IELTS Writing Task 2 essay with model answer

You should spend about 40 minutes on this task. Write about the following topic

Some people think that a person can never understand the culture of a country unless they speak the language. To what extent do you agree or disagree.

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Write at least 250 words.

Model Answer:

In recent years, the correlation between understanding a different culture and mastering its language has sparked a heated debate, While some argue that learning a foreign language is the condition to embrace the culture, I  completely disagree with this contention.

Firstly, there are various embodiments of a country's culture and language is not the unique one. The heritage of Brazil exemplifies this precisely. One may not necessarily be good at Portuguese however, enjoying Samba and soccer is enough to be welcomed in this attractive country. It has been proven by the success of World Cup 2014 and Rio Olympic Games 2016. Hence, language is not the only key to familiarising with a specific culture.

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Secondly, the rapid globalisation process has created plenty of cultures without any language barrier. For instance, Japan is quite well renowned for its comic culture, and associated cartoon films and books have become ubiquitous throughout the world. Even those without basic knowledge of Japanese are able to understand the contents from the visual. A picture is worth a thousand words. Thus, besides language, there are still other means by which a culture can be interpreted.

Notwithstanding, the importance of language to the culture should not be underestimated. The majority of human civilizations have been recorded and transmitted by languages, and Chinese historical heritage is the best example. Being able to speak Mandarin or Cantonese, one would easily understand the impacts of the long history to the current society. Therefore, mastering the local language is conducive to embracing the community, the society, and the culture.

Henceforth it can be confidently concluded that language is an integral part of a culture. However, there is still a possibility of understanding a country and its culture by other methods.

Total Words: 289

Task Achievement: 8

Coherence & Cohesion: 8

Lexical resources: 8

Grammar: 8

Overall Score: Band 8

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