I found it very interesting that someone would try to create a language that is so pure and without all the vagueness that is in the English language. To me it seems like a challenge that could not be completed. I came to realize through reading the article about the flaws that the English language and all the confusion it can cause people. In my personal life, my parents who’s first language is not English sometimes find speaking English can be extremely difficult because so many words sound the same and have similar meanings. The language is presented as a cross between an a priori philosophical and a logical language. It also strives to minimize the ambiguities and semantic vagueness found in natural human languages. It is amazing how the Internet was able to create a small community of language enthusiasts who began to recognize what Quijada, a civil servant without an advanced degree, had accomplished. I find it interesting that people began to catch on and really appreciate his work. Ithkuil, one Web site declared, “is a monument to human ingenuity and design.” It maybe the most complete realization of a quixotic dream that has entranced philosophers for centuries: the creation of a more perfect language.” On the website there is so much detail on how the language is used and how to construct different sentences because there is so much depth in his language.
Author Archives: esorto
Final Research Project Topic
It has been very difficult for me to pick a final research project topic, but I want to talk about immigration to the United State by people from El Salvador. I am interested in this topic because my parents immigrated to the United States during the 1980s. I would like to know more about why people immigrated during that time period and why people are leaving El Salvador to come to the United States now. I would also be very interesting to know how these people keep their culture alive and preserve it in their children. This topic is somewhat vague, but hopefully as I do more research I will be able to have a better focal point.
Alexakis Connection
The way that I was able to connect with FOREIGN WORDS was the way the Alexakis connected with a completely different country and what he was able to learn about himself and his own family. During my trip to El Salvador I was able to learn a lot about my own culture and family. I was able to see things very differently and had a new appreciation about what parents have been through in order to give me a better living. On page 31 it states, “not only do the words I have already studied encourage me to keep going, so do those I don’t know yet. The objects surrounding me are a constant reminder that I still don’t know their names in Sango…..I find myself in the middle of unknown words that are constantly calling out to me.” In the same fashion that Alexakis was not able to get enough of Sango and wanted to continue to learn more, I felt the same way about El Salvador so that I could learn more about where I came from and about my family.
Trip to El Salvador
In 2009 I was privileged to take a trip to El Salvador with my family. I was there previously in 1998 and can barely remember anything about that trip when I was a child. The reason that I will be using this trip to El Salvador is because of the differences in culture between it and the United States. I really stuck out while visiting different places and was noticeably out of place. People would speak to me in English even though my roots are from El Salvador. It was extremely interesting looking at a completely different way of life. Checking out the places that my parents grew up in really changed the way I thought about my own life and how different it is to grow up in a completely different environment. This experience was unique and something I had never experienced before. I was able to learn a lot about my own culture. The most interesting thing to me was the way people approached me that were not my family. People didn’t expect me to speak Spanish and I felt as though I was being treated much differently then everyone else. From the way that I spoke to the way I looked, I completely stood out from the general crowd. Hopefully I will be able to travel there again in the near future.
Family Folktale
In my family I never have been told typical folktales, but my parents always share their experiences of coming to the United States and starting a whole new life. I would consider these experiences as a form of folktale. I am sure that I will share these stories with future generations of my family. My family has always been the type to talk about where they come from. They tell me how it was to come to this country and the struggles they had to endure. My father tells me how he left his home at the age of twenty and traveled throughout Central America trying to make a living and better his life. He was involved in commercial trading and because of all the traveling he went though a lot of different experiences. Going from country to country to make a few dollars are memories that he will never forget. He lost countless friends to the Civil War in El Salvador and almost lost his own life. He reminds me that God helped him throughout all his struggles and because of God he was able to make it as far as he has. He started his life in the United States in California, but saw opportunities in New York to make a living and eventually a family. He constantly tells me that God was the one that continued guiding him throughout the course of his life. Starting his life in New York was very difficult because it was so much different then his life back home. He tells me the first time he saw snow and how such a simple thing as snow really astonished him. This is a story that has been told to my brother and myself. And will probably be continued told to other generations because my parents were the ones who gave me the opportunity to grow up in the United States and I now have the opportunity to achieve amazing things.