Will Mandarin be the language of future?

fatdragon (UK)

Mandarin is so, so difficult. And yet Chinese toddlers learn it. My brain was trained to respond to western tones in language such as those that indicate sarcasm, a query, enthusiasm etc. I do not hear the tones used in mandarin where tones can denote as many as 6 totally unrelated words from one spelling. We have enough trouble with English words achieving a consistent pronunciation that represents the written word but pinyin just does not interface with western languages. Not that most of China uses pinyin. The other criticism that I routinely encounter is that if you take 6 Chinese people they will all pronounce a Chinese word VERY differently even though they are from the same city.

Students of Staten Island Academy make paper lanterns during Mandarin class to celebrate Halloween.[Photo/IC]