YuGong,
I totally agree with you on the point that it is more important to be able to "think" in English and to communicate well with other English speakers than to just get rid of one's accents.
As a matter of fact, tonight, right before dinner, my hu*****and rose up a similar question too. He asked if I have thought it over on if it is worthy to spend so much time on such basics, since I am not planning to be an actress nor do I have any intention to enter the entertainment business.
Frankly speaking, to get rid of my Chinese accent is not my ultimate goal in English studying. It is only one of the means and the very first step I am not able to skip. Due to a personality flaw came with the genes my parents coded in me, I easily get fraustrated and then shied away from things I can't do relatively well. I had tried to fight against it in the past few years, but with no luck to succeed. After truely totally realizing it, now what I can do is to accept it, face it, and overcome it, -- by learning to get rid of the accents as much as I could.
I also know that it is not enough to only read aloud, even if it is only for the short term purpose of getting rid of accent. Doing massive reading, watching TV, listening to radio, talking to the natives(and non-natives), and practicing writing are all necessary. And that's what I am trying to do right now.
Many people are good multi-taskers, unfortunately I am not one of them. I can at most do one thing well at a time. To get more confidence for myself, maybe I should from now on even avoid any activities that could potentially improve my Chinese any further, for it has been extremely effective in discouraging me of my English learning. For the better my Chinese is, relatively the poorer my English looks like!
I personally don't encourage people to follow my example, 'cause every person is a different animal, and each individual's goal is unique. In my case, if I could get rid of most of my Chinese accent, then the bottom line is: if extremely bad situation occurs in the U.S. someday, I can go back China and to make a living by working for my brothers, who are in the media industry. Haha, that is to say, I still have a slight chance of entering the entertainment business!
Thank you for your persistence in discussing this topic in depth, and the by-product -- I am forced to write such a long 'essay' in English! I enjoyed both your questions and the process of answering them. Deeply appreciate it!
北京二号
I totally agree with you on the point that it is more important to be able to "think" in English and to communicate well with other English speakers than to just get rid of one's accents.
As a matter of fact, tonight, right before dinner, my hu*****and rose up a similar question too. He asked if I have thought it over on if it is worthy to spend so much time on such basics, since I am not planning to be an actress nor do I have any intention to enter the entertainment business.
Frankly speaking, to get rid of my Chinese accent is not my ultimate goal in English studying. It is only one of the means and the very first step I am not able to skip. Due to a personality flaw came with the genes my parents coded in me, I easily get fraustrated and then shied away from things I can't do relatively well. I had tried to fight against it in the past few years, but with no luck to succeed. After truely totally realizing it, now what I can do is to accept it, face it, and overcome it, -- by learning to get rid of the accents as much as I could.
I also know that it is not enough to only read aloud, even if it is only for the short term purpose of getting rid of accent. Doing massive reading, watching TV, listening to radio, talking to the natives(and non-natives), and practicing writing are all necessary. And that's what I am trying to do right now.
Many people are good multi-taskers, unfortunately I am not one of them. I can at most do one thing well at a time. To get more confidence for myself, maybe I should from now on even avoid any activities that could potentially improve my Chinese any further, for it has been extremely effective in discouraging me of my English learning. For the better my Chinese is, relatively the poorer my English looks like!
I personally don't encourage people to follow my example, 'cause every person is a different animal, and each individual's goal is unique. In my case, if I could get rid of most of my Chinese accent, then the bottom line is: if extremely bad situation occurs in the U.S. someday, I can go back China and to make a living by working for my brothers, who are in the media industry. Haha, that is to say, I still have a slight chance of entering the entertainment business!
Thank you for your persistence in discussing this topic in depth, and the by-product -- I am forced to write such a long 'essay' in English! I enjoyed both your questions and the process of answering them. Deeply appreciate it!
北京二号
