kara - Grammar question

[wasabi75]

Hi, I have a question about these translations in the grammar bank.

1. 来年日本へ行くから日本語を勉強しています。
Rainen nihon e iku kara nihongo o benkyō shite imasu.
I'm studying Japanese because I'm going to Japan next year.

2. 今日は天気がいいから家を出ます。
Kyō wa tenki ga ii kara ie o demasu.
Today, because the weather is nice, I’m gonna go out.

3. お前は馬鹿だから失敗した。
O-mae wa baka dakara shippai shita.
You failed because you're an idiot.

Kara is cited as equivalent to 'so' in English. So wouldn't it be
1. Next Year I am going to Japan so I am studying Japanese
2. Today it's a good day so I'm gonna go out.
3. You're an idiot so you failed.

I just got confused because the grammar point is listed as being like 'so' but the translations use ' because'. I wonder if this was intentional?

Thanks
Wasabi

[QuackingShoe]

'So' and 'because' mean the exact same thing.
Outside of that, you're going to have to get used to translations not being one for one and word for word, as in all cases it's awkward, and in most cases it's impossible, because there ARE no one-for-one word pairs between langauges. In these particular cases, the word order required for 'so' would change the emphasis of the sentences from their Japanese equivalents. But really, don't get so caught up in translation.

[wasabi75]

Hi thanks for the reply.
So and because are not the same. No words are the same in any language.
Yes I am used to accepting certain terms do not translate.
However if the item is listed as being ' SO' at the top of the page, then the examples use ' because' at the least it is something that should be looked at from a clarity point of view.
Cheers anyway.
Wasabi