Knowing French opens a world of understanding
Published: 25 Sep. 2009, 19:28
Choi Jung-wha, left, and Yun Seong-woo are professors at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies and advocates of greater research into French language and culture.
“I feel sorry that Korean people still focus too much on learning English. By doing so, we cannot see other parts of the world,” Yun said.
As part of the annual six-day “Humanities Week” that began on Monday at the university in Imun-dong, northern Seoul, Yun set up events under the theme “Journee Francaise.” The events will explore the development and characteristics of the French language.
Yun, who earned his doctoral degree in Western philosophy at the University de Paris XII, wanted to create an opportunity for participants to discuss and debate multiculturalism.
Choi Jung-wha, 54, a professor at the Graduate School of Interpretation and Translation at HUFS, gave full support to the event.
“For the purpose of understanding genuine cultural diversity and studying the humanities, we really have to have a greater level of interest and conduct more profound research on French language and culture,” Choi said.
Both Yun and Choi agreed that the French language is gaining popularity in Korea.
“According to Incruit, an online job search agency, the number of companies that give credit to jobseekers with proficiency in French surged from 1,217 in 2006 to 18,705 last year,” Choi said.
“As economic development is improving in northern African countries, including Algeria, bilateral economic ties with Korea are improving. Eventually, many firms will want to hire people fluent in French,” Choi added.
She added that there are many advantages to speaking French now that the Korea-EU free trade agreement has been inked.
Yun said that potential career benefits aren’t the only reason to study French. Learning French will improve one’s cultural awareness as well.
“The French government pours a lot of effort into improving the literary knowledge of high school juniors ahead of college entrance by teaching philosophy eight hours a week. Students also learn the importance of ‘tolerance,’ which is the highest cultural value in French culture,” said Yun.
“There is no doubt that by learning and understanding French, we can ascertain a high level of cultural diversity.”
Ambassadors to Korea from French-speaking countries, including the French and Algerian ambassadors Elisabeth Laurin and Rabah Hadid, participated in the French-themed events.
The National Research Foundation of Korea hosted The Humanities Week 2009 and it was sponsored by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology.
By Chun Su-jin [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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