The University of Virginia recently introduced the Institute of World Languages as the first of many initiatives in its latest series of interdisciplinary programs. The institute combines language study with courseworks in a number of different departments, including medicine, business and politics.
Since its official announcement, faculty members have commented on the institute’s projected benefits. Cristina Della Coletta, associate dean for the arts and humanities, said the interdisciplinary study of subjects in non-native languages will “provide bridges among [the University’s] solid departmental homes.” Della Coletta further reinforced the importance of the institute’s mission saying, “Language activities cannot be kept intramuros, within four walls.”
In spite of its evident contribution to the Jeffersonian legacy, however, the study of language in an interdisciplinary setting is discretely important for reasons beyond the development of a well-rounded education. What distinguishes the collaboration of language with another school subject is that the study of languages, unlike those of other subjects, necessitates a form of learning beyond the memorization of a set of terms, rules or systems.
It was 20th century philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein who said: “The limits of my language are the limits of my world.” By extension, the understanding of a language is the understanding of a foreign world whose concepts, beliefs and philosophies have been mapped by a unique set of terms. Regardless of how many literature-in-translation, cultural studies and religion courses a student takes, there remain key sets of terms in each language which can only be understood by those who speak it. Languages are therefore not merely “codes” that can be learned out of a book, but lenses through which students must adjust their gaze.
In regular language courses – especially for beginners – the “lens” is difficult to develop, or even imagine. This is because language courses, specifically at the college level, rarely extend beyond grammar and vocabulary lessons. The mission of the Institute of World Languages, however, seeks to give students a platform on which they may hone their language skills while still using them as a lens through which other disciplines may be approached. In addition, its mission not only adheres to the Jeffersonian ideal, but also applies the scholarship of language to a practical setting.
One example of a class the institute would offer is a politics class about international borders that is taught in Spanish. In assessing the issues of border control through the Spanish-speaking lens, the institute prompts students to interpret the alternate sides to the conflicts and become acquainted with a worldview that could not be articulated as aptly in English.
Such an example may seem like an easy one to justify the importance of interdisciplinary language learning – particularly because the topic and the Spanish language are so closely linked. One might ask why mathematics and medicine – disciplines that exist independently of language – would require the approach of a different “lens.” After all, calculus and heart surgery demand the same steps regardless of where you do them. If we look closely, however, we see that language provides a foundation – and in most cases, is the foundation – for the interpretation of every discipline, humanities or not.
For instance, all students in the English-speaking world have learned to use expression to “carry the one” in the process of simple addition or multiplication. However, the same concept in German is articulated through the phrase “Eins im Sinn,” roughly translated to “one in the mind.” In Turkish, the phrase is “Elde var bir,” which translates to “One in the hand,” whereas in Korean there is no phrase for the task, and students are just taught to do it.
How does this matter? While “carrying the one” is a simple example, it nevertheless illustrates the idea of how even basic math, a concrete discipline, is viewed through a different lens when taught in different languages. These lenses determine the respective approach, efficiency and methods of each language group when faced with the same type of problem. The recognition of this not only enriches a student’s education and builds the “bridges” between disciplines, as mentioned by Della Coletta, but also pushes students to see how the linguistic bindings of other cultures may affect – and even improve – one’s scholarship.
In terms of improvement, the unmatched opportunity to cross-study language with a variety of departments will allow University students to improve their quality of education with an alternative worldview that they could not have developed in other interdisciplinary programs. The Jeffersonian ideal of an interdisciplinary education is not fully fulfilled without the scholarship of a foreign language, and the Institute of World Languages takes a valuable step in securing that fulfillment.
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