, we will sort it out!”, I grew up saying. Not anymore. They may all sound like small details, but they considerably change how you connect with people and express affection.

I have read the beautiful and delicate “My mom is a foreigner – but not to me”, by the American actress and author Julianne Moore. About the experience of being raised by a nonnational, she said on an interview: “My mother was from Scotland. I could not hear it, but she had an accent. When I was little and I would bring people home, they would say ‘why does your mum talk so funny?’. I would of course get really infuriated and embarrassed!”. Well, the thought of it is scary, isn’t it? I do not mind coming across as an alien to anyone else (“don’t care, no one pays my bills!” – the classic Brazilian proverb!). I nonetheless care about being a source of embarrassment to my daughter, just for being an outlander.

Just very recently, I have found out the November 5th bonfires celebrate the FAILURE of the Gunpowder Plot of 1605. Well, I come from a country positioned among the Top-100 countries in Corruption Index (Transparency International). A country that was exploited and subjugated by European Crowns since the 15th century; a country that suffered a coup d’état, instigated by the Americans and supported by some of its own MPs, agonising a two-decade long military dictatorship. I simply assumed we celebrated someone dared to try to explode a Parliament! I obviously now see how absurd that is. My background accidentally made me take Guy Fawkes for a martyr, not a villain. This is just one of many examples. Daily, I choose to give up my cultural capital to adhere to the mindset of the place I decided to call home. Yes, it was a decision, and yes, I review it from time to time. But anyhow, these cultural differences shape my motherhood exercising in numerous ways.

Language is possibly the most noticeable point. It is through orality that the identity of a people is shown more strongly. Quoting Fernando Pessoa (1888-1935) “My motherland is my mother tongue”. The controversial Sapir–Whorf hypothesis (1929) suggests the structure of a language affects its speakers' cognition and shape their perception of reality. For instance, if you speak a Latin language (Portuguese, Spanish, French etc), you must categorise people in terms of social dimensions (to pick a “tu” or a “vous”); German does not have present participle (-ing), so German speakers tend to focus on beginnings, middles or ends rather than in the action. Another fascinating aspect of language is the link between bilingualism and personality. Studies found that, when switching languages, people may also switch their way of thinking to “fit” the language. In the 00’s, linguists Dewaele and Pavlenko asked hundreds of bilinguals if they felt like a different person when they spoke different languages. Nearly two-thirds said they did. The connection between language and identity is, as it seems, context-based, malleable and impermanent.

Moreover, language is the element that enables bond between generations and facilitates the transfer of the cultural heritage within members of a community. All my primary fond memories are in Portuguese. This is the language my grandfather told me tales, that I heard the jokes I found funny, that I wrote my first love letter and my journal, in teen years; that I had my first arguments, learned how to negotiate and weigh in decisions. And if we agree we are the result of our laughter, loves and struggles, then a huge part of who I am comes from experiencing life in my native tongue. I am less articulated in any other language; will I be able to advocate for my daughter clearly if she has problems at school? At the same time, I give her endless cafunes, when I am breastfeeding; I say I was dying of saudades when she comes from nursery. I look for her favourite teddies repeating “Quede?”, to which she opens her little arms in the air with a rhetorical “Where?”. All words that really do not have a perfect translation in English. Their meanings are profoundly connected to someplace else.

On his book “Raising Girls”, Biddulph provoked me to think long and hard about how my relationships with men are, how I make friends, how I keep promises and, more importantly - what are my core values. Does my daughter clearly know what I stand for? Arguably, he says, she will learn all these things from me. And then my oh-always-so-worried mind takes a pause and focus on what really matters. And truly hope that my accent, huge earrings, tattoos and constant “PDAs” (“public display of affection”) will not be a source of awkwardness but else a celebration of her own ancestry. Just a gentle continuation of a lineage of women that started somewhere is distant times, found its way among pain and joy through Portugal and Brazil and is now completing yet another honourable leg in English lands. May I be blessed, with the time and the wisdom, with the chance to help her navigate all the seas her DNA can offer.

And if things get hard, I shall read to my little gringa the poem, “lands,” by Nayyirah Waheed:

“my mother was

my first country;

the first place I ever lived.”

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