How to Listen to Audio Books in Foreign Languages for Polyliteracy

Listening to audio books in a foreign language is a wonderful reward to reach as you develop advanced abilities in the language, but there are more, and less, efficient ways of listening. If you move up to listening to extended narratives from listening to didactic materials and shorter podcast type audio, you are probably not getting all that you could from either the content of the book or the linguistic exercise. After comparing and contrasting extensive reading and extensive listening, I discuss how a few common-sense attention-focusing and note-taking habits can help you get much more from listening to audio books. Finally, I discuss various ways of cycling through multiple languages to balance a maintenance program for polyliteracy.
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[@ProfASAr]

If you would like to improve your ability to read French, German, Latin, or Spanish Literature with me via Zoom in my virtual academy, you can apply here: alexanderarguelles.com/academy/ I also offer Great Books seminars and guided consultations for those teaching themselves foreign languages. If this is not for you, but you know someone whom it might interest, please pass this information on to them.

[@nicolasmoraga9754]

what a beautiful cat

[@ProfASAr]

He is indeed, thank you kindly. Have you seen his feature short? kzbin.info/www/bejne/rHqWlqKPnJibjrc

[@SuperMeatyhead]

Really great advice. I was just this morning thinking this same thing about audible

[@ProfASAr]

I am glad to hear it.

[@SuperMeatyhead]

He’s a lovely cat

[@ProfASAr]

Isn't he though!

[@LisaHerger]

I like combining listening and reading. I'm doing it with Elena Ferrente's Neapolitan Quartett right now. I'll read a good chunk, then go back and listen to it to pick up on subtleties I might have missed. I did that with the first book, l'amica geniale and now I'm in the middle of the second book, la storia di nuovo cognome. After the first book I also watched the first season of the tv series which gave me more insight into the culture and time period. I love doing this with truly entrancing books. And yes, sitting and focusing is essential for me.

[@ProfASAr]

Thanks for contributing this. Yes, taking the same text in various formats is very good when you are working up to being really advanced. And thanks for confirming the value of sitting and focusing - I can't believe how long it took me to figure out that it wasn't quite working to try to combine protracted narrative listening with moving around.

[@strangerintheselands251]

Inspiring ideas here, Alexander. 1. Listening (reading) to one book till the end, only then changing a language. I concur with this totally, my mental constitution resents juggling several things at the same time (like 4 languages during a day). It is stressful and overwhelming and generates extra pressure. Rather than immersion and FLOW I fell that I am cranking out pages for the sake of speed. 2. Stopping after a chapter to sum up in your own words - never allowing yourself to say: yeah I know what I have read, I just cannot put it to words. [I have fooled myself like that all my life] 3. I like mixing reading with listening. Three hours of work on developing your literacy in a language is much more bearable if you listen to one chapter, but read the next and so on. 4. Skilled narrator can carry you through the text even if your understanding would normally fail with a written text. 5. I would add one more - I like listening to an audiobook WHILE looking at the text actually. The experience is much fuller. All the best and thanks for the video.

[@ProfASAr]

Thank you kindly, Bart, for your appreciation and confirmation of the steps as you use them - particularly for confirming point #2.

[@jeanenviedapprendre]

Years ago I thought 98% was not necessary, but when I was finally able to read Dumas' "Le Comte de Monte Cristo" I calculated a chapter and found I was at 99%, whereas I had couldn't get through it previously.

[@ProfASAr]

Thank you for confirming the figures. They do seem high when you think of them in percentages, but not so much when you think of them of how many "holes" they represent on each page.

[@tmhc72_gtg22c]

This is a helpful video. I find that if I try listen to audio in a foreign language while I am doing something else, I tend to tune the audio out. A problem that I tend to have is that even if I know at least 98% of the words in a text, when I listen to the same text, I will usually understand much less than 98% of what is being said. An approach that I have tried with listening to books is first to listen to the audio a couple times to see how much I can understand. Then I will listen and read at the same time. Then I will again only listen to the audio to see how much I now can understand. With books, I do this with the first 30 to 60 minutes of the audio or the first CD if the audiobook is on CDs, then continue with additional 30 to 60 minute segments of the audio or the next CDs.

[@ProfASAr]

Thanks for commenting. Your approach - repeated listenings / readings - is quite useful when you are still building up your "reading" abilities. What I am talking about here is not undermining your these abilities by bad habits once you have built them up. Two different perspectives of light from different ends of a tunnel!

[@Vitor-de9zg]

Do you recommend listening and reading intensively at the beginning stages (a2) to get more advanced and to reach a b1/b2 level to be able to start reading extensively? I enjoy reading and listening for understanding Thanks for the videos I appreciate them a lot. I hope you have a nice weekend

[@ProfASAr]

I generally favor studying systematically as long as one has good textbooks and reference materials for doing so, and then starting to read.

[@F61Wolf]

I've heard that people like to listen to audio when they are otherwise busy. I don't know if this happens to anyone else, but if I want to focus on an audiobook, I get a lot of anxiety (and very quickly abandon the attempt) if I can't stop to take notes. I don't know why, but it's a pretty visceral reaction. So, that rules out things like listening to audiobooks and podcasts while driving. The other day I had to stop listening to a Spanish story while I was flipping burgers because I couldn't leave my burgers to sit down and devote as much attention as I wanted to the audio. Glad to hear from this video that I'm not being entirely inefficient. (More precisely, with longer written works I like to pause, re-read/re-wind, sit and think, and then take notes/journal my reaction).

[@ProfASAr]

Thanks for commenting. That is precisely my point here: that the idea of listening while otherwise busy comes in when we are learning the language and so we form that habit and imagine that we can do when we are relishing its literature in audio form. If we do that, we do get some value as listening practice, but not nearly as much overall value as if we pay more attention and take notes. Thanks for confirming that there are others out there who have noticed this earlier on in their journey than I myself did.

[@Vlrud]

Hello, Mr Arguelles. Thank you for very informative videos. Could it also be possible to hear your view on parallel books? For instance, reading a book in a target language and checking with the text in your language (or maybe the text is in a language that you know quite well). It would be interesting to hear your viewpoint as to to what extent such activity is useful, at what stage of language learning can one use such method?

[@ProfASAr]

Parallel books are invaluable when one is just starting to read. They are probably THE way to get started, and I have spoken about this at length over the years.

[@michaelcampbell9844]

What I'm missing is the cat. Gotta get the cat. Oh and Audible, not sure if it's available in my country. Thank you Alex, sending much love.

[@ProfASAr]

How nice to hear from you here, Mike, and how nice it was to meet up in Japan not long ago - who knows when and where we will meet again... Don't know what to advise about Audible, but FYI Richard went and got 2 cats...

[@parasitius]

I actually got started on trying to walk while listening to foreign language audio 15 years ago, simply because you gave me the idea based on talking about increased blood flow when using forest marching shadowing. Even with noise cancelling headphones to make sure I can hear clearly, I found that it doesn't work very well in the city. The slightest mental calculation causes my brain to completely blank out anything that was heard for a period of 5 to 20 seconds when navigating something as simple as a crosswalk light or cone in the sidewalk that I have to walk around. Likewise, trying to listen to audio while doing the dishes is fine as long as everything is going perfect. All the sudden I notice a piece of seaweed stuck to the bowl that needs scraped off and my attention blanks out entirely on the audio for up to 10 seconds. I am completely and utterly unable to multitask. Am I really the only one? No one talks about this. I had a friend who claimed to be watching a TV show while talking to me on the phone once and I didn't believe him. The very concept strikes me as absurd, even if it is a slow paced conversation. (By the way, I did discover I can walk and listen if I can find a private empty yoga room in the gym at a slow hour and walk circles around it - as long as no one peeks in. Any outside interference whatsoever immediately spoils the study attempt though.)

[@ProfASAr]

You are most certainly not alone. I have always advocated shadowing and walking in the woods or on a trail in a park, never on a city street, and not while doing household chores.

[@strongindependentblackwoma1887]

"read at least 3 hours a day", niceee, i'm nearby there then, i read 2 hours a day in foreigns languages

[@ProfASAr]

Good luck to you!

[@el.don1975]

After each chapter summarize in my own words in English or the target language?

[@ProfASAr]

Summarizing, note taking, and anything else you might do at this stage should be 100% in the same language you are listening to.

[@mellonclarinet4303]

Hello, do you think there are any disadvantages to taking breaks from language learning - i.e studying consistently for some months and then stopping completely for a few weeks before continuing?

[@ProfASAr]

What stage of learning are we talking about? If we are reading at the advanced level, as I am in this video, then there is no great harm in this. If, however, we are talking about actively learning (i.e., using a textbook and going through lessons), then yes, unfortunately pausing for a few weeks is not very efficient. The more of a beginner you are, the more you will forget. Also, what is the context of your learning? If you are taking classes in school and this is for a semester break, that is one thing, but if you are teaching yourself a language, then pausing like this can be very bad for systematic habit formation. Flip the question around: are there any advantages to pausing? Only if you have been working too intensely and you need a break to avoid burning out. Best not work at that pace in that case. Hope this helps!

[@mellonclarinet4303]

Thanks, that's very helpful. I'm teaching myself and would say I'm an advanced beginner. I get burnt out from trying to do too much too quickly so need to slow down and stay consistent

[@davidhaworth7369]

Is it worth getting the cat at A1/A2 level? Or wait till I’m closer to intermediate b2 etc.?

[@ProfASAr]

You can never get a cat too early.

[@adamwalker8173]

Hi Professor, I’m a beginner learner and wondering how do I go about learning Spanish from a book with audio but no translation in English.

[@ProfASAr]

There are so many resources available for learning Spanish, I don't really understand why you would want to try to learn it without didactic help unless you already know Portuguese, Italian, Catalan, etc., really well. Then you could just read and shadow along and much would soon become clear.

[@aight8517]

Damn, really missed the opportunity to talk about reading and listening to the book at the same time. This is the only way that I am able to sit and listen to an audiobook, and it helps with pronounciation. For Russian it is critical for knowing where the stress goes for any new word I learn. And it paces the reading, and prevents losing focus, so I can crush a lot more books this way.

[@ProfASAr]

This is very useful at an intermediate stage of reading, and I have spoken about this at length in many ways and places over the years.

[@anduril2695]

You said the number of languages you can get to that really high level is limited. In your opinion, how many languages is it realistic to reach and maintain at that level?

[@ProfASAr]

I am sorry but I cannot give a set answer as there are a lot of factors to consider. Are the languages widely different or more closely related? Does putting them on some sort of cycle work for you or do you need to stay actively engaged with them at all times? And above all, how many hours a day can you devote to them? In any case, it is a far smaller number than you could develop some sort of conversational competencies in or get a scholarly overview of.

[@anduril2695]

@@ProfASAr that's fair!

[@rasmusa9212]

hello, thanks for the video, talking of audio books, do you believe speed listening is helpful at all? on youtube I play videos usually at 2x speed, on audible it's even possible to play at 3.5x speed, do you believe there is any advantage to doing that? (Other than saving time, ofc unless one has to rewind and play again)

[@aight8517]

wtf

[@sharonoddlyenough]

As long as you understand, I don't see any harm. If it's not comprehensible and just a blur, then it's just background noise.

[@ProfASAr]

The only advantage is when you are listening for informational content only, not at all for literary formulation or narrative flair. I would listen to my own videos at 2X, but never the audio version of a novel I wanted to relish.

[@heathermac8725]

''The eyes are the windows of the soul'' ... and the windows are open, but peer in as I might I still can't make out what that soul is thinking

[@ProfASAr]

Others have suggested in previous videos that Merlin must have been a monk in a former life as he is still versed in meditation such that his eyes transmit bliss and tranquility.

[@peterbrown3004]

Oculi ejus semper aperti sunt

[@ProfASAr]

Itaque ille auscultat, et tamquam auribus spectat.

[@peterbrown3004]

@@ProfASAr Talis feles, Talis cerebrum

[@findingtheexit489]

Nunc curiosus sum saperendi quomodo id "glasses" lingua Anglicana vocatum sit latine.

[@peterbrown3004]

@@findingtheexit489 oculi specula, forsitan

[@aight8517]

Yes, a ptolemaic orbital system could be useful to keep updating the languages as their power level goes down. However, as we add more languages to the model the orbits will need to be modified and made more complex. It is time to consider the One True God, and use a heliocentric system. Each morning we must chant to the One True God, His Lordship Krishna, so that we can drain his power. The chant is: Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare Hare Rama, Hare Rama Rama Rama, Hare Hare This is the recommended method to achieve nirvana in this life and end the cycle of reincarnation. Hare Krishna.

[@ProfASAr]

Thanks for the interesting comment!

[@bigbufobufo]

Long story short. Get a cat.

[@ProfASAr]

Your summary may be a bit too concise.