- Pronunciation:
- \ˈre-kən-ˌsī(-ə)l\
- Function:
- verb
- Inflected Form(s):
- rec·on·ciled; rec·on·cil·ing
- Etymology:
- Middle English, from Anglo-French or Latin; Anglo-French reconciler, from Latin reconciliare, from re- + conciliare to conciliate
- Date:
- 14th century
When I hear the word "reconcile", I first think of relationships, which would easily go along with the first definition (to restore to friendship or harmony). On further consideration, I realize my thou
ghts on relationships could easily be morphed into a relationship with a culture or language.
Reconciliation is about resolution which involves compromise. No relationship is healthy without compromise and when you're traveling to a foreign country there are plenty of compromises to make. For example:
- Instead of eating dinner at 6 o'clock, you eat at 9 o'clock
- Instead of shopping at Wal-mart at midnight on a Sunday, you shop at Hofer at 4 in the afternoon on a weekday
- Instead of driving to school, you walk or take the city bus
- etc, etc, etc
ever learn a language without learning about the culture. Furthermore, you cannot fully appreciate a culture without truly experiencing it. There may be times when you have to submit to things you may not want to, but the culture cannot be experienced without reconciliation.
In the end, it's worth trying the snail, even if it's just to say "I've eaten snails in Spain"...and, yes, I have.
(Snails and Shark in Cádiz)
I think the only way to learn a language is going to spend some time in a foreign country (or being in a relationship with a native speaker) and obviously get involved in the culture. If I have to give advice to a student I would tell him/her to spend a year in a foreign country. All those new experiences helped me grow as a person, even when I wasn't 100% involved.
ReplyDeleteI am glad you have a blog Jacque! :D
ReplyDeleteInteresting perspectives on reconciliation!! Hadn't really thought of it in this light...but yes, we have to reconcile ourselves to the fact that differences are there and come to accept them and embrace them!! Who knows, you may just LOVE snails!! Or haggis!!
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ReplyDelete"...culture cannot be experienced without reconciliation." For me, the real "take-away" value of your post lies in this single phrase. I loved it and I've thought a lot about it.
ReplyDeleteSince culture apparently can't be defined, quantified or assessed, the key to understanding it must lie, as you say, in the experiencing, and the experiencing is one and the same with the reconciling. Can't have one without the other.
So much of the richness of being human lies in a person's willingness to let go of the familiar long enough to experience the new, the strange, the (sometimes) frightening. The reward? Connecting with other human beings, becoming part of a larger whole and experiencing that flash of clarity that says, "See how worthwhile this is?"