Thread: Confused about soft vowels

I'd much rather learn it right the first time, and not 'un-learn' improper pronunciation. The books I've been using stressed the points Marcus has been making from the beginning, with exercises parallel to what Боб Уайтман has shown, with audio to drive it home. But then I've been using books written by Russians. Shop around.

Originally Posted by Seraph

I'd much rather learn it right the first time, and not 'un-learn' improper pronunciation.

I agree. Unless a person aims to learn a few phrases in Russian to impress his or her friends, it's better to be aware of correct pronunciation from the start.

I believe, that the fact zedeeyen has mentioned is not directly connected to one language being learned academically, while another is not. Most Russian textbooks are very thorough about pronunciation, regardless of the language taught. It's just an example of different approaches, with western textbooks aiming mostly for quick results and instant communication, and Russian traditional textbooks aiming for "learning the language" (a global and almost never achievable goal).