Different Languages - Different Personalities?

11/13/2013 4:03:21 AM

Killing time during a dreary night in the exploration camp, I came across an article in The Economist positing the thesis of this discussion thread title. Since I am bilingual (English/French) I tried to analyze my own behaviour to see if I could find any validity in the thesis.

I have long noted that I have much less success in Quebec's French-speaking strip clubs than I do in any English-speaking clubs anywhere else. Upon reflection, I believe that I do project a different personality when I am speaking French from the personality of my English-speaking roots. I am not uncomfortable when speaking French but I think that I subconsciously alter my behaviour when speaking French - different sentence structure; masculine/feminine nouns; all those verb tenses + the wretched subjunctive. My brain works differently when I think 'French' so I guess that my other behaviour could also change.

I am not 100% convinced of the validity of this thesis. More likely, I think, for my lesser success in Quebec SCs is my peculiar accent when speaking French. What say you other bilingual or multilingual horndogs?

18 comments

Latest

tumblingdice

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11 years ago

In the clubs I only speak English and Braille,and my Braille only speaks Vagina.

SlickSpic

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11 years ago

I am much more sarcastic and quick witted in English than Spanish. Besides that, I don't change much.

jackslash

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11 years ago

Art, I would think your accent might have something to do with it. The Quebec dancers may resent you.

Despite taking years of French classes in high school and college, I found that Parisians had no idea that I was speaking their language. If they did figure it out, they thought it my French was comical.

French is the coolest sounding language, and a girl with a French accent is so sexy.

SlickSpic

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11 years ago

Jack is probably right with the accent being an issue. My Spanish accent is more Argentine than Mexican and in Cali, where Mexicans outnumber all the other Latinos, it helps me stand out.

motorhead

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11 years ago

Money is the universal language

goodsouthernboy

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11 years ago

I'm a typical underachieving American that only speaks 1 language, but the topic is interesting. On my travels, I met a bartender who spoke 9 languages. Could you imagine 9 different personalities roaming around in your head?

SlickSpic

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11 years ago

I thought it was greed?

jester214

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11 years ago

I'm not sure if a personality changes as much as it might be masked by our focus on using the language we're not as familiar with. Slick sort of touched on that.

Club_Goer_Seattle

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11 years ago

I'm with jester on this one. I sense that if one were equally fluent in two languages, your personality would come across the same in either language. When you have a first and second language, the second takes more concentration just to convey basic sentences, and therefore detracts from your true personality.

bvino

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11 years ago

I speak Spanish fairly well and the girls that are from Central and South America really appreciate the effort. I don't get discounts or anything but it breaks down the fakee wall faster with a little of the native tongue. So to speak...

Dain

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11 years ago

When I lived in Germany, I had a lot of success with German strippers. They must have liked my accent. Here in the USA, I am more relaxed and have my greatest success with black girls.

shadowcat

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11 years ago

Hey Art. maybe your French isn't rude enough. :)

georgmicrodong

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11 years ago

Art, when you speak French, do you *think* in French, or translates your English thoughts in French?

If I was forced at gunpoint to make an uneducated guess, it would be that this would be more prevalent among those who can think in the language they are speaking.

deogol

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11 years ago

Does what JuiceBox speak count as a second language?

farmerart

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11 years ago

@georgmicrodong,

I do 'think' in the language whenever I speak French.

I also have to admit that I have a very curious accent in French. I learned French when I was in Algeria (not back home in Canada). In addition, three of my employees were Germans who spoke no English but were fluent in French. My French accent is a combination of Algerian and German. You should see the quizzical looks I receive whenever I open my mouth in France.

SlickSpic

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11 years ago

@FarmerArt-Did you meet any Strangers in Algeria?

farmerart

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11 years ago

@SlickSpic,

J'ai lu le roman, L'Etranger, ecrit par Albert Camus. Camus etait pied noir de l'Algerie; ville d'Oran, je crois.

C'etait le seul etranger qui j'ai rencontre pendant mon sejour en Algerie.

(Comme je deteste mon ordinnateur, pas d'accents pour les voyelles!)

ilbbaicnl

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11 years ago

Quebequers don't seem to like European French. I've seem people speak European French in Quebec, and get answered in English.

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