> Why speak French well when for a fraction of the effort speaking poorly gets you 90% of the return.
Because that last 10% (which is actually more like the last 99%) is the part where you actually create friends, relationships, and connect with other people beyond "how are you?" And people actually start inviting you to social gatherings again because you can keep up in conversation even though your new-foreign-guy appeal wears off. And when you meet a cute girl, you can actually hold her attention and interest and feel fulfilled after the honeymoon stage wears off, and you don't just conjure up questions like "so how long is she gonna last with this foreign play-thing?" when you visit her friends and family. And you stop feeling like a fucking outsider all the time.
Your post is the same bullshit I told myself when I moved abroad and didn't actually want to put much effort into learning the language. It won't get you as far as you think.
The issue for the OA author is she has her family in France so she can speak English.
I am not trying to suggest it is not a good idea to learn to speak the language well in the country you live, just that the effort can be out of proportion to the benefit if you are surrounded by people who speak your native language.
Because that last 10% (which is actually more like the last 99%) is the part where you actually create friends, relationships, and connect with other people beyond "how are you?" And people actually start inviting you to social gatherings again because you can keep up in conversation even though your new-foreign-guy appeal wears off. And when you meet a cute girl, you can actually hold her attention and interest and feel fulfilled after the honeymoon stage wears off, and you don't just conjure up questions like "so how long is she gonna last with this foreign play-thing?" when you visit her friends and family. And you stop feeling like a fucking outsider all the time.
Your post is the same bullshit I told myself when I moved abroad and didn't actually want to put much effort into learning the language. It won't get you as far as you think.