Question:
am going to spend one month in France.
I would like to grasp the basics of French language during about one
month (I will go to France in one month from today). I just want to learn
the basics of grammar and basic things to be able to understand people
when I am at the railway station, airport, restaurant, hotel, etc...
Please do not flame me for being naive... I just need to grasp the
very basics and one month is enough if the approach is right.
So I am looking for something which will help me do it. It could either
be some good book accompanied with audio tapes,etc... Basically, if
you know of anything which is targeted towards fast learning please
let me know.
Answer:
You are not being naive at all - it is much better to pick up *something*
in a month than nothing whatsoever. I wouldn't spend much time on grammar;
only the basic conjugations, auxiliary verbs (avoir, être) and the
present and past (passé composé) tenses. Spend more time soaking up
vocabulary, as your interlocateur will be able to piece together the
rest if you give him or her enough word clues.
I haven't personally found cassettes to be useful. The voices are too
formalized to match what you'll find on the street. There must be an
Alliance Francaise in L.A. - all of their courses are one month. Best
of all, find a native French person if possible and try to improve your
comprehension. Also pick up some French newspapers, a good pocket
dictionary, and study those words until patterns start emerging.
I believe you'll find the French to be very warm to even the slightest
attempt at proper expression, coupled with politeness. Try, and have
fun learning.
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