월드미션프론티어

The Korean Language is strange. I remember sitting in Korean class while our teacher explained how Koreans used pronouns. She said "In normal conversation Koreans don't use pronouns like ME, HE or YOU. Most of the time the sense is perfectly clear without them." So, if a Korean says "ka yo" that means "I am going". Korean is efficient, because the word "I" is understood. Likewise,"mir sal" means "How old are you?" There is no reason to include a pronoun. It's wasteful.

So we asked our teacher when it is appropriate to use a pronoun. especially a pronoun like"dongshin". She said,"Dongshin is used when there is a intimate relationship between the speaker and the one spoken to?. So we figured "dongshin" is OK between husband and wife, or between girlfriend and boyfriend. "Sarang hea dongshin ul" is an appropriate use"dongshin". But none of us new Peace Corps Volunteers were in an intimate relationship so none of us could use the word. Dongshin is for your lover.

So we pressed the issue."When else can we use dongshin?". She thought and said that we could use dongshin if we wanted to insult someone, because if you assume an intimate tone with some one who is not intimate, then you insult them. We understood this use. If we said to a stranger "dongshin.......", we would be asking for a fight. As students, we were learning polite Korean, so we would not be using dongshin in an impolite way. Dongshin is for your enemy.

Finally, someone raised a hand and said "how about at church?" I went to church with a Korean friend and they were saying dongshin in all the prayers. Is that impolite?" Our instructor paused for a while and said, "No, that's OK, because the worshipers are in an intimate relationship with their creator". Dongshin is for your God.

I looked at the notes that my friend next to me was taking ?Use dongshin (1) with girlfriend, (2) to insult someone and (3) to pray to God?. He stood up and asked the teacher, "So if I don't have a girlfriend, I don't want to fight anyone and I don't go to church, then I never use dongshin?" The teacher said "that's right" and thought that the question was strange. We all looked at each other and thought that the Korean language was strange.