Language and identity
Before watching: Which countries have English as an official language? (search online)
In what ways do you think language is connected to identity?
YU MING IS AINM DOM is a short film, written and directed by Daniel O’Hara in 2003.
(lasts approx. 13 minutes)
Comprehension after watching
Did you understand all the English accents in the film?
Which accent does the guy at the reception speak?
And people in the pub, at the bar?
Aussie guy at the reception cannot understand the young Chinese. Who does he ask for help to translate? Why doesn’t he understand him?
Why does the Aussie guy think he would understand the Chinese?
How does Yu Ming feel?
Does he have problems with something else, apart from language?
What does his loneliness and isolation show?
What happens when he enters the pub?
What sign of cultural identity does the bartender show him?
Retell the conversation between Yu Ming and the older man in the pub. Why is he the only person who can understand him?
Where does Yu Ming go at the end of the film?
Where does he find work?
Find Connemara on the map, and find some information about the Irish Gaelic.