Thoughts on Learning Languages

I never understood why some people learning languages say they need to translate everything to their native language before speaking. Recently, I realized this process is similar to how memory pointers work in programming.

When you're learning a new language, your brain can handle word associations in two ways:

1. The dumb way:

word -> native_word -> concept_memory
(maison) -> (house) -> (🏠 actual concept in memory)

2. The less dumb way:

word -> concept_memory
(maison) -> (🏠 actual concept in memory)

What most beginners do is create an unnecessary level of indirection - like having a pointer to another pointer in memory, instead of pointing directly to the data they need. When they see the French word 'maison', their brain first points to the English word 'house', which then points to the actual concept of a house stored in their memory.

Think about it: why create two pointers when one would do the job? It's like taking a detour when there's a direct road available. This extra step not only slows down your thinking process but also consumes more mental resources.

The goal in language learning should be to create direct memory references - linking foreign words straight to their concepts, just like how your native language works. No middleman, no translation step, just direct access to meaning.