Date:  Thu, 7 Dec 1995 10:19:00 -0800

From:  "Sheridan, Kathleen" <K.SHERIDAN[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]CGNET.COM>

Subject: Re: Language and Intelligence



<I think that people who have no ability to speak might be considered dumb.



I assume this was a joke. People who cannot speak ARE "dumb" according to the

strict meaning of the word: "Lacking the power of speech" (Webster's).



However, this has made me think of my situation, where I am living in the

Netherlands and often find myself in groups of people who are speaking Dutch.

I can understand a good bit now, but because I don't use it often, I have

some trouble speaking it myself. What I have discovered is that people tend

to treat me as though I'm retarded in some way. If someone starts to speak to

me in English and we have a normal conversation, I can immediately see the

difference in the way they interact with me--sometimes they even look

surprised when they realize that I can discuss things normally.



k.sheridan[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]cgnet.com