JOURNAL 3

Dear Hoffman, I read your narrative Lost in Translation for one of my classes. After reading your story, I feel excited. The reason I have such a feeling is because you share your own experience about your first day at school in Vancouver, British Columbia. When I read your story title Lost in Translation, I imagined that your article would be told about someone who cant translate from one language to the other. Moreover, your experience makes me think about the way you life for a new language in a new place. I like the way you describe your birthday present; you got a diary, and you use the diary for your writing in English. Besides, I have learned three things from your story. First, I learn several new words/concepts related to culture, language, and identity. Those words are (1) appellation (2) act of self-voyeurism (3) seismic mental shift. I chose those three words because I never heard these words. I try to define the words by seeing the sentences context and find out the meaning in the Cambridge dictionary. After I found the meaning of the words, then I connected them in the whole of the story. At first, the words appellation means a name or a title. For instance, when the teacher did mispronunciation in your last name Wydra, so it means he mispronounced your appellation. Second, the term of act of self-voyeurism is someone who acts as a person who watches other peoples private lives. In the article said that a slightly perverse act of self-voyeurism, so it means you give the reason on the way you write in English is same with your perversity on act-of self voyeurism. Third, seismic mental shift reflect how people shift their thought because of certain reason. For example, when you shift

your language from Poland to English, you looked like shift your view point toward your own language because you lived in England and tried to survive yourself in English. Other than language use, your narrative raises my awareness with regard to the reason why you choose English to write in your diary. I only guess your reason choose write in English is that English could be the best language to share about your self. However, you also mentioned, when you wrote your diary in English, you felt like the diary is about you and not about you at all. At the first time, I feel hard to understand in knowing the meaning of the phrase. Then, I realize that your writing in dairy is about your struggling to mastering English, but your English writing in the diary is not really reflect yourself as Polish. In addition, reading your story made me think of language death. When you mentioned, Polish is becoming a dead language, I also think of Javanese language. The Javanese language, especially high-Javanese language is seldom to use in daily conversation among Javanese people. In this case, High-Javanese Language seems to be ignored by Javanese young generation; they tend to use Indonesian or English in their daily conversation. The reason is that they wont be called as old-fashion, ancient, and etc. However, Javanese young generation should preserve High Javanese Language, so that the language will not be language death. Reading your story also raises several questions with regard to your personal experience in a new language, these questions are: Why do you use English rather than Polish in your diary writing?, What were you thinking when your teacher gave a file card about deaf-mute sign of your teacher house? and What do you mean by the phrase This language is beginning to invent another me?

Finally, your article is awesome; because you shared your personal experience of life in a new language is that you struggle to survive in new condition of English used. Your article also gives me better understanding on how to master a new language, and the term of language death. The article also gives two major points, such as; As Javanese young generation, we have to maintain and preserve our language heritage (High Javanese Language), and dont be stranger at home; Javanese people who dont know Javanese language. Best, CANDRADEWI W.A. 112008154