Learn about asking the reason for something
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| INTRODUCTION |
| Naomi: 直美です。 (Naomidesu.) |
| Peter: Peter here. All You Have to do is Ask. In this lesson, you learn how to ask why. |
| Naomi: どうして？ (Dōshite?) |
| Peter: This conversation takes place at |
| Naomi: 会社 (Dōshite?) |
| Peter: At an office. The conversation is between |
| Naomi: 同僚 (Dōryō) |
| Peter: Two colleagues |
| Naomi: 絵理花さんと満さんです。 (Erika-san to Mitsuru-sandesu.) |
| Peter: Erica and Mitsuru and they are talking. The woman is using informal Japanese. The man is using |
| Naomi: Formal Japanese. |
| DIALOGUE |
| 左 絵理花 (Hidari Erika): はぁ...下山先輩...、素敵。 (Hā... Shimoyama-senpai..., suteki.) |
| 三門 満 (Mikado Mitsuru): 絵理花さんは、どうして、下山さんが好きですか。 (Erika-san wa, dō shite, Shimoyama-san ga suki desu ka.) |
| 左 絵理花 (Hidari Erika): どうして? (Dō shite?) うーん。ハンサムだし、やさしいし、頭がいいし、背が高いし、かんぺきだから。 (Ūn. Hansamu da shi, yasashii shi, atama ga ii shi, se ga takai shi, kanpeki da kara.) |
| 三門 満 (Mikado Mitsuru): ぼ、僕も、ハンサムでかんぺきな男ですよ。 (Bo, boku mo, hansamu de kanpeki na otoko desu yo.) それに、家は金持ちです。 (Sore ni, ie wa kanemochi desu.) あ、あのぉ...。絵理花さん。ぼ、僕はだめですか? (A, anō.... Erika-san. Bo, boku wa dame desu ka?) |
| 左 絵理花 (Hidari Erika): え?...問題外。 (E?... Mondaigai.) |
| 三門 満 (Mikado Mitsuru): 問題外?!どうしてですか。 (Mondaigai?! Dō shite desu ka.) |
| 左 絵理花(Hidari Erika): タイプじゃないから。 (Taipu ja nai kara.) それに、頼りないし、性格が悪いから。 (Sore ni, tayorinai shi, seikaku ga warui kara.) |
| 三門 満 (Mikado Mitsuru): ひ、ひどい。 (Hi, hidoi.) |
| もう一度、お願いします。今度は、ゆっくりお願いします。 (Mōichido, onegaishimasu. Kondo wa, yukkuri onegaishimasu.) |
| 左 絵理花 (Hidari Erika): はぁ...下山先輩...、素敵。 (Hā... Shimoyama-senpai..., suteki.) |
| 三門 満 (Mikado Mitsuru): 絵理花さんは、どうして、下山さんが好きですか。 (Erika-san wa, dō shite, Shimoyama-san ga suki desu ka.) |
| 左 絵理花 (Hidari Erika): どうして? (Dō shite?) うーん。ハンサムだし、やさしいし、頭がいいし、背が高いし、かんぺきだから。 (Ūn. Hansamu da shi, yasashii shi, atama ga ii shi, se ga takai shi, kanpeki da kara.) |
| 三門 満 (Mikado Mitsuru): ぼ、僕も、ハンサムでかんぺきな男ですよ。 (Bo, boku mo, hansamu de kanpeki na otoko desu yo.) それに、家は金持ちです。 (Sore ni, ie wa kanemochi desu.) あ、あのぉ...。絵理花さん。ぼ、僕はだめですか? (A, anō.... Erika-san. Bo, boku wa dame desu ka?) |
| 左 絵理花 (Hidari Erika): え?...問題外。 (E?... Mondaigai.) |
| 三門 満 (Mikado Mitsuru): 問題外?!どうしてですか。 (Mondaigai?! Dō shite desu ka.) |
| 左 絵理花 (Hidari Erika): タイプじゃないから。 (Taipu ja nai kara.) それに、頼りないし、性格が悪いから。 (Sore ni, tayorinai shi, seikaku ga warui kara.) |
| 三門 満 (Mikado Mitsuru): ひ、ひどい。 (Hi, hidoi.) |
| 今度は、英語が入ります。 (Kondo wa, eigo ga hairimasu.) |
| 左 絵理花 (Hidari Erika): はぁ...下山先輩...、素敵。 (Hā... Shimoyama-senpai..., suteki.) |
| ERIKA HIDARI: (sigh)...Shimoyama-senpai's great. |
| 三門 満 (Mikado Mitsuru): 絵理花さんは、どうして、下山さんが好きですか。 (Erika-san wa, dō shite, Shimoyama-san ga suki desu ka.) |
| MITSURU MIKADO:Erika, why do you like Shimoyama? |
| 左 絵理花 (Hidari Erika): どうして? (Dō shite?) |
| ERIKA HIDARI: Why? |
| うーん。ハンサムだし、やさしいし、頭がいいし、背が高いし、かんぺきだから。 (Ūn. Hansamu da shi, yasashii shi, atama ga ii shi, se ga takai shi, kanpeki da kara.) |
| Hmm, well he's handsome, he's kind, he's smart, he's tall, and because he's perfect. |
| 三門 満 (Mikado Mitsuru): ぼ、僕も、ハンサムでかんぺきな男ですよ。 (Bo, boku mo, hansamu de kanpeki na otoko desu yo.) |
| MITSURU MIKADO:I'm also a handsome and perfect guy. |
| それに、家は金持ちです。 (Sore ni, ie wa kanemochi desu.) |
| Not to mention my family is rich. |
| あ、あのぉ...。絵理花さん。ぼ、僕はだめですか? (A, anō.... Erika-san. Bo, boku wa dame desu ka?) |
| Umm, Erika, am I not good enough for you? |
| 左 絵理花 (Hidari Erika): え?...問題外。 (E?... Mondaigai.) |
| ERIKA HIDARI: Huh? (sigh)...It's out of the question. |
| 三門 満 (Mikado Mitsuru): 問題外?!どうしてですか。 (Mondaigai?! Dō shite desu ka.) |
| MITSURU MIKADO:Out of the question? Why? |
| 左 絵理花 (Hidari Erika): タイプじゃないから。 (Taipu ja nai kara.) |
| ERIKA HIDARI: You're not my type. |
| それに、頼りないし、性格が悪いから。 (Sore ni, tayorinai shi, seikaku ga warui kara.) |
| And you're not reliable, and you have a bad personality. |
| 三門 満 (Mikado Mitsuru): ひ、ひどい。 (Hi, hidoi.) |
| MITSURU MIKADO:Ou...ouch (whimpering). |
| POST CONVERSATION BANTER |
| Naomi: きついですね。絵理花さんはきついですね。 (Kitsuidesu ne. Erika-san wa kitsuidesu ne.) How do you say きつい (Kitsui) in English Peter? |
| Peter: Harsh. |
| Naomi: Harsh. |
| Peter: So you think she is harsh? |
| Naomi: うん。かなぁ。 (Un. Ka nā.) or they could be good friends. |
| Peter: Yeah I think she is 正直者 (Shōjiki-sha) |
| Naomi: 正直者 (Shōjiki-sha) Honest person. |
| Peter: Yeah tells it like it is. |
| Naomi: まあ、そうね。正直な人でしょうね。 (Mā, sōne. Shōjikina hitodeshou ne.) |
| Peter: You know, a lot of times in Japan, everything is so 婉曲。 (Enkyoku) |
| Naomi: そう。なんていうの、婉曲って、難しい言葉だけど。 (Sō. Nante iu no, enkyoku tte, muzukashī kotobadakedo.) |
| Peter: 難しいですね。一休の言葉ですね。(Muzukashīdesu ne. Ikkyū no kotobadesu ne.) |
| Naomi: You are showing off your vocab here. |
| Peter: 婉曲 (Enkyoku) is – that’s the only word I know is roundabout. So if you hear this, hmm or えっと (E tto) or |
| Naomi: ああ、ちょっと… (Ā, chotto…) |
| Peter: Uh that’s the worst. Then the real feelings are kind of being suppressed and you won’t get a きつい (Kitsui) answer. You will get something sugar coated. |
| Naomi: Yeah I would say it’s rare to get a きつい (Kitsui) answer from Japanese person. |
| Peter: Agree. Definitely agree. Let’s take a look at the vocabulary for this lesson. |
| VOCAB LIST |
| Peter: What do we have first? |
| Naomi: どうして (dōshite) |
| Peter: Why? For what reason? |
| Naomi: (slow)どうして (dōshite) (natural speed) どうして (dōshite) |
| Peter: Next. |
| Naomi: 優しい (Yasashī) |
| Peter: Kind, gentle. |
| Naomi: (slow)やさしい (Yasashī) (natural speed) 優しい (Yasashī) |
| Peter: Next. |
| Naomi: 金持ち (kane mochi) |
| Peter: Rich, rich person. |
| Naomi: (slow)かねもち (Kane mochi) (natural speed) 金持ち (kane mochi) |
| Peter: Next |
| Naomi: 問題外 (mondai gai) |
| Peter: Out of the question, unthinkable. |
| Naomi: (slow)もんだいがい (Monda i ga i) (natural speed) 問題外 (mondai gai) |
| Peter: Next |
| Naomi: 頼りない (tayorinai) |
| Peter: Weak, unreliable. |
| Naomi: (slow)たよりない (Tayorinai) (natural speed) 頼りない (Tayorinai) |
| Peter: Next. |
| Naomi: 完璧 (kanpeki) |
| Peter: Perfect, complete. |
| Naomi: (slow)かんぺき (kanpeki) (natural speed) 完璧 (kanpeki) |
| VOCAB AND PHRASE USAGE |
| Peter: Let’s have a closer look at the usage for some of the words and phrases from this lesson. Naomi Sensei, what we have next is a phrase that I love. |
| Naomi: Yeah because that’s so you. |
| Peter: Well we are laughing at it but let’s hear the phrase and then I want to touch on this a bit. Naomi Sensei. |
| Naomi: 性格が悪い (Seikaku ga warui) |
| Peter: Have a bad personality. |
| Naomi: I was just joking. |
| Peter: Well first let’s break it down. First we have |
| Naomi: 性格 (Seikaku) |
| Peter: Personality or character. |
| Naomi: 悪い (Warui) |
| Peter: Means bad. |
| Naomi: So personality bad. |
| Peter: Yeah and bad, the kanji for this is actually evil. So personality is evil. |
| Naomi: Evil personality. |
| Peter: The opposite phrase is |
| Naomi: 性格がいい (Seikaku ga ī) |
| Peter: Personality good. Can we have a sample sentence? |
| Naomi: 絵理花さんは性格が悪い。 (Erika-san wa seikaku ga warui.) |
| Peter: Erica has a bad personality. |
| Naomi: 絵理花さんは性格がいい。 (Erika-san wa seikaku ga ī.) |
| Peter: Erica has a nice personality. Now that’s a translation. I have a little story. I will just kind of sum it up but I know for fact that 性格が悪い (Seikaku ga warui) is probably one of the nastiest things you can say to people. |
| Naomi: そう？(Sō?) |
| Peter: I have had, like shocking results like in English, you know it’s, you are not nice but some of the reaction that I had from saying this to people have been unbelievable like that’s the worst thing someone’s ever said to me. |
| Naomi: うそ、私よく使いますけどね。(Uso, watashi yoku tsukaimasukedo ne.) When I am joking with my friends, I often use this 性格わる～い！とか (Seikaku waru ~ i! Toka) You are evil とか (Toka) you are witch とかって言うとき。 (To katte iu toki.) |
| Peter: That’s going to illustrate my next point. You are a witch right? Think of that genre not you have a bad personality but you are a witch or you are kind of heading in that direction. You are really calling someone nasty. It’s not like oh you have a bad personality. It’s like you are nasty. You are like mean. You are really mean from the inside. So yeah I’d be a little careful with this one. Naomi Sensei uses it with her friends but they are on really good terms. Would you ever joke with an acquaintance with say 性格が悪い。 (Seikaku ga warui.) |
| Naomi: ああ。だめですね。 (Ā. Damedesu ne) Be careful who you use this word to. |
| Peter: The next word is |
| Naomi: 優しい (Yasashī) |
| Peter: Now when 優しい (Yasashī) is used to describe someone’s personality, it means kind or gentle but やさしい (Yasashī) also means easy or simple. |
| Naomi: そうですね。 (Sōdesu ne.) Kanji is different though. |
| Peter: So please check the kanji in the PDF. Can we have a sample sentence? |
| Naomi: 私の先生は優しい。 (Watashi no sensei wa yasashī.) |
| Peter: My teacher is kind. |
| Naomi: このレッスンは易しい。(Kono ressun wa yasashī.) |
| Peter: This lesson is easy. So the same pronunciation but the kanji is different. The way you could tell the difference in the previous two sentences was by looking at what was being talked about. |
| Naomi: そうですね。(Sōdesu ne.) |
| Peter: So we are talking about the teacher’s personality and the lesson’s difficulty level. Okay on to today’s grammar point. |
Lesson focus |
|---|
| Peter: In this lesson, we are going to learn how to ask and give the reason why. “Why” in Japanese is? |
| Naomi: どうして (Dōshite) |
| Peter: There is also another way but for now, we are going to focus on どうして (Dōshite) and usually when you are asked why, you respond with because |
| Naomi: Such and such から (Kara). |
| Peter: In the dialogue, we add. |
| Naomi: どうして下山さんが好きですか？ (Dōshite Shimoyama-san ga sukidesu ka?) |
| Peter: Why do you like Mr. Shimoyama? Now one thing that’s interesting, I think in “why,” it’s easier for foreigners to use because usually it comes in the front of the sentence much like English. So why do you like Mr. Shimoyama? Why is it in the front here? どうして (Dōshite) Naomi Sensei, could you drop どうして (Dōshite) and say the sentence again? |
| Naomi: 下山さんが好きですか？ (Shimoyama-san ga sukidesu ka?) |
| Peter: So this means do you like Mr. Shimoyama? As you can see, it’s a simple yes/no question. To ask for a reason, just add どうして (Dōshite) in front of the simple question. It’s the same as English, why? |
| Naomi: どうして (Dōshite) |
| Peter: Do you like Mr. Shimoyama? |
| Naomi: 下山さんが好きですか。 (Shimoyama-san ga sukidesu ka.) どうして下山さんが好きですか？ (Dōshite Shimoyama-san ga sukidesu ka?) |
| Peter: Now again as you mentioned, a lot of times when you are asked why, you give a reason and in Japanese, this is where the particle から (Kara) is used quite often. So we are going to take a look at that now. Naomi Sensei, can we have a sample sentence from the dialogue? |
| Naomi: タイプじゃないから。 (Taipu janaikara.) |
| Peter: Because you are not my type. In a formal situation, this would be |
| Naomi: タイプじゃないからです。 (Taipu janaikaradesu.) |
| Peter: Although I don’t think you will use this. I don’t know, maybe now you just put です (Desu) after |
| Naomi: から (Kara) |
| Peter: Of course there are a lot of ways to give the reason but the simplest way is |
| Naomi: から (Kara) |
| Peter: For informal situations and |
| Naomi: からです (Karadesu) |
| Peter: For formal situations. In that case, the phrase before から (Kara) has to be informal. |
| Naomi: Right. It’s not タイプじゃありませんからです。 (Taipu jaarimasenkaradesu.) |
| Peter: So what comes before から (Kara) can’t be in the polite form. It has to be informal. Naomi Sensei |
| Naomi: はい。 (Hai.) |
| Peter: どうして性格が悪いですか？ (Dōshite seikaku ga waruidesu ka?) |
| Naomi: え？なに？ (E? Nani?) You are asking me why I am so evil? |
| Peter: Yeah. |
| Naomi: それはピーターさんが性格が悪いからです。 (Sore wa pītā-san ga seikaku ga waruikaradesu.) |
| Peter: It’s because I am evil also. |
| Naomi: I will be an evil person to an evil person but if you are nice to me, I will be very nice to you. |
| Peter: So you are going to be nasty to nasty people. なるほど。 (Naruhodo.) |
Outro |
| Naomi: 皆さんはどうして日本語を勉強していますか？教えてください。 (Minasan wa dōshite nihongo o benkyō shite imasu ka? Oshietekudasai.) |
| Peter: So listeners, why are you studying Japanese? Please let us know your answer in the comments section. |
| Naomi: よろしくお願いします。 (Yoroshikuonegaishimasu.) |
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