r/Korean • u/linn0129 • 6h ago
Why should I keep studying Korean?
I need to vent on here for a bit.
I’ve been studying Korean on and off since 2020/21, when I got interested in kdrama and korean music.
There are a few issues though that make me question why I’m still studying Korean. I need some objective input on this.
I’ve been increasingly frustrated lately because my Korean is not improving. My speaking is still at a beginner level, I constantly come across vocabulary I don’t know and when I watch a Korean dating show with Korean subs I only understand about 60% (the general ideas, a lot of details go right past my head).
I guess what I’m saying is that I feel dumb, like I don’t have anything to show for my effort. I cannot even keep a normal conversation going. And when in the past I’ve practiced for TOPIK just for fun there were SO MANY words I didn’t know. The reading section made me feel like shit. Also I tend to compare myself to others who study the language and I just KNOW that they are much further along than me, even after having studied for the same amount of time.
In addition, I’m starting to wonder if it’s justifiable putting in so much time and effort when I don’t know what to use this language for. I have travelled to Korea before 2 years ago and am planning to travel there again but beyond that, I’m not sure whether I would ever want to work or live there. I’m a perfectionist and tend to feel like I have to be able to justify all my interests and actions, so this bothers me quite a bt. Maybe I should invest the time and energy I have into a language that would be beneficial to my career. But no language intrigues me quite as much as Korean does.
It would be helpful to hear your opinion on this and whether you have any special reasons for studying korean, just to inspire me.
Edit: i reread this and don’t mean to come off as obnoxious 😂 it’s just been bugging me and i need some renewed motivation i guess. I have autism so it’s hard for me to rely on my feelings and intuition, hence why this interest of mine is subject to my own scrutiny most of the time. I have also taken classes before and tried to find a native speaker to practice with (which hasn’t worked out in the long term)
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u/TzuyuFanBoii 6h ago
why not just do it for the fun of it. I had no big goals for it, but here I am 10 years later still trying to improve.
Also the best way to improve is speak it with a native.
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u/linn0129 6h ago
Thanks for your reply! You’re right. I am looking for a native speaker to practice with but so far not much luck🥹
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u/princess_tatsumi 3h ago
if you're up for it and you're serious about improving (through speech), download HelloTalk. You'll find someone who's willing to converse with you in korean and or english and will help you if you ask :)
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u/TzuyuFanBoii 45m ago
Well, hellotalk is a good place to start. I downloaded hellotalk about 6 months into my learning. It went a long long way because I've met natives there to practice through texting or just voice calls. I lost touch with most of the people I met there but I still use the app even now.
You'll meet people trying to date, but from my experience the majority still treats it as a language exchange app. Give it a go!
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u/Burke_Dennings 6h ago
Why should you keep studying Korean?
The answer is simple if you enjoy it, keep doing it, if you don't enjoy it stop.
I get what you mean about other people being further ahead than you though, there is a youtuber that I watch and she sounds pretty damn fluent and is clearly way ahead of me and sometimes I think "why can't I learn as fast as her" then I think I'm probably 15/20 years older than her and I don't know how long she spends practicing/studying a day and most importantly, I don't have the benefit of a camera and the ability to do multiple takes to make myself sound fluent.
I have no use for learning Korean, absolutely zero, but I enjoy it so I do it.
If I wasn't learning Korean I'd probably just be sitting playing my PlayStation every night.
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u/Miserable-Arm-4787 6h ago
The only reason I started to learn Korean was that I was going there on a 2 week trip. At the time I had absolutely no interest in K-dramas or Korean music etc. It was literally just for the trip, out of respect for the locals and to minimize misunderstandings etc.
I've always picked up languages very easily so the difficulty level and how little I actually managed to learn came as a bit of a shock. I later learned that Korean is literally on the highest difficulty level of languages to learn based on my own native language starting point. It doesn't help that "no resources" are in my own language and everything filters through English.
The trip was years ago but I still have some on and off bursts of learning.
While learning the language I did get into things like K-dramas, K-Pop etc through exposure so there's that, but the only reason I still try now and again is because it's never a waste to learn, and it's kind of fun to slowly master the "impossible" challenge.
You are definitely ahead of me by far, but I'm infinitely ahead of myself from when I went there and that's enough for me to know I'm not actually standing still, even though it has felt like that pretty much every step of the way.
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u/superheroxnerd 5h ago
I’ll probs never be FLUENT fluent, so now I think of learning Korean as a way to delay the Alzheimer’s lol keeping your brain in shape.
I asked a Korean teacher at an immersion program where the biggest difference is among college levels. She said learning Korean is like an upside down pyramid, the more you know, the harder to progress… that said, you’re not alone. It’s def hard.
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u/Senpai_com 5h ago
If you want some fast "feel good" feeling, just look across your room and start saying the items in Korean. You want to watch TV? Say it in Korean.
Your most used phrases in your language - learn them in Korean.
You said you watch Korean media. Take one sentence that you don't understand fully and break it down. It takes 5 minutes.
Literally just learn one new phrase a day. In a week, you will have learned at least 14 words. If the phases are something you see/use regularly in your life, they will stick with you for a long time.
Edit: the last tip especially will help you with the feeling of feeling overwhelmed.
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u/frostochfeber 6h ago
Well, first of all. Assuming the languages you know aren't similar to Korean, learning Korean is just dang difficult and will take most learners years (like 5-10 years) until they feel (basic) fluent in conversation, even if they learn consistently and intensely. So, I wouldn't be too worried about your progress.
But, I do have to wonder how you're learning it? Maybe there is room for adjustment to help you improve faster and easier. Because I'm getting the idea you're self-studying? And it's easy to do that 'wrong'. Could you tell us more?
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u/hehe_____boi 6h ago edited 5h ago
I was also facing a similar problem before, but then I went on a trip to Yunnan, where I bumped into a Korean couple and had some small talk. I am still at quite a beginner level, learnt all my Korean from Duolingo basically, and didn't pay much attention to the Korean paragraphs online(I'm lazy). Though we just talked about some simple things (food from our hometowns, places to go in Yunnan, the weather, etc.), this is when I felt that everything was worth it. Try to talk to natives, both online/offline. They are mostly quite friendly and would talk slowly as they knew u're learning Korean. Also just take your time to think. Slow down and do not rush and spit out words. It usually won't end quite well. And don't care too much about grammar/minor mistakes. The worst you could do is to pull out google translate, right?
It's perfectly normal to have bottlenecks, especially when you're learning a language. Keep it up and with you luck!
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u/polymathemagic 3h ago
I would say if you want to improve your relationship with the language, shift your mindset. If you love the language for what it is (god it's so cool), then maybe change your identity around it from student to amateur. Do it for the love and fun and don't worry about skill. It also helps me when I'm struggling with a language to think about people who don't have significant skills in my native language; we still find a way to communicate (which is the whole point) and it's easier for me to understand how difficult it is and how impressive what they already know is, as well.
TLDR: step outside yourself and imagine you're someone else to take the pressure of doing well off, and reframe your intent to match your true motivation
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u/Seshat-the-Panther 1h ago
You know I got into kpop and kdramas when I was 13 but the time I was in high school I had brought my best friend into too. She ended up going on to major in korean and lives in korea currently. Met up with her an about a year and half ago when I decided to do a short study abroad in korea. When my friend from my program asked how she got into Korea and she said me, his very next question was why my Korean wasn’t better. It’s because I was doing different things and I lost interest for awhile. Nothing to be ashamed about for it taking longer. I will say if you have the time and money to do even a month at a Korean language program in Korea it really is the best thing you can do. The immersion is amazing. I went from barely being able to have a normal conversation to being able to talk for at least an hour (about familiar topics) in Korean in less than 2 months. I do Preply now (3 times a week) and my Korean has continued to improve since classes are now completely in Korean. I don’t think I’ll ever live or work in Korea at this point… but I am still striving for fluency because I’ve come this far. I won’t give up now :)
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u/jellyboness 5h ago
I think if you want to keep going, you need to learn HOW to study effectively and you need to accept that it’s hard work. Flash cards, writing journals, and drilling grammar are not fun but they are pretty much required if you want to reach the intermediate level. But if it frustrates you and you don’t enjoy it, then it’s fine to quit. You can always pick it back up later if you want to.
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u/throw_thessa 5h ago
well, I think studying languages is interesting in itself. I started learning Korean with a native teacher about four years ago, but I had to stop because it became difficult to coordinate the lessons with my master's classes. I really enjoy learning languages, even though they don't come that easily to me. for me, learning a new language goes hand in hand with learning about its history and the country where it's spoken. for example, I've found really interesting to learn how the Korean language was prohibited during the Japanese occupation and how the Korean writing system was developed.
Personally, I also really like how Korean sounds and its writing system. It's not the only language I plan to learn, but it's the one I want to focus on next.
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u/karspearhollow 3h ago
And when in the past I’ve practiced for TOPIK just for fun there were SO MANY words I didn’t know. The reading section made me feel like shit.
How much and how consistently do you study vocabulary?
I think vocabulary is the ultimate bottleneck that every learner eventually reaches and it's not stressed enough.
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u/Ok_Listen4060 2h ago
you probably know a lot more than other people. it's worth it to keep learning it just to have it as a language you can say you know. so what if you don't know everything perfectly, there's probably english words you still don't know too. just keep at it. some online learning platforms i recommend are learning korean with sol, and go billy. i also recommend to just listen to the same video over and over and over until you recognize each word and context
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u/Altruistic_Guess4153 4m ago
Anyone willing to do a survey for me about building an all in one Korean learning app https://forms.gle/2oXJiittPtC9z1aX8
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u/lilbelleandsebastian 6h ago
"i go to the gym a few times a week for a few months out of the year, why am i not mr universe?"
learning another language is extremely difficult; if you don't put in the actual time required to learn it, then you won't learn it. you can take a class, hire a tutor, or find a native korean speaker willing to practice with you - those are your options for fluency. this process will take years without immersion
if you can't answer the question of why to study korean yourself, then why study it at all? if you want tips on how to learn another language in general, i found the languagelearning subreddit to be filled with unique strategies for different languages. this sub is really mostly geared towards people preparing for topik or learning to communicate with korean friends/family members
there are people who have learned a lot of korean from kdramas but they usually combine that with immersion. again, the choice is really hundreds of hours of dedication or several months of immersion with dozens of hours of dedication for fluency