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| Lesson 2 - Referring to Yourself and Others http://bbs.noneedfortenchi.com/viewtopic.php?f=22&t=4966 |
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| Author: | Akira Takahashi [ Tue Aug 31, 2010 5:10 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Lesson 2 - Referring to Yourself and Others |
Finally! I've been having a really rough time, and I appologize for the lack of updates. Here we go with lesson 2! Referring to Yourself and Others There’s a ton of ways that the Japanese refer to themselves and, more commonly, to the people around them. You see, in English we pretty much just have “I” and “you” and that’s it. Sure, you can argue that we have other words, such as “myself”, but honestly, they all carry the same weight. In Japanese, however, all that changes. So, first we’re going to talk a little bit about formality and politeness before I give you the list of words you should know for this lesson. First of all, the Japanese have around four politeness levels. This is because, unlike English, Japanese is a very hierarchical language. Everyone knows his/her place, or at least they should, and speaks accordingly. Remember, Japan’s is a very us vs. them culture, and this is the position they maintain not only with Japanese vs. Non- Japanese relationships, but also with people from a different company, different school, etc. It’s a lot to keep track of, but I wouldn’t worry about too much this early on. We’ll be covering it in more detail later. A lot of it also depends on the speaker’s personality. For example, Aeka is naturally polite, so she speaks using polite language, at least until she gets really angry. Sasami, on the other hand, doesn’t care too much for formality, so she tends to use “plain speech”, while Ryoko is capable of using what the Japanese would consider downright improper and even rude speech. We’ll talk more about these later, but I want to bring your attention to them. As such, let’s take a look at a brief summary of what each level is. Forms of Politeness Level 4 – Extreme Politeness This is the kind of speech that uses special honorifics or humble versions of words. We’ll be covering it, but since it usually only heard by shopkeepers and such it’s not our first priority. Every now and then I’m pretty sure I’ve heard Aeka use it, but it’s rare. Be aware of it, though. Level 3 – Polite This is heard a lot in Japanese society and also in anime and manga. In Tenchi Muyo, most characters, except for Ryoko, use this at some point, and Aeka uses it almost exclusively. Basically, you use it with strangers, but not with close friends. Level 2 – Plain You use this among friends and family. Every single Tenchi Muyo character will use this at some point. Polite speech and plain speech will be covered a lot in early lessons. Level 1 – Rude So here in English-speaking countries, we may not find it rude, but the Japanese do. Typically rude speech is confined to anime, manga, and video games, so while we will cover it, do not use it! Now we’ll cover ways to refer to yourself and others. Just as a note, there’s no kanji in this lesson. I’ll be covering kanji a little differently, so hold tight. I want you to first get used to hiragana. Ways to Refer to Yourself わたくし/Watakushi – When men use it, it’s considered extremely polite, and while it’s not considered as humbling for a woman to use it, it’s still pretty darn polite. Aeka uses this almost exclusively, although you very seldom hear it otherwise. わたし/Watashi – This is pretty neutral and acceptable for all occasions. You hear this one pretty commonly, and is basically equivalent to the English “I”. あたし/Atashi – This is the feminine form of “watashi” and is kind of informal, so don’t use it amongst strangers. When it comes to anime and manga, you come across this quite often. ぼく/Boku – This is kind of masculine and is used mostly by young men and tomboyish girls. However, I’ve heard female singers use this in their songs simply because of the fewer syllables. Think “Boku wa Motto Pioneer” with that one. However, it’s informal, so don’t use it in non-casual conversations, and girls should think twice before they use it. おれ/Ore – Girls, don’t use this one at all. It’s extremely masculine, very informal, and almost sounds rude in certain situations. Guys, use it among friends and close family, but never at any other time. You come across this one all the time in anime and manga, however. わし/Washi – Used by old men like Katsuhito. Kind of common depending on where you are, but certainly not formal. じぶん/Jibun – You really don’t hear this one much, and it’s kind of old and out-of-date. It’s rather authoritative. Ways of referring to others – Note, the Japanese very seldom outright say “you”. Person’s name – Really, the best way to go is to just use the person’s name with an honorific attached to it. It sounds weird in English, but the Japanese use third-person speech a lot. Don’t believe me? Listen to Sasami speak and imitate her. あなた/Anata – Basically, this is the English equivalent of “you”, and it pretty common. If you’re going to use “you” in a situation, this one is your best bet. あんた/Anta – This can be either rude or affectionate, depending on how you use it. Wives call their husbands by it and it’s usually subtitled as “honey” or some such thing. However, women use it to talk down to men a lot, too. Context is key! きみ/Kimi – A rather affectionate “you” that is use mostly between boyfriends and girlfriends. こいつ/Koitsu – This is a fun one, but a very rude one that is basically the equivalent of saying, “This person.” I’m trying to get a good audio clip of Ryoko using it, because she likes to use it to refer to Aeka. Best clip ever is the “No Need for Swimsuits” episode of Universe. The look on Aeka’s face when she hears it is priceless, but unfortunately didn’t translate well. おまえ/Omae – Another one Ryoko enjoys using, so you should already guess that it’s not the most polite word in the world. However, go ahead and use it among friends in a joking manner, and boyfriends use it to address their girlfriends a lot, which I don’t understand. You hear it in anime a lot and is pretty darn common, just watch your step when you use it in real life. てまえ/Temae – First of all, I’d like to point out that this is usually pronounced “teme”. It’s kind of old-fashioned, but it’s rude and used when you’re angry at someone. Don’t use this one yourself, although you’ll come across it a lot in Japanese media. Honorifics – These are the words you attach to a person’s name. You should use them at all times, lest you be considered really rude. The only times you won’t use them is when speaking to family members and people you are unnaturally close to. ―さん/-san – This is pretty standard and is basically the equivalent of Mr. or Ms./Mrs. In English. You can use it in all situations. ―ちゃん/-Chan – O how Washu would love for people to refer to her with “chan” instead of “san”! You use it with young children and girls. However, I’d like to point out that people who are particularly close (mostly women) use it with each other. Go ahead and use it freely with children, but make sure you know someone really well before you use it with older children and adults. Guys don’t like to be called “chan” unless their role models are those two guys from Ah! My Goddess. Yes, you know whom I’m talking about. ―くん/-kun – This is kind of like “chan” but for males. Don’t use it with your superiors, though. せんせい/Sensei – This means teacher, but is used to refer to pretty much all professionals. You’ll hear it with teachers and doctors mostly. せんぱい/Senpai – When you say this one, it usually sounds more like “sempai” and is a word that you use to address mentor kind of people. In Trigun, Milly refers to her superior, Meryl, exclusively as “sempai”. Usually used amongst peers of a higher rank than you, or used to address upperclassmen in a school. Chiyo would love to be called “sempai” in Azumanga Daioh, despite the fact that she’s only 11. Wow, we’ve covered this lesson already! Next time, things are really going to kick off. I’m working on a good way to get people into learning Japanese that’s not as boring as most ways. I’ll be utilizing a lot of applications to do this, but I think it’ll be worth it. Just think, other people will be paying good money to get what you guys get for free. |
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| Author: | crumpets the wise [ Wed Sep 01, 2010 1:53 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Lesson 2 - Referring to Yourself and Others |
Can't wait!! |
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| Author: | Akira Takahashi [ Thu Sep 02, 2010 4:00 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Lesson 2 - Referring to Yourself and Others |
Okay, I have the way I'm going to do kanji pretty much nailed down. I also plan on weaning people off of romajii pretty soon, too. I'm just afraid that it'll become a crutch, and it's so easy for it to become so! When I first started studying, it was a huge crutch for me as well. I'm also writing little dialogues to start each lesson, akin to those Genki textbooks, although not as boring. I've got some experimental characters to work with, so we'll see. Now, to get some audio ripped from anime to use as examples... |
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| Author: | mjhennessey [ Sun Sep 05, 2010 6:23 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Lesson 2 - Referring to Yourself and Others |
Sometimes there are situations where the person you are addressing is of unknown social rank. Paging someone unknown to you over a public address system is a good example of this. The party maybe a child or the CEO of a major corporation so to be sure to avoid insult the Japanese will always use the highest level of politeness. The shopkeeper you mentioned is another good example since you are often unfamiliar with the customers. Overall, very nice work Akira-sensei, please continue as time permits. ^_^ |
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