LANGUAGE AND CULTURE
3 Reasons I Avoid Speaking Japanese Living in Japan
日本に住む私が日本語を避ける３つの理由
日本に生まれ育った身としては、日本語の悪口を言うのは気が引ける。もちろん柔らかい響きとか、好きなところもある。それでも往々にして、自分は日常生活の中で日本語を避けているなぁと感じることは多い。まだまだ英語がうまくなりたいというのもあるのだけれど、どうもそれだけではないような気がする。
Born and raised in Japan, it makes me feel uncomfortable to speak ill of the Japanese language. Of course, there are some things that I like, such as its soft sound to the ears. And yet, every so often, I find myself avoiding it in daily life. One reason is that I’m still passionate about becoming a better English user, but there’s something beyond that I can’t put my finger on.
1. Japanese Is the Worst Language for Discussion
日本はハイコンテクストな文化だとよく言われる。主語がないのは当たり前、みな曖昧な言葉で本音と建て前を使い分け、空気まで読むのだからめちゃくちゃ複雑だ。
It is often said that Japanese culture is high-context. Subjects like I and we are naturally lost in conversations. People camouflage honne (true feelings and intention) with tatemae (public statements) by elusive expressions. On top of that, we even read “air” between lines and facial expressions. You might have heard the idiom, kuuki wo yomu, meaning “read the air.” It’s incredibly complicated.
