Do You Speak English?

  The process of learning a new language proves difficult, but humor helps people view their difficulties in a different way. I watched the comedic sketch Do You Speak English? from the BBC's Big Train series which features Simon Pegg. A British tourist in France uses English to speak with locals but ends up creating a chain of funny miscommunications. The comedic portrayal of exaggerated accents and extreme reactions demonstrates the typical problems people experience when communicating across language boundaries. The video uses humor to show that communication breakdowns affect everyone and laughter serves as an effective way to handle such situations.

The video stands out to me because it discovers humor in normal everyday life experiences. The video demonstrates the need for both patience and humor when dealing with unfamiliar languages and cultural situations. Language learners, including myself, find comfort in watching native speakers experience awkward language situations because it makes our own learning experiences more relatable.