Guide To The Spanish Language
An introduction to Spanish without the grammar - A new and fresh perspective with some interesting items on
language and the similarities between Spanish and English
To examine the whole Spanish language, all the verbs and the conjugation of the verbs and all aspects of grammar will, I believe, only serve to dishearten
us before we even begin. Grammar has been developed by academics as a tool for studying and organizing different languages. These scholars have set
down rules and guidelines that can be followed, learnt and transposed from one language to another, which in theory is a great idea. The problem is that
the rules are so complicated that we could spend three years at university studying a language and all the grammar and still not be truly fluent in the
language or an expert in grammar.
Grammar is a subject in its own right. This never-the-less does not stop most teachers relying on grammar when trying to teach their students Spanish. I
have found that most language courses are far too academic and focused on grammar, verb endings and translation. I don’t know about you but for me,
and most of my friends, grammar is something we did at school and have thought very little about ever since. It is intended to be a tool for learning languages but in practice if you are not very familiar with the tool it can be an
added complication that makes the whole process that much more difficult. How many people do you know who actually know the difference between a
direct object and an indirect object as used in a sentence? I wonder how many English speakers can explain the difference between “Spivak
Pronouns” and the “singular they” form of pronouns. I know my 6 year old nephew cannot, yet he has a very good command of the English language. If
I could speak Spanish as well as my Nephew speaks English I would be very happy indeed. In fact most English speakers make grammatical errors in
speaking and writing everyday. The point is that most Spanish people first learn to converse in Spanish as children, without any understanding
whatsoever of grammar and many go through their entire life without a deep understanding of grammar. It is possible to be considered fluent in Spanish
and not even be aware of the rules of grammar.
You have to be able to communicate, not be an academic. It therefore occurred to me that maybe we
should first concentrate on learning the basics of the Spanish language and what we need to be able to converse, to talk and to communicate and put
aside the academic aspects of the language. We can learn the basics of the language in much the same way as a child
learns their native language and the way we have learnt English. If, after we can converse at a basic level, we want to progress to a higher level then fine
we can go to university and study Spanish and the finer points of grammar, but first let’s get to first base and concentrate our time and effort on the basics
so we can at least be understood in the shops and restaurants and can hold a polite conversation in Spanish. The good news is that we can get to this level
without concerning ourselves too much with Spanish grammar.
