Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

Reading some articles on the net, I found one talking about changes in personality when changing languages. The original article is here for those who'd like to read it. But I noticed that after one week one should register at the website to be able to see it... If you feel like it...

Anyway, the article says that some people may turn into completely different persons when shifting languages. Someone who is "all smiles" when talking in a language and antisocial in another, for example. Usually, the "friendly self" is when one's using a foreign language that one may have some hability, but still far from mastering it.

Some possible causes mentioned in the article are:

"It's a matter of compensation. Your Japanese is good, but not that good. You have holes in your vocabulary and slack in your comprehension speed. Yet, toss in some gestures, a hearty laugh and a flood of hollow phrasing, and you smudge makeup across both those flaws.

You take cover behind this blind of exaggeration until you can figure out what's going on, and this performance has been become part of your language skills. But it's not just you. The same thing happens with lots of learners who have not quite nailed the language down."

Or

"Japanese expect foreigners to be loud and expressive. It's part of the reason that they themselves will bubble over when using English. They are not just adapting a language, they are acquiring a role. To a degree all second language learners are like actors upon a stage. We try to follow the requirements of what we sense is a larger communicative script and really do step beyond our truer selves. We act different because -- outside of our own language -- we are different."

Maybe a little of both. We usually are more friendly when talking in a language we're still not very good at, but when assimilating a language we also take in part of the culture within it. I've noticed that I change, too, when I shift languages... and some friends say it too. Especially when shifting from English to Japanese. I've heard that in Japanese I speak softer and humbler, and that I'm more friendly when speaking in languages that are not Portuguese...

The explanation for the former would be that Japanese culture values those characteristics, so I show them more when speaking in that language (article explanation #2). That also explains why the changes would be more visible when the shift is from a western language (Portuguese or English) to an oriental one (Japanese). Cultures in Brazil and US aren't so different as if we compare to Japan (although lately the difference is diminishing, I should say...), so that would explain the degree of change.

I've read a book that mentioned some differences about languages and its relations with cultures. One interesting example that I couldn't check was watching someone when talking in different languages. An example the book mentions is a video of someone making speeches in Greek, Japanese and English. It says that it would be possible to recognize the language the person is talking (and noticing the shifts) even without listening (mute), only by watching his gesticulation.

And the explanation for the latter... guess I just have to agree with article explanation #1 in this case...

Final comment: I noticed that I do change when talking in different languages... but I also noticed that some people change less than others, and some appear not to change at all.