The Korean Cultural Conceptualizations in L2 Learning and Intercultural Communication

This study aims to give some insights into the role of cultural conceptualizations on L2 learning by examining Korean conceptualizations and schema. The analysis of the cultural conceptualizations of chemyeon ‘face’ and schema of emotions of different kinds in Korean culture and language suggests that learning language as L1 and L2 both require continued cultural experiences, and close and continued interaction with other members of the cultural group. Through the process of sustained cultural experiences, the learners internalize cultural metaphors, schemas, and conceptualizations in both linguistic and non-linguistic aspects. This study demonstrates how Korean L2 learners draw on the cultural conceptualizations that have originally been associated with their L1 and argues that L2 learning and intercultural communication need acquiring new systems of cultural experiences. This study concludes with a discussion of the implications of L2 learning and intercultural sense making within the framework of Cultural Linguistics and English as a lingua franca.