Using one's own writings for learning language?

[Udut, Kenneth]

Hello again :)

        Has there been any work done in learning a
language based upon the learner's own writings?

For example, I'm learning Russian.  If I were to:

1) Gather together a large sampling of e-mails that
I've written over the years, and

2) Have them translated by a competent translator into
Russian, taking into account style, humor, and
such...

3) Have the texts brought back to me, both my
original mutterings, and the Russian translations,
and studying from this?

4) Produced from these translations would be
word lists, perhaps the translator's could
record the translations on a cassette tape for
emulation...

Would this be workable situation?

The purpose of all of this, would be to help
one be able to convey what one would probably
*actually* say in the target language.
Personality.  Humor.

This wouldn't be a substitute for the standard
and non-standard learning methods out there.  But
is it something that people have done or are
doing?


I would hate to learn Russian and then have
nothing to say!



           Kenneth Udut
Kenneth.Udut at SPCORP.COM
"Voistinu CHelovek
`Etot byl Syn Bozhij!'"