Dystopia warning: there’s a lot of doom-mongering in the news lately. Much of it (we hope) is newspapers sensationalising for clicks. Now, you could just limit the flow of all this in the name of sanity. But, since all that reading material is there, why not turn that negative into a positive?
That’s my thinking with one type of foreign-language literature reflecting the current Zeitgeist, anyway: the preparedness booklet. This is a type of public information pamphlet that pops up from time to time when the news gets hairy.
If you grew up in the 70s or 80s, you’ll remember these as the ‘nuclear survival’ leaflets that, to be honest, frightened, rather than reassured people. These days, they’ve resurfaced, thanks to a rather dicey new geopolitics.
This time round, however, they’re less When the Wind Blows, and more about general preparedness for anything from power cuts to cyberattacks. They’re also a lot more accessible than back in the day, since they’re largely downloadable PDFs rather than locally distributed leaflets now.
Oh – and they’re also completely free.
Reading Preparedness Booklets
So why are these rather alarming publications so good for language learners? Well, first off, in terms of vocabulary, they are all about basic items. That’s the kind of stuff that’s useful to know in many situations, let alone emergencies. Food, water, utilities… All great stuff to know how to talk about when visiting a target language country.
Also, they’re accessible in terms of language, too. They’re meant to be read and understood by everybody, which means the language is clear, direct and unfussy. That’s great for a bit of intermediate reading practice.
If I’ve convinced you that a bit of prepping lit is good for your languages, then here are some links to preparedness booklets I’ve come across in other languages:
- Chinese : 防空防灾知识手册
- French : Je me protège en famille
- German : Ratgeber für Notfallvorsorge
- Greek : Ξέρεις πώς να προστατευτείς;
- Irish : Ag ullmhú I gcomhair éigeandálaí
- Japanese : 東京防災
- Norwegian : Du er en del av Norges beredskap
- Polish : Bądź gotowy – poradnik na czas kryzysu i wojny
- Spanish : Guía de información al ciudadano sobre autoprotección
- Swedish : Om krisen eller kriget kommer
Hopefully we’ll never need these for real. For now, at least, they’re great reading practice, and offer some insights into public life in your target language countries.
Have you found any more of these online? Please let me know, as I’m always glad to add them to the list!