Job Discussion Forums

[furiousmilksheikali]

[lanems]

Someone mentioned teaching nuclear fission to pygmies, if a language doesn't have a word to describe something that speakers of that language have never seen before it doesn't mean they don't have the capacity to create a word for it. I don't think English always had a word for nuclear fission, but English speaking people were able to figure it out and stick a name on it. We have plenty of words used to describe things that don't really exist. How's that for confusing the thoughts/language binary?

If you are going to Chinese as an example, do you think a Chinese person has the same mental image when they hear (and comprehend) the English word "ghost" as a Westerner would?

Learning language is learning culture I think. Which is one reason why teaching English as a second language to a group of people who will communicate to other speakers of English as a second language can be a bit of a political decision at times... In terms of Japanese, chances are you'll only be using Japanese with native speakers so you better get use to the idea of learning the culture. The question for us as teachers is do we teach a culture irrelevant to our students and the context they will find themselves communicating in? If you ask your boss they'll probably tell you "yes."

I learned both of those words (yabai and bimyou) from context. After I read this I looked in the dictionary and got a totally different meaning from what I have come to know. However, I'm more inclined to believe real life experience over what a book tells me. I guess this is the one redeeming thing for a language teacher, in most cases you hold the only real living example of the language you teach for most of your students.

As for "bimyou" there are plenty of words in any language that have come to take multiple or even conflicting meanings. Take "with" for example, if I say "I fought with my brother." Does it mean I fought against my brother, or I fought side by side with my brother? Go explain that one to your students and see what they say...

[SeasonedVet]

furiousmilksheikali wrote:

[SeasonedVet]

And as for context, if some are assuming that I DON'T know the meanings of the words then why would I need to give a context?
If a person doesn't understand a word it doesn't follow that the person can give a context.
The person who is explaining will put the word in context.

[furiousmilksheikali]

I re-read some of your earlier posts and realized that you have some kind of one-to-one translation hang-up. My understanding then was that you were using words that had such a breadth of meaning that any answer would or could be wrong. If I have misjudged you on this then I apologize.

[SeasonedVet]

furious
I don't have any one-to-one hang up.
I sit and I think about what I should post.
I try to think about what would generate discussion and what others might be interested in.
Some know-it-alls rush in ( not referring to you furious) and the first thing they do is critcise.
That person who said don't worry with me is an example.
That person is assuming that I don't know the meanings of the words and I am now just opening my japanese study text book while that person has attained Level 1 in Japanese.
It's sometimes good not to reply to posts like that that waste time and divert from the topic.
I KNOW what the words mean.
I post questions like that because not only the level 1 Guys and Gals read this Board.
People who are new to Japan and others on the WWW read it as well as Japanese people Too. Who I might add are interested in seeing topics like this one discussed.
I have No problem whatsoever if anyone disagrees with what I write, that's fair anywhere. I just wonder at the people who just rush in and declare everything as "rubbish" as one poster put it on another thread.
Obviously these people think that they know everything about Japan and japanese culture.
I don't claim to, that's why I Humbly ask questions.

[furiousmilksheikali]

[gaijinalways]

[Venti]

[SeasonedVet]

furiousmilksheikali wrote:

[SeasonedVet]

Venti wrote:

[Venti]

[gaijinalways]

browse (brouz) KEY

VERB:
browsed , brows�ing , brows�es
VERB:
intr.

To inspect something leisurely and casually: browsed through the map collection for items of interest.
To read something superficially by selecting passages at random: browsed through the report during lunch.

But often Japanese people don't browse, they sometimes come every day or week and read the whole book. I don't think this is usual behaviour in western countries unless you're visiting a library (and even then, you're more likely just to take the book out, rather than read it every time you visit).

As to how often they buy, I would say it's far fewer then what you quoted as 'many' buying after they have read a good chunk of the book. Many won't bother if they can just read it for free.

[Deicide]

[kdynamic]

Right, that's why I offered it as an example of a word that was imported into English instead of translated.