An Unexpected Love
Written by Katie Kortepeter
Before I decided to attend Hillsdale, I was dead set on double majoring in English and Chinese somewhere. I took Mandarin throughout high school, studied abroad in China, and worked at a Taiwanese bubble tea shop frequented by Asian customers. Halfway fluent in Chinese, I wanted to finish what I’d started.
When I arrived at Hillsdale, I had no intention of focusing on another language. I registered for beginning French because a language class was required and because Alexandre Dumas and Victor Hugo are fantastic.
The first few weeks of class were hard. I missed Chinese—its artistic characters, lyrically tonal quality, and simple grammar. With its endless conjugations, funky pronunciation, and curlicue accents, French was the polar opposite of what I was used to. In the beginning, each time my professor called on me, a Chinese word would leap to the tip of my tongue. And as I swallowed the word down, I felt resentful toward this new language that seemed endlessly complex.
Ultimately, the patience of my professor and the way she paced the class won me over. Madame Rebbert made us pair up during each class and practice French conversation. Not only did I get to know my classmates, but I also grew more comfortable using my limited French skills. By the end of the semester, I was no longer afraid to make mistakes. And whenever we answered a question wrong, she would encourage us by saying, “Pas exactement”—not exactly—and then gently correct us.
I signed up for a second French class without thinking twice, but I still didn’t expect to be a French major. That second class, however, solidified my desire to be completely fluent someday. Even though it was only my second semester, by the end of the class, we were reading unabridged selections of French books and poems. All of a sudden, I realized that I could read French. I’d always been enchanted by French literature, and after only a year of college French I could actually engage with the real texts my professor assigned. The fast pace of those classes, combined with the enthusiasm of my professors, made all the difference.
French is so fun to read and speak that it never feels like work. I declared a French major because I enjoy the language and truly feel at home in our French department. I plan to study abroad for a semester in Tours, France, and I couldn’t be more excited. Each one of the French professors here is patient and kind. They want to see us succeed in our French classes, but more importantly, they want us to love French because it’s beautiful and fun to speak and has an incredibly rich history. I never thought I’d be a French major, but now I can’t imagine being anything else.
Hailing from Indianapolis, Katie Kortepeter, ’17, is an English and French major. She frequently swing dances, speed reads Tolstoy, and practices her Chinese as a bubble tea waitress.