Who Needs English? | LA Times

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Who Needs English?
As South Korea's economy grows closer to China's, more people are studying Chinese. For some, the choice is a rejection of the U.S.

By Barbara Demick, Times Staff Writer

SEOUL — After years of slogging through her English lessons, stumbling over impossible pronunciations and baffling rules of syntax, Chae Chang Eun came up with a better idea.

The 33-year-old science teacher switched to Chinese.

It wasn't that the language was easier. But studying Chinese felt like a homecoming, a return to a culture and way of thinking closer to Chae's roots as a South Korean. Besides, with China on its way to surpassing the United States as South Korea's largest trading partner, she figured its language would be more advantageous in landing a job in the business world.

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