I am happy to have “Japanese” as my native language. I am fortunate to keep lear

I am happy to have “Japanese” as my native language. I am fortunate to keep learning English as my second language. However, in my journey, “Language” is not a purpose (goal). It is a means (method & way) to achieve my goal – to pass down the Sashiko I have received. Therefore, it is important for me to talk about the difference between English & Japanese – to share what Sashiko really is for us.

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I share it on Patreon, but one interesting difference. In most cases, proper English sentences require the “subject” such as “We” and “You”. It is important to identify who says what in English – to clarify the responsibility of its logic. In contrast, in Japanese, we often omit the “subject” especially when we all know who is “speaking”. For example, in English, when a person ask “What are you doing?”, they answer, “I am doing ◯◯”. They need “you” and “I”. In Japanese, it will be “what *(are you) doing?”, then “(I am ) doing ◯◯”. It happens because it is obvious “who” is doing it.

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I believe “individualism” and “collectivism” exist behind this difference. So, cultural aspects hugely influence the language, and the language also hugely impacts cultural practice. I am not saying everyone needs to master the Japanese for their Sashiko. However, it is not acceptable to pretend to be an expert & teach Sashiko without the proper understanding of the Japanese Language. Sashiko is hugely influenced by Japanese culture & its (non-verbal) language.

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ここ数日、言語についてたくさん考え文章にしています。昔の試験を思い出しながら、受験国語では文章を読み主語を判定するのが問題になる一方で、英語では代名詞が何を指すかが問いになる。これって、凄い違いだと思うんですよね。文化と言語にはやっぱり関係性はあるよなぁと。

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2021-06-10 15:02:17

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