Before the Second World War, why did people learn a foreign language?

Speaker: Before the Second World War, people usually learnt a foreign language in order to read the literature of the country. Now, speaking the foreign language is what most people want. Every year, millions of people start to learn one. How do they do it? Some people try at home, with books or records or tapes; some listen to the radio or watch television program; others go to evening classes. If they use the language only two or three times a week, learning it will take us a long time, like language learning at school. It is clearly easier to learn the language in the country where it is spoken. However, most people can not afford this, and for many it is unnecessary. They need the language in order to do their work better. For example, scientists and doctors chiefly need to be able to read books and reports in a foreign language. Whether the language is learned quickly or slowly, it is hard work. Machines and good books help, but they can not do the students’ work for him.