My Thoughts on Learning Japanese

Whenever I tell my friends that I’m taking Japanese for minor, they will say “wow!”, and I can detect a certain level of incredulity in their tone. Then, a few questions may follow. “Are you going to Japan?”, “Are you going to take up International Business?” and so forth. Well, these might be the answers, but not the ones that have actually succeeded in motivating me to go for it. The ultimate force that has driven me to take up Japanese is my unfaltering passion for language! Before I studied Japanese, I have heard some people say how monstrous it is, and no matter how hard you study, you can never get good grades. In short, getting A is simply unattainable. To say that these have failed to instil some fear in me is a lie. Indeed, I was worried that I might make the wrong choice and regret later. But, the philosophy of “following your heart”, which I advocate, nudged me roughly at this time and insisted that I should not give up what I love, before trying. So, before I knew, I am attending the Japanese lesson, with a few more weeks to go before finishing the first level!!!

Well, what do I think of this foreign language called Japanese? One word. “Omoshiroi(interesting)!” I really find the structure of a Japanese sentence intriguing. For those who don’t know Japanese, it’s a language characterized by the use of particles, which are important markers of topic, time, place, and so on. For example. Watashi(I) wa toshokan(library) de eigo(English) o benkyoushiteimasu(studying)”. Literally this sentence says “I am studying English in the library”. The particles used here are “wa” which indicates the main topic “I”, and “de”, the place marker which implies that I am “in” the library, and lastly “o” which links the direct object “English” and the action “studying” together. Very unique, isn’t it so? And, to me, what is most interesting is that the verbs come last in a sentence! Imagine yourself saying “I am rice eating.” or “I am television watching." Very strange right? In fact, I had problem adapting at the beginning, but now I’ve gotten used to it! Moreover, the verbs can be conjugated in many ways. But I’m not going to talk about it here for it will be too long! And, ya, I’ve almost forgotten about the adjectives. Please don’t underestimate them. They can be changed into past tense and present tense! Haha!

Studying Japanese has also ignited my interest in the Japanese culture. Do you know that the choice of vocabulary is of vital importance when you speak with someone? And often, this is dictated by the relationships with the people around you. When you talk with the teachers, you must always use polite language. And, the failure to understand this fact might result in some rather awkward and embarrassing situations. So, be careful! And by the way, I really really really feel like going to Japan one day after learning Japanese!! I hope that God will grant my wish!

In short, 日本語は本当に面白いです。僕は日本語が大好きですよ！日本語を勉強してよかったです。(nihongo wa hontou ni omoshiroi. Boku wa nihongo ga daisuki desu yo. Nihongo o benkyou shite yokatta desu.) Japanese language is really interesting and I like it very much! I’m glad that I studied Japanese.)