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The Awful German Language/Die schreckliche deutsche Sprache
by
Mark Twain
Vielen der Eigenheiten, die den Gestaltungs- und Differenzierungsreichtum unserer Muttersprache prägen – Genus, relativ freie Wortstellung, vielfältige Möglichkeiten der Wortbildung und spannungsreiche Parenthesen etwa –, stehen Ausländer oft fassungslos gegenüber. Noch immer ist Mark Twains Klage über die »schreckliche deutsche Sprache« das wohl amüsanteste Beispiel für d...more
Hardcover, Bilingual edition (English/German), 96 pages
Published
2010
by Nikol Verlag
(first published 1880)
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Though the book is really funny and entertaining it is hard not to contradict. Twain’s complaint against the inventor of the German language shows that he never had to learn his own language like I did.
Klar ist das Buch komisch und unterhaltsam,, aber ich kann doch nicht widerstehen, ihm zu widersprechen. Twains Angriffe gegen den Erfinder der deutschen Sprache lassen deutlich erkennen, dass er seine eigene Sprache nie selber (richtig) lernen musste.
Admittedly: Der-die-das instead of the-the-th...more
Klar ist das Buch komisch und unterhaltsam,, aber ich kann doch nicht widerstehen, ihm zu widersprechen. Twains Angriffe gegen den Erfinder der deutschen Sprache lassen deutlich erkennen, dass er seine eigene Sprache nie selber (richtig) lernen musste.
Admittedly: Der-die-das instead of the-the-th...more
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I did really enjoy reading it, but! I think it's funnier when you are English, because we have some of the weird construction things they have in German in Dutch too. I also don't agree with limiting German to the words "Zug", "Schlag" and "also" even though it would be nice. And I also wouldn't like it if the Dativ would be thrown away, because I like that case. (But the Genitiv is my favourite) Tale of the fishwise and its sad fate made me laugh out loud!
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Jul 11, 2012
Tom King
added it
In college I had to take two years of a foreign language. I should have taken Spanish, living, as I did in Texas, but there was this girl of German descent and she knew a few words of the language from her grandmother and I wanted to whisper sweet German nothings in her ear.
So I chose German. Some of the words looked almost like English so I thought, "How hard can it be?"
I should have read Twain's essay. You have to read it with that Hal Holbrook Southern accent. If you want to listen to it, the...more
So I chose German. Some of the words looked almost like English so I thought, "How hard can it be?"
I should have read Twain's essay. You have to read it with that Hal Holbrook Southern accent. If you want to listen to it, the...more
Brimming with country humor, The Awful German Language by Mark Twain is guaranteed to leave almost everyone in stitches. The possible exceptions could be those that use this language in their daily life. In all honesty I must admit that Twain looked at this language as an English (American) speaking person with the attitude that all languages must conform to it. I have read similar narratives criticizing languages (English and Dutch) and many humorous truisms but the Clements’ homespun logic add...more
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Much to my surprise, I enjoyed this brief essay, or rather full blown attack, on the German language by Mark Twain. I should have known better than to doubt Twain by now, but I just wasn't sure the subject of German would make for an entertaining, or even intellectually stimulating, read. I know nothing about the German language, except that it sounds angry all the time, but I actually learned something by reading this, such as: did you know that Germans capitalize all nouns? Did you know that t...more
I loved it. I read it while in a plane and other passengers ( German btw) were puzzled and at times annoyed because i could not help laughing out loud. I am not an english native speaker but i could feel the pain of Mr. Twain. A fun read and totally recommended for those learning, or struggling, with the German language. Thanks Mario for the gift.
It was ok. I didn't find it all that humorous as I was expecting. There were some funny parts as he pokes at the German language while ignoring English's own follies, but overall I just didn't really enjoy it.
I read it in a bilingual version with the German translation on the page immediately opposite Twain's original. Highly recommended to all German and English speakers :-)
A wonderful polemic on written and spoken German. Fortunately most journalists and authors in our time avoid Twain 's harshest points of critique ;-)
Beatiful sarcasm, I love Twain 's style and the way he explains his point of view about how awful the German language really is.
So far, very funny albeit mostly observational humour.
One of the funniest essays ever written.
Sehr lustig!
I listened to this on audio and the company had this German guy reading it, which made it funnier because he would laugh every now and then. I've briefly took interest in German and based off what I noticed and what Mr.Twain noted...it made me feel better about myself haha. Amusing, have to be slightly familiar with German or actually learning a language in general. Good read.
I love my mother tounge. This essay dwells on all those little absurdities that make it so loveable. If you learn German, read it, you will find a soulmate in your difficulties. If you are German, read it, it makes you feel grateful that you don't have to learn it... ;-)
Very funny to read about somebody's struggles to learn German, and find out that we agree on many 'problems' of the German language. I especially like the phrase that German should become a dead language, since only the dead have enough time to learn it...
Quite hilarious at times, although at others hopelessly exaggerated.. even if that's probably most of the charm! It was funny alright, although I really don't agree with his solutions.. My favourite bits were about Hölle & Goddamn. Those were brilliant.
For those of us who once tried to learn to speak German, Twain's perspective is riotously funny. He doesn't miss any of the problems that those who speak English as a native language run into. Not one. The pronoun translation is particularly revealing.
Aug 17, 2007
Slightly
rated it
2 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
linguaphiles
I was expecting more a bit comedy and absurdity from Twain. His inspiration seems more academic then comedic. Second year German classes should read this book as an introduction to the course, where the subtleties can be thoroughly appreciated.
If you know a little of german, you will appreciate this book, Marc Twain list the different things of the german grammar that he dislikes or finds annoying. Quite funny.
Großartig, wie Mark Twain die Macken der deutschen Sprache zerlegt, auch für Muttersprachler in den meisten Fällen gut nachvollziehbar.
This is a funny little essay by Mark Twain, especially if you have some familiarity with the German Language
For anyone who has ever been forced to take German as a foreign language in high school.
2011
Listened to the audiobook at LibriVox.
He had to be a master of German in order to have written this. Amazingly funny.
Nov 28, 2007
Aaron
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
People who've studied German (Native German speakers, aside)
Shelves:
reading-it-online
It's a funny little mockery session on the frustrations of the German language.
"It's funny cause it's true!"
May 21, 2013
Rèd ÂsḾặ
marked it as to-read
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Samuel Langhorne Clemens, better known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American author and humorist. He is noted for his novels Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1885), called "the Great American Novel", and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876).
Twain grew up in Hannibal, Missouri, which would later provide the setting for Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer. He apprenticed with a printer. He also work...more
More about Mark Twain...
Twain grew up in Hannibal, Missouri, which would later provide the setting for Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer. He apprenticed with a printer. He also work...more
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“There are ten parts of speech and they are all troublesome.”
—
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