I'm really embarrassed being a communist and not knowing a second language.

"ha you're a communist but dont speak a second language? How hypocrtitical!"

Well, nothing stops you from learning it now that you're uncomfortable with not knowing a secondary language. A different language is extremely useful when reading books from another country. It's a whole new universe you can discover if you're able to read and comprehend a secondary language.

In that respect, you should definitely plan before you begin learning a language. Think about why you're learning the language, and if the language is useful for a particular goal. You can be learning because you enjoy the challenge, etc. But it's a long-term commitment, you'll be learning that language for the rest of your life if you want to keep it.

the best time to start learning a language was yesterday... the second best time is right now. I was in the same boat as you at 20, and now I'm fluent in French, and have a strong grasp of German, Spanish, and Mandarin. Just practice everyday without fail.

Same. But don't count yourself our on Spanish. Getting back into it is easy. Lots of ppl and resources and memes haha. The 25 year brain thing is completely made up

You don't need to learn a second language to be a communist. If you can, getting organized is a far more important thing to do, even more than knowing your theory (although that's important too, but useless if you don't apply it). Learning a language is cool, but you don't need it.

Duolingo, drops, daily chinese, and skritter (apps) are your new best friends!! Also, I haven’t had a chance to crack into it the way i’d like to yet, but if you go on anna’s archive (use a vpn please!) there’s a book on there you can download for free titled, “learn to speak chinese: beginning mandarin chinese for native english speakers” that is very thorough & very well written!!

Saying all of this because I (22 y/o, she/her) honestly used to think I was too dumb to learn another language, but my boyfriend encouraged me to download duolingo & just give it a try. So, I gave spanish a good go & got over that mental roadblock, switched to french, & et maintenant, je sais beaucoup de français !! (and now, I know a lot of french!!) Duolingo does a wonderful job gameifying learning a language. You could also take an online course through UDemy.com if you wanted (only purchase a course when they’re doing a sale though; don’t pay $60-$200 for a course when you could get it for $15!)

Best of luck friend. I seriously suggest just starting by downloading Duolingo. Anyone can learn a language at any point in their lives!! It just requires some practice. Good luck! You got this!! :))

Do Duolingo, the Spanish course is the most complete one and there's also a room in the Matrix space for Spanish. You can ask me if you have any doubts, too. Mandarin is good, although it will be a little bit harder as your first second language, but you can do it if you put enough time into it.

If necessity is not a concern then you should only learn a language if you want to, not because you feel like you have to. Learning a language is an incredibly long and arduous process so the will and the desire to learn it has to be there.

Learning a language is hard, so I understand why you haven't learnt a second one yet. But as a person who's interested in languages I can give you some tips.

Practise daily, whether that is through online apps or study books, preferably both. Watch news broadcasts in the language you want to learn, and read the news as well. Practise speaking, and if you don't have someone to practise with, practice with yourself. Watch TV shows in the language and try to build towards not needing subtitles anymore. Listen to music in the language and look up the lyrics.

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Mandarin is hard but I enjoy it. There’s a lot of ways to do it but fundamentally you just need to put in the hours slowly building vocab and character recognition via SRS flashcards and acquiring the language through reading, watching, and listening to it. It’s a long haul though - make sure you have the right mentality

It's okay. I come from the same background, and worst part is I didn't go to an actual school. Now I can speak German relatively well, and I'm on my way to figuring out Mandarin. All it takes is discipline. There is no time like the present, and don't stall yourself mentally by speaking of regret. Want to learn Spanish? Slap open a dictionary, right now, start writing down words. Google resources on Spanish grammar, there's plenty out there. Libgen is your friend if you ever need to get a PDF copy of certain textbooks. Want to learn Chinese? Also plenty of resources. If you like gamified learning and don't feel like you can sit around to learn Mandarin, get Duolingo, do a few words a day. Yes, you probably won't get a good grasp on the language that way, but every bit counts! Learning a language isn't like going from 0% to 100%, often time it's a life long struggle, and by no means am I trying to discourage you with this, but the way you need to see it is: learn a few words a day, phrases, learn grammar, consume media, however much you can tolerate at a given time, and you will be equipped with much more knowledge than before, possibly in the future with enough to engage in basic conversation. And the best part is with languages in my experience, once you get to a conversational level, everything else will come easily, vocabulary will be something you pick up the more you engage, and people will certainly be impressed.

I didn't learn another language until I was 30 and thought I'd only ever know English. Things can change quickly.

You don't need to know another language, but I always recommend learning another language. I'd join a group for comradely language learning

Same here, might learn Mandarin

I think Marxism is not mainly about how much you know, but more about putting what you know into practice to help the oppressed class.

Remember when it was only rich people who could afford the time and money for decent education, or any education at all (still applies in some areas of the world)? What did most of those people do with all their knowledge? Sure some of them furthered the wealth of human knowledge, by just being the only people who could afford to be in that position.

I suggest reading this short essay by Karl Marx: Reflections of a Young Man on The Choice of a Profession. It is about choosing a profession but really you can apply it to choosing what to learn or do.

Some quotes:

Those professions which are not so much involved in life itself as concerned with abstract truths are the most dangerous for the young man whose principles are not yet firm and whose convictions are not yet strong and unshakeable. At the same time these professions may seem to be the most exalted if they have taken deep root in our hearts and if we are capable of sacrificing our lives and all endeavours for the ideas which prevail in them.

But the chief guide which must direct us in the choice of a profession is the welfare of mankind and our own perfection. It should not be thought that these two interests could be in conflict, that one would have to destroy the other; on the contrary, man's nature is so constituted that he can attain his own perfection only by working for the perfection, for the good, of his fellow men.

If he works only for himself, he may perhaps become a famous man of learning, a great sage, an excellent poet, but he can never be a perfect, truly great man.

History calls those men the greatest who have ennobled themselves by working for the common good; experience acclaims as happiest the man who has made the greatest number of people happy; religion itself teaches us that the ideal being whom all strive to copy sacrificed himself for the sake of mankind, and who would dare to set at nought such judgments?

If we have chosen the position in life in which we can most of all work for mankind, no burdens can bow us down, because they are sacrifices for the benefit of all; then we shall experience no petty, limited, selfish joy, but our happiness will belong to millions, our deeds will live on quietly but perpetually at work, and over our ashes will be shed the hot tears of noble people.

Eh I learned Spanish in 2 years and didn't know it was possible to do it that fast. It's not hard

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Similar story to me. I had tried learning Spanish many times but failed. Now I know the only thing I failed at was consistency. You can learn a language at any age. It just takes time. The younger you start, the younger you are when you 'finish'; but that's about all.

It was also when I started reading Marxists that I realised I had a real reason to learn another language. Same as you, I think: to open up another world of literature and speeches and to communicate with other workers. If it's an international working class, I better meet some of them halfway.

You can do it if you put your mind to it. Learn the basics, then immerse yourself in the language. Books, news, music, movies, everything. You won't understand everything but if you can comprehend the message, your mind will do the rest for you. Then, keep topping up your grammar and vocab alongside engaging with 'the native stuff'. All those quantitative improvements and one day you'll make the qualitative leap. It's frustrating but it's fun if you let it be.

The rest of this comment, I wrote elsewhere, but it may be of help to you, too:

I'm no expert but I am am enthusiastic learner. It's never too late. And you have advantages that kids don't have. E.g. if you read Spanish world news, you'll recognise half the vocab because it's the same as formal English (which is mostly from Latin rather than German) or it's 'international' language (like brands and international bodies with the name in a different order). So after a little bit of study, you can read Spanish to get the gist reasonably soon.

To get that start, Language Transfer Spanish is a great free course and will give you a big leg up. (Just be sure to start the playlist at the first episode as the SoundCloud link sometimes starts halfway through!)

Here are some answers I've given others:

• Learning languages, step-by-step
• Listening-Reading (LR) method (this works with any language)
• Summary of the LR method
• Some tips for making your own Anki decks (spaced repetition cards) if you fancy that
• Some tips on playing games and using word lists to learn vocabulary