The intellect of Krum

[Steve]

No: HPFGUIDX 164813

---  "kayakknitter" <fireemtgirl at ...> wrote:
>
> > > --Ronin's Comments--
> > ..."Krum's stumbling over her name is just a small
> > bit of evidence> though. ...."

> kayakknitter>
> 
> There are some names that are very difficult period to
> pronounce for a non-native English speaker. Hermoine's
> name is one of them.  English is the hardest language 
> to learn for a non-native speaker.   ...
> 
> ...
> 
> Everyone has different study skills and ways of 
> obtaining knowledge. Hermoine's learning style is 
> intellectual meaning that she learns best form books.
> Viktor's learning style is more than likely psycho-motor
> meaning he learns by doing.
> 
> kayakknitter
>

bboyminn:

I'm not saying much more than I agree but hopefully I
can do it in a way  that expands the conversation.

I was on a business trip with a couple of Korean friends
and we stopped on Santa Monica pier and went out the 
the restaurant on the end; a restaurant with a decidedly
Mexican flavor. My friends asked what I thought they 
should get, and I recommended Frajitas. We then
commenced an endless dialog in which I tried to 
explain to them how to pronounce 'Frajita' which was
'Fra-He-Ta'. They just couldn't get it. Apparently that
combination of sounds and syllables is just to 
unnatural to them.

As we left, one of my Korean friends took a plactic
clylinder from his pocket, flicked a switch on the
end causing a flame to appear at the tip, waved it
around and exclaimed "Mr.Lee, la-he-ta...la-he-ta"; 
meaning of course, 'lighter'. That was as close as he
could come to something that sounded similar to Frajita. 
This particular friend has a degree in astrophysics and
has lived in the USA for 20 years. 

Even after several more visits to Mexican restaurants 
over the years, they still haven't been able to say
'Fra-He-Ta'. By the way, they loved the Frajita's, they
just couldn't say it. 

Her-my-oh-nee could just be a combination of sound that
is completey foreign to a Bulgarian. I suspect there are
a lot of Slavic and Germanic influences on the Bulgarian
language, and as others have pointed out, that deals with
a lot of harsh, hard, and somewhat gutteral sounds. 

As to Viktor's intellect, I'm also in agreement with
KayakKnitter. Intelligence and intellect don't go hand
in hand. You can be moderately intelligent and superbly
intellectual, or you can be highly intelligent and only
moderately intellectual. I suspect in his native 
Bulgaria, Krum is considered quite sophisticated and
intelligent. I suspect he shows his intelligence in his
refinement of speech and his sophicticated tastes. I
have alway speculated (pure speculation) that in his 
country, Viktor's family is on a par with the Malfoys.
Not literally equal to the Malfoys in wealth, but in 
his country, he is at the rough social strata. 

Still when Viktor is forced into a foriegn culture, with
foreign customs and values, as well as a foriegn 
language, he is out of his element. Keep in mind that 
when we as Americans travel to foriegn countries we don't 
come of as being too bright. Most people in Europe speak
three or four languages at least sufficiently to function
in those particular countries. Most Americans, sadly,
barely speak English. 

So, back to Viktor, I think his intelligence and 
intellect are not simply vocal. He expresses himself
by action, and learns by doing, but that uniqueness
doesn't in any diminish is intellect.

As a side note to KayakKnitter, don't this knit kayaks
go all limp and soggy when you put then in the water?

Steve/bboyminn