Literary Assignment Draft

ハリケーンの日に わたしは セントラル·パーク へいきました。セントラル·パークにだれもいませんでした。わたしは一人でした。わたしはグレートローンに木たおれるのおみました。それはがちゃん音をつくった, “ブーム”!! こうえんの東から西へとわたしがあるいた。そのご、わたしへやへかえりました。そしてわたしのまどからあらしをみました。それはとてもにぎやかのよるでした。

Kanji Words Used:
一人
音
東
西
木

Katakana Words Used:
ハリケーン
セントラル·パーク
グレートローン
ブーム
ラウド

The katakana words were used to assimilate American names into a Japanese context. While I'm sure there are hiragana forms of words like "Central" and "Great" as they belong to a title demarcated to either a section of Central Park or Central Park itself it would not have been understood had I reverted to hiragana. Another katakana word I used was the onomonopaeic for "boom" which was used to emphasize the loud sound the tree made when it struck the ground.  When researching how to describe a sound as being "loud" I encountered some setbacks. I couldn't find a good hiragana  I also placed some Kanji in my story for words like "west", "east", "tree", and "nobody" in order to save time.

Katakana Analysis (Final)

Nicholas Frankel

10/30/12

Katakana Analysis (Final)

For my katakana analysis project I chose the onomonopiac word “ピンポン”, translated to “ping pong”, which is the word that Japanese people use to describe the sound of a door bell. In the United States, the sound we typically equate to a doorbell is “Ding Dong”. It’s not dissimilar to the Japanese equivalent; I find it interesting that we pick up on different emphasis. Obviously the purpose behind this word being written in katakana as oppose to hiragana or kanji is that it is a word for sound, which is one of the primary uses for katakana along with assimilating loan words. Also, just like in English, onomatopoeic words receive special regard. In much the same way Japanese writers use katakana, in English, italics or quotations are used to mark onomatopoeia.

            

As I have mentioned in previous posts, I’m a pretty big fan of Japanese cinema, and especially of anime. I used to subscribe to anime magazines such as Otaku, and read the stories about upcoming anime television and movie events. Often times, katakana would be employed on the magazine cover and within the magazine for what I imagine was pop emphasis. As stated in ようこそ, Japanese people, especially young urbanites, believe foreign loanwords have a certain element of sophistication and modernity to them. Often they would substitute native Japanese words for use of these loan words. For instance, consider the words for “ticket”, チケット vs きっぷ. There is no need choose the katakana form over hiragana, its simply becoming trendy to do so. It seems loans words are becoming more and more prevalent in modern Japanese colloquialisms.

To give another example, in magna I've encountered the word "だめ" written as "ダメ".Why would they do this? There are several reasons why the writer might use katakana instead of hiragana. Firstly, to use visual or only slight semantic emphasis, almost like using bold or italics in english. Second, to describe onomonopea. And lastly, its possible that the word is normally written in kanji and the writer was trying to save time by using katakana. Most likely, the first reason is the correct one. Katakana was developed out of necessity and convenience. Subsequently, it is very prevalent in japanese media and pop culture not only for its convenience but also for its aesthetic appeal to young audiences. 

Katakana Analysis Draft

Nicholas Frankel

10/10/12

Katakana Analysis Draft

For my katakana words I’ve chosen the onomonopiac word “ピンポン”, translated to “ping pong”, which is the word that Japanese people use to describe the sound of a door bell. In the United States, the sound we typically equate to a doorbell is “Ding Dong”. It’s not dissimilar to the Japanese equivalent; I find it interesting that we pick up on different emphasis. Obviously the purpose behind this word being written in katakana as oppose to hiragana or kanji is that it is a word for sound, which is one of the primary uses for katakana along with assimilating loan words. 

            

As I have mentioned in previous posts, I’m a pretty big fan of Japanese cinema, and especially of anime. I used to subscribe to anime magazines such as Otaku, and read

 the stories about upcoming anime television and movie events. Often times, katakana would be employed on the magazine cover and within the magazine for what I imagine was pop emphasis. As stated in ようこそ, Japanese people, especially young urbanites, believe foreign loanwords have a certain element of sophistication and modernity to them. Often they would substitute native Japanese words for use of these loan words. 

So for instance, in magna I've encountered the word "だめ" written as "ダメ".Why would they do this? There are several reasons why the writer might use katakana instead of hiragana. Firstly, to use visual or only slight semantic emphasis, almost like using bold or italics in english. Second, to describe onomonopea. And lastly, its possible that the word is normally written in kanji and the writer was trying to save time by using katakana. Most likely, the first reason is the correct one. Katakana was developed out of necessity and convenience. Subsequently, it is very prevalent in japanese media and pop culture not only for its convenience but also for its aesthetic appeal to young audiences. 

Listening Comprehension Made Fun!

Hey all,

Hope everybody is enjoying the weekend. I've been studying for our upcoming Japanese Exam and as a study break I thought it might be helpful to watch a Japanese foreign film. Obviously I won't understand most of what's going on but I figured it couldn't hurt to listen to the language as there will be a listening comprehension section. The film I chose is one that I've seen before called "13 Assassions", and its pretty awesome. It's about a group of assassins who are charged with the task of taking out an insane feudal lord who wants to rise to the rank of Shogun. The first hour or so moves a little slowly as the assassins ban together and you get to see just how corrupt and evil this guy they are trying to 86 is. The next hour however is non-stop action culminating in an all out battle in a small village.

If you guys find yourselves in need of a study break and feel like watching in an awesome movie while simulataneously brushing up on your Japanese. It's definitely worth a look:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NgPC74-Tde8

Anime Obsessed

I've been an anime fan for a very long time. When I was young I would run home after school to catch two hours of Toonami, an anime program that would play on Cartoon Network for 3 hours. The shows were the likes of Rurouni Kenshin, Gundam Wing, Samurai Champloo,Dragon Ball Z, Ronin Warriors, Tenchi Muyo, etc. I was enthralled by them. Not only were they beautifully animated but the stories were compelling and epic. To this day I have yet to see a television series with a story arc as wonderfully dynamic and intricate as that of Gundam Wing. It wasn't a television series, it was an epic.  I of course could not read katakana at the time but it was always displayed in the titles of these programs, so I suppose my exposure to katakana began unwittingly at a very young age.

Eventually I graduated to anime movies such as Ninja Scroll, Howl's Moving Castle, and Akira. These also had compelling and immersive stories that I respected and admired. Particularly Akira I found interesting because of the many subversive counter-culture themes and questions of morality it challenged the viewer to think about. It's famously ambiguous ending was also very thought-provoking. I would recommend it to anyone.

こにちわ

Hello,

My name is Nicholas Frankel. I am a student at Columbia University in the City of New York, I major in English. I am a first year Japanese student who fell in love with the culture and the language through appreciation of anime and after having read the book, Shogun, by James Clavell.

For anybody interested in Japanese culture I would recommend Shogun. Shogun gives an account of the rise of the daimyo "Toranaga" (based upon the actual Tokugawa leyasu). Toranaga's rise to the rank of Shogunate is seen through the eyes of the English sailor "John Blackthorne, called Anjin-san ("pilot") by the Japanese, whose fictional heroics are loosely based on the historical exploits of William Adams.

I was personally moved by this book, and it instilled in me a yearning to learn the Japanese language, just as the character of John Blackthorne learns as you follow him through his peregrinations in feudal Japan.