Japan has a peculiar amount of cultural difference compared to America, hence there is a large population of people (especially younger generations) that would do just about anything to learn the language. As I teach Japanese, I have found the number one reason a person wants to learn this new language is because he/she wants to watch and understand Japanese anime (animation). Can someone learn Japanese by watching anime?
Since many students are reaching out towards anime as the preferred type of entertainment, why not use the media towards something educational. Now before you stop reading this article because you think I am a loony, please let me inform you ahead of time that I am not advising anyone to sit in front of the television screen for numerous hours in the pursuit of learning Japanese. Nor am I advising anyone to skip Japanese class or lessons to watch anime. So with that out of the way, I would love to help those students out there looking to learn Japanese little by little by the way of Japanese anime.
Learning Japanese through Anime Tip #1:
There are various types of anime available over the internet or even in some larger American cities. Each one can range from three-year old animated cartoons to fifty-year old adult animations, each being age appropriate to the viewer. It is important to read up on review comments for each anime because an anime that seems to be age appropriate may not always stay true to the marketing photos. This is especially important for parents to note if they are seeking to purchase anime for their children without doing too much research online first. There are good websites to find out more information on each anime, seek reviews at Anime News Network; Animetric; and/or Anime Reviews.
Learning Japanese through Anime Tip #2:
In addition to finding the perfect anime to learn Japanese, it is also important to note that not all anime is good for learning Japanese. For instance, the aspiring ninja called Naruto Uzumaki in the popular Naruto series (originally from manga) can have rather aggressive intonation and impolite Japanese usage. So, unless your future aspiration is to become a Genin (rookie/beginner Ninja) after graduation from the “Ninja Academy”, I do not highly suggest this series. For those of you not looking to be a Genin, I suggest finding more “normal” everyday anime to watch for learning purposes. For instance a few good anime to learn Japanese are:
Anime #1:Atashinchi
Anime #2: Detective Conan
Anime #3: Girls High
Anime #4: Dear Boys
Anime #5: Hamutaro (young kids)
Learning Japanese through Anime Tip #3:
Now that you have your anime picked out from the millions available throughout the world, it is time to get started to learn. Since there are usually many different types of characters, it is important to pick out a specific character that resembles yourself and your lifestyle. For instance, if there are two characters one being a pirate and the other being a normal teenager, I would hope that you would pick the character that is a “normal” teenager. Unless of course your aspirations are to become a pirate and sail the deep blue seas the rest of your life, I shall not discriminate against occupational choices. My basic meaning to this tip is that it is important to pick a gender and character that resembles you as close as possible. By doing this selection process, you will not sound strange regurgitating an accent or slang that is geared towards the opposite gender.
A great example that pops into mind when talking about this is from my college years and visiting my husband at his college. The men in his college were engrossed into Japanese animation however since it was a private engineering college, there were no Japanese classes to be taken to learn the language. So, these grown men would practice their Japanese on me in which they had learned the wrong way through hours upon hours of watching animation. Two of my husband’s friends had fallen into the category of just listening to all the characters and memorizing the language that way. They were not biased to the characters’ gender hence when they would speak to me each one of them sounded like a pre-teenage girl. Now, these two gentlemen were great people and had learned a good deal of Japanese just by watching anime however they failed to follow this simple tip listed above. Although it was for a good laugh, I am sure these two men would have been very embarrassed if they had used their language skills on natives.
Learning Japanese through Anime Tip #4:
This next tip comes from my own interest in watching anime and reading manga. In my household, my husband always gets irritated with watching anything that is fully subtitled in English for a long period of time. Although not intentional, I tend to hear the Japanese being spoken and read all the English subtitles, it is a habit since they are there right at the bottom of the screen. It is not long into a Japanese film or anime before my husband is gritting his teeth due to the fact that I am yelling (yes, of course out loud for all to hear) at the translator that has done a poor job.
Hence my next tip is to suggest not just reading the subtitles or captions in English and comparing the two together with the Japanese. Most of the time (which initiates my yelling at the translator) the translator has done a transliteration which means that the translator has taken the translation and gotten the gist of the original but has re-written the script to fit into the English language. In addition, when re-writing a transliteration, the translator can fit the English script into what will interest the Westerners watching the media in English. This happens a lot with Japanese anime when a character insults another character with intonation and in the transliteration the translator writes in that the character has sworn at the other character. Note that there are no swear words in Japanese, these words are only found in English transliterations for some reason.
My suggestion is to watch each anime at least two times. It is helpful, especially for beginners to the language, to watch the anime the first time with English subtitles. The second time, take off the subtitles if possible and just listen and watch the anime in full Japanese. Since you will already understand the main idea of what is going in the anime, you will be able to pick up words and sentences that are in Japanese. This makes your mind form around the Japanese language instead of concentrating on the English subtitles.
Learning Japanese through Anime Tip #5:
I am not one of those people that have the ability to recite every sentence in anything I have ever seen before in my life as some people can, so I tend to write down new words or phrases that I wish to learn and remember. During college I was the index card queen and I still have forms of the addiction still today. Hence, I tend to write things down on index cards and taken them along with me everywhere I go. I will go through flash cards to learn new words when I have down time – repetition is how I learn. Remember that the dictionary is your best friend when learning a new language, even when learning Japanese through anime. Look up words that you do not know the meaning (for the most part, please steer clear of the English translation) and learn the true meaning of the word of phrase.
Learning Japanese through Anime Tip #6:
Repeat phrases or words with the usage of the rewind button. Japanese is driven a lot by intonation so it is important to listen and copy what the original character is saying in Japanese. After I learn the intonation that is necessary for a new word or phrase, I repeatedly use the word or phrase throughout the entire next week. It may drive the people in your life crazy however you will be learning Japanese.
Learning Japanese through Anime Tip #7:
Take what you learn from anime and use it whenever possible. For instance, you can write a blog or you can test your language skills out on friends whom also speak Japanese. I tend to use Japanese on people that do not speak Japanese and their reactions usually help me remember the new phrase or word easily.
Now that you know these seven simple tips to learning Japanese through anime, get out there and start watching anime and reading manga. Let me your personal experiences and how your Japanese has progressed throughout the entire process.
