Surprising Truths
Tonight, while dining at Exeter with David and Chung (and while walking home with Chung later), our discussion landed on two topics that I'd never really thought about before and can't believe that I'd never thought about them before.
During dinner, we were talking about languages, and the different ways languages can signal respect. David was mentioning how in Japanese, there are 17 different words for "you" - all depending on the level of respect you wish to convey. We then got to talking about how while other languages may not have 17 ways to say "you," perhaps they have less explicit ways to show respect for others.
For example: the way we ask for things. In Spanish, it is perfectly correct to say "yo quiero" (I want), but it is much more polite to say "yo quisiera" (I would like). The same is true in French (je veux/je voudrai). David noticed that the polite form of the address is often the one that uses more syllables, and perhaps it suggests that we're showing respect by taking a bit more effort and skill to address the person. It's even true in English (I want/I would like), and Chung said it is the same in Chinese as well. Perhaps this is not the 100% correct explanation, but I found it interesting and it seems to make sense.
When walking home with Chung, another interesting topic came up in discussion: how people at home react to the fact that we go to Oxford. I know I like to talk a lot on this blog about how great Oxford is, but when I'm home, I seem to be a bit self-conscious about the fact that I go here. My mother is perfectly happy to announce to the world where I go to graduate school, but most of the time I just tell people that I go to grad school in England. Chung told me that he feels the same way. We think it is because people tend to see Oxford as this amazing place with all these rich snobby clever genius people, and we don't really feel like we fall into that category. I don't want people to think differently about me just because I go to a famous school. I don't feel like I fit with the perception of Oxford, and I don't want people to think that I'm telling them about Oxford to show off. I was glad to know that I'm not the only one who thinks this way.
In other news: after getting a terrible letdown by finding out that I was placed on a waiting list for a scholarship, I received some very good news on the financial front. I have just been appointed junior dean at my college for next year! For those of you who are unfamiliar with the system, junior deans are the Percy Weasleys and Hermione Grangers of Oxford - they assist the dean with welfare and discipline issues. With this position, I get free accommodation, free meals, SCR dining rights (i.e. very fancy dinners), and a stipend. In total, it covers about a third of my yearly expenses in Oxford. Yay!
xxx
5 comments:
Congrats on your new position! You'll make a wonderful Hermione!
I may get a job on my campus too -- I'm keeping my fingers crossed!
I suppose the l "extra syllable" honorific theory holds some water. I chalk it up to the fact that, in the Indo-European languages at least, that these honorifics tend to take the subjunctive form, and are thus more linguistically "marked" than the simple indicative verb forms. I don't know any African languages, but from what I've heard many Bantu languages are agglutinative, and simply tack on syllables to indicate number, tense, and possibly mood. So it becomes a chicken-and-egg question. But I think it's still a possibility that the extra bit of effort, both in terms of syllables and in morphological construction, might have something to do with it.
I do the exact same thing when talking to people about Oxford at home. The name carries with it a whole bunch of stereotypes that just aren't true, or only partly so. Also, I genuinely feel like the work I'm doing is more important than the university I happen to be at. Most people don't understand that. It's a difficult issue, because I'm reall proud of going here, but like I said it's not the important thing to me.
And don't forget that Ron is a Prefect too! Although I hope you're a better disciplinarian than he is. No stealing students' fanged frisbees for your own benefit!
Great to hear that you got the JD position - well done!
Do you know the names and the nature of your future colleagues?
Congrats on the JD position! :)
congratulations! 'm complete hermit. Will email you soon, promise! :)
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