Pascal Derrien

7 years ago · 2 min. reading time · ~10 ·

Blogging
>
Pascal blog
>
My First Language Is Not My First Language

My First Language Is Not My First Language

My First Language Is Not My First Language

My first language is not my first language it is a bit like saying my happiness coach has depression right? Besides the figure of speech the tongue in cheek statement I have come to realize it is actually the reality. Let me explain, like many others I left my birth country roughly 17 years ago for another country, my destination was not too far but yet it still took 24 hours by ferry the final port of call being Ireland.

But far or not I had to adapt, I had to operate professionally and personally in a complete different format and ultimately had to get on with a language which while not strictly alien to me was not the one I was educated or brought up with during my childhood. Now I would consider myself lucky as the transition to English from French is not that bad providing there is a common alphabet others have had a bigger mountain to climb

18 years on now I read, work, engage and breathe in English probably 98% of the time, in terms of usage, utilization or thinking it has actually become my primary modus operandi language. What the big deal would you say roughly 225 million people live in a country which is not their country of origin and probably had to follow a similar or harder path to adapt and some may even be more proficient and fluent that I will have ever be in a language be it English or else.

That’s the thing I am not Irish but no longer French either in the traditional sense, I don’t overly evolve in French expat circles except on a need to basis, I did not feel the need to integrate or recreate a community or play the little France abroad I thought that would defy the purpose of the journey, while I respect those who do or those who need to I choose rather the opposite path and decided to engage fully and completely with my country of adoption.

That’s said I did not try to become something I was not , I was not rejecting or fleeing anything you have to be pretty lucid otherwise this could be borderline schizophrenic right? One of the few rules I gave myself was to make sure I did not use expressions which were not mine or overly Irish such as ``grand`` or ``thanking people a million`` times when I only wanted to thank them once, there was no point in my opinion in becoming a plastic Paddy and I would not even dare today using expressions that only locals would, I just thought this would sound uncomfortable, I had seen people trying very hard to sound Irish even adopting a fake accent and it was probably more pathetic than an admirable stunt of the mind.

But this involvement had a cost, unconsciously day after day, wave after wave, conversation after conversation I have drifted away from my birth language I even think jokingly that I have lost that ability to be eloquent and sharp in a language I was born with. I cannot write French anymore without a spellcheck tool (I know it is sad). For the defenders of integrity, the champions of identity and other lesson givers I would like to say it does not really bother me, for those who know me I even commit articles and blogs in English on Bebee.com, LinkedIn and WordPress and I am conscious they are sometimes probably full of ``grammatikkal`` mistakes. I suppose I am past that now and my focus is on the intent rather than the result, the aim is to convey a message or an opinion leaving aside the inhibitions.

But maybe all those theories are irrelevant, the thing I know is that I actually don’t master any language properly at this stage and I have probably become an hybrid version of myself.

Recently the world cup saw Algeria and France doing relatively well and I was delighted to see second , third or fourth generation of French-Algerians celebrating victories and displaying the language of joy with Algerian and French flags I thought this was encouraging until the enthusiasm was broken with certain city councils passing a bill stating that only French flags could be displayed you had to choose you cannot be both apparently, how backw(o)ard was the official language, how binary was the speech, how poor was the reasoning in comparison of the richness of the symbol, should we not let the world come to our homes?

Why don’t we admire the velocity, sharpness of the Swiss, Belgian or North African bilingual abilities to name just a few, why the Gibraltarian citizens with their dual identities are not role models, why the system wants to limit us to one dimensional blue print. I am no scholar and don’t have the answers but as a regular guy I am happy to be a


A PERFECT IMPERFECTION



Article previously posted on a different platform in August 2014

"
Comments

Pascal Derrien

7 years ago #5

#7
many thanks Franci Hoffman glad you liked it :-)

Pascal Derrien

7 years ago #4

#5
Thanks Laurent BOSCHERINI comments and encouragements are greatly appreciated :-)

Laurent Boscherini

7 years ago #3

Thank you Pascal Derrien for sharing your relevant and smart article. I really enjoy it, so wise and honest.

Pascal Derrien

7 years ago #2

#3
I fully get that Brian :-)

Pascal Derrien

7 years ago #1

#1
Thank You/Merci Teresa :-)

Articles from Pascal Derrien

View blog
2 years ago · 2 min. reading time

For those who know me you know that while I have a very strong incline towards punk I also have very ...

3 years ago · 2 min. reading time

Henry Nicholas John Gunter was a German American or more discreetly referred to as being of strong a ...

8 months ago · 2 min. reading time

Hello how are you? I don’t know if I answered. Reason being is that I was not too sure who this was ...

Related professionals

You may be interested in these jobs

  • Tesco Ireland

    Shop Floor Manager

    Found in: Jobs Search IE C2 - 4 days ago


    Tesco Ireland Drogheda, Ireland Full time

    What's in it for you We offer excellent benefits that help make Tesco a great place to work. · These include but aren't limited to: Competitive Salary from €37,500 Bonus Scheme* Our Virtual GP service provides free and confidential access to an online GP through video GP consulta ...

  • Carton House – A Fairmont Managed Hotel

    Conference & Events Manager - Maynooth, County Kildare

    Found in: Talent IE C2 - 6 days ago


    Carton House – A Fairmont Managed Hotel Dublin, Ireland

    Conference & Events Manager - Maynooth, County Kildare · Company Description · Located just outside the University town of Maynooth, County Kildare; Carton House, A Fairmont Managed Hotel, is a luxury resort set on 1,100 acres of private parkland. Owned by the US-based Mullen fam ...

  • Next Generation Recruitment

    QA Manager

    Found in: Talent IE 2A C2 - 6 days ago


    Next Generation Recruitment Dublin, Ireland

    My client a pioneering biopharmaceutical company, poised to revolutionize rare disease treatment. As we advance into Phase 2 trials for our groundbreaking therapy, they are looking to recruit a senior QA specialist/manager to bolster their quality function. Reporting directly to ...