Learning Japanese isn't Sexy

Growing up, most of us had opportunities to learn foreign languages in school, and the choices were made, 90% of the time, based on which one sounded the prettiest or most exotic. In general, at my schools, that always meant French. French was the cool, I'm-gonna-get-laid language that everyone wanted to learn. Was that the case at your school?

As I'm learning Japanese, I'm realizing I have this ingrained notion that learning a foreign language makes me more attractive. When you see someone fluent in French or Spanish, maybe, doesn't that make them look sexier?

However, that is absolutely not the case with Japanese. In general, people outside of the Japanese community have two reactions when they find out I'm studying: I can see a running list of questions forming on their faces ("Is she a nerd?" "Is she obsessed with anime?" "Why Japanese? It's so irrelevant," etc.), and then they comment on how "hard" it must be. They just don't seem to know how to react and generally appear at a loss for words or reaction at all.

France is the country of amorous people, Spanish-speaking countries (and Italy) are the stereotypical homes to amorous and dark, handsome people. Japan's vibe, on the other hand, is pretty brain-centric, don't you think? They're stereotyped for intelligence, honor, thinking before they speak, politeness, etc. To the West, I'm not sure those are the first qualities that come up when we think of what's sexy.

So, as this has been hitting me, I've been realizing I feel almost like I'm not getting enough out of learning Japanese. My whole life, there's been this strange association between speaking another language and appearing more attractive to other people, and now that that isn't being fulfilled, I'm almost tempted to quit.

I don't mean this in any real sense--I'm not learning Japanese in order to appear more attractive, and I certainly wouldn't quit over something that insignificant. But that imbedded association is so deep that it has actually caused some unrest in these deep-set expectations!

I'm mostly just looking at this from a psychological, ethical, and sociological standpoint. Does this hold true for you? Do you feel that this is an attraction to learning a language, so that you will be perceived as more attractive because you come off as more cultured and able to speak pretty words? Or is it just me?

Let me know in the comments below!