The thought of someone religiously following a telenovela in non-Spanish speaking countries didn’t really connect with me until today. My brother’s girlfriend is from Ukraine and today we were talking about which classes we’re taking in school. I mentioned the telenovela class and she exclaimed “Ohhh man! My grandma in Ukraine loooooooves those! And she learned Spanish from them! It’s crazy!” It made me laugh, and really appreciate how Spanish has become a global language in part because of novelas. She said her grandma and mom both watch a block of novelas from 8 to 10 p.m., Monday through Friday, always. They don’t even watch dubbed/subtitled versions anymore – they bought Spanish dictionaries to help whenever they don’t understand something.
I’m so impressed at the dedication! And again blown away by whatever addictive quality they put into storylines that manages to cross cultural bounds. It's funny because so many people I know would never see telenovelas as an opportunity to learn Spanish. Everyone flips straight past them without a second thought. They're passing up free Spanish lessons apparently!
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YES YES YES. Thank goodness someone posted about this, or else I was going to.
ReplyDeleteI was talking to my dad about the telenovelas class, and how interesting it is that even MY Spanish has improved significantly, just from the daily repetition of hearing Spanish being spoken. It seems silly, but definitely a free Spanish lesson– I'm recognize how to use Spanish in everyday context now simply by having listened to the characters speaking.
I know that this was a big plug that teachers used to say when learning a second (or third, in my case) language: go listen to the radio, go watch a TV show, watch a movie... SOMETHING! And now, after being sucked in to a telenovela (which, by the way, is the best option out of the three that I just mentioned because you really do get pulled in to the storyline and are ENJOYING watching), I can claim that I, myself, have learned firsthand the advantages to being exposed to a language on a daily basis. Even if it's just for an hour (or four hour blocks, since I usually couldn't stop watching), it really does make a difference.
This is crazy but true!!! Now that you mention it, I guess I do always hear from my native Spanish-speaking friends say that one of the ways they learned English was through movies and television. So why haven't I really connected that to telenovelas before? Maybe because I'm so wrapped up in the drama. I think that I am going to start watching more programs on Univision and Telemundo. I just wish there were Spanish subtitles, as they can speak quite fast in telenovelas!
ReplyDeleteDefinitely. My Hispanic friend used to watch telenovelas to keep up with her Spanish. And I watch Taiwanese dramas to help my Chinese language skills. I'll even watch the bad ones. When I don't know a word, I will look it up in the dictionary. I feel that my vocabulary has increased because of it. Sometimes, I leave the show on in the background just so I can hear it. I definiely think that watching telenovelas/dramas is a great tool to learn a language. People learning Spanish should go beyond the books and watch a telenovela! I plan to watch Chilean telenovelas (if I can get even access to any) movies, and TV to prep myself for my next semester abroad.
ReplyDeleteI know I'm the fourth person to comment about this, but I have recently had this exact same realization! While overhearing Ruxi and Dr. A speak in Spanish the other day, I was thinking about how much my Spanish listening skills have improved. I used to need to see the person speaking so their lip movements could help me make out what they were saying, but after watching telenovelas and being in this class and my other Spanish class, I can now understand mostly by just hearing them. I think it's awesome that telenovelas are able to break through the language and culture barriers and appeal to a wide variety of people. I guess that's what comes from the non-stop twists and drama!
ReplyDeleteHaha, I'm in the same boat! I honestly don't think many of my previous Spanish classes have helped too much because they focused mostly on the literature or grammar or writing--there wasn't too much conversation going on. Plus, the language in telenovelas is more colloquial, so we'll be able to use it locally if the chance ever arrises! I guess the one problem for me is that they talk SO fast that sometimes it's hard to keep up, but again that helps to get used to the every day language!
ReplyDeleteIt's interesting how this works with American soap operas as well! My mom says she worked on her English by watching soap operas and forcing herself to follow the storyline though she found them very different from the telenovelas she used to watch.
ReplyDeleteAnd while some telenovelas may not be the best example of the entire latin american culture (remember the controversy of Sin Tetas No Hay Paradiso and the entire town complaining that it wasn't a fair representation?) they are still a really fun way to pick up the language! Not only that but you get to hear all sorts of accents depending on the telenovela you are watching. Every once in awhile I will pull up an episode of my favorite Colombian telenovela just the hear the accents!
I have started watching telenovelas during my lunch breaks when I'm home to improve my Spanish and I really think that it's helping. The spanish in telenovelas is much more pronunciated and easy to understand. Plus, it's nice to watch a conversation unfold and pick up on small idioms that don't necessarily match up with their english equivalents. However, I think it's a little ironic, because one of my fav telenovelas to watch right now is a Brazilian telenovela dubbed in Spanish! Pero, no me importa. Los hombres in "America" are so handsome I can forgive the mismatched lip movements!
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