A question for multilingual fans. - The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum

Kalimac · 03-09-2002, 06:58 PM

I never found Tolkien's writing particularly difficult to understand (I'm speaking as an American who's been to England for all of a month). But my parents are literary anglophiles in a way; I only realized recently that about 80% of the English-language books we have were written by British authors, and many of them are from the '30s and '40s. So I got pretty used to understanding the expressions, if not using them in my own speech (though I have puzzled people occasionally with "that throws a spanner in things"). When I say braces, boot and jumper to people, though, I'm using the American meanings [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img].

03-09-2002, 06:58 PM	#16
Kalimac Candle of the Marshes Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Flyover Country Posts: 780	I never found Tolkien's writing particularly difficult to understand (I'm speaking as an American who's been to England for all of a month). But my parents are literary anglophiles in a way; I only realized recently that about 80% of the English-language books we have were written by British authors, and many of them are from the '30s and '40s. So I got pretty used to understanding the expressions, if not using them in my own speech (though I have puzzled people occasionally with "that throws a spanner in things"). When I say braces, boot and jumper to people, though, I'm using the American meanings [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]. __________________ Father, dear Father, if you see fit, We'll send my love to college for one year yet Tie blue ribbons all about his head, To let the ladies know that he's married.

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