Can you learn Chinese characters without learning to write them?

 ANSWER: Yes, but it is harder.

I like the guy in the video below, and the friendly way he talks, but I disagree with him on the need to write Chinese characters. He suggests that Koreans only need to learn to read them, not write them, since Koreans do not generally write in Chinese characters these days. But the reason you need to practice writing Chinese characters is that writing them helps you remember them. Writing a Chinese character is a test of your understanding of the character. If you cannot write the character, then you do not ready understand it. Not knowing how to write a Chinese character is like not knowing how to spell a word in English or Korean. Just being able to read a word doesn't mean you really know the word.

Also, since Chinese characters are often composites of two or more characters, writing a Chinese character helps to refresh your memory of the characters that combine to form the character. For example, the Chinese character 明 (명), which means "bright," is made by combining the characters for "sun" (日 일) and "moon" (月)," so each time you practice writing 明 (명), you are also practicing writing 日 (일) and 月 (월).

Finally, I have found that writing Chinese characters relaxes me. Before you go to sleep at night, try writing ten different Chinese characters ten times each. I think you will sleep better.