Saddled with the burden of being ina relatively peaceful,
law-abiding coun-try,theJapanesej ustdon' thavethe crime and
violence that USnewscast-erscancountontospiceupthe evening report.
Theymake up for the lackofmayhembypayingmore
attentiontopoliticalandeconomic news-anddependonopinionated anchors
to add the necessary spark. Japaneetelevisionboastsa
ctiversefieldofoption;whi lecable TV, satellite broadcasting, and
HDTV are still small, they are making steady inroads. There are
over 19,000 private stationsownedby121 broadcasting companies
sending out TVnews and otherofferi ngstosome125million viewers.Of
thoeviewers,98.9per-cent owncolor TV sets, 35million of which are
officially hookedupto the quasi-governmentalnetworkNippon
HosoKyokai(NHK),whichbroad-castsnationwide.Twenty-eightper-centalsohavesatellitebroadcast
receivers-thebeuertoviewCNN with-andabout75percentofthe population
can tape TVnews broad-cast.-;on their VCRs(knownhereas VTRs) for
later viewing. Foreign newsprograms areavail-ableby either cable or
satellite inthe fonnofBBCWorldandCNN International.Neither, alas,is
pennit-tcd24-hourbroadca.-;tingyet,except at major hoteland
luxuryapartment buildingsin Tokyo, Osaka, Kobe, and Kyoto, though
change is reportedly in the works now that NHK has given up on its
idea for a Global News Network withanAsianperspectivetorival CNN.
ThebasicTVlineupconist.-;of fivemajor commercial televiion
net-works,plus NHK. "Start the day with NHK"couldbetheir
slogan:NHK's is the first news broadcast in the
morn-ing(fromasearlyas5:00 AMon orne days), though not always the
last at night.Before ending the day with a
renditionofthenationalanthem, NHK willhavebrought you asmany as 21
newsshows(each lastingfrom 5- 30 minutes, scheduled back to back at
peakhours)throughout the day. Likethenationalnewspapers,
Japan'sTVstationshavefairly distinctpoliticalpersonalities.There
isenoughdiversityamongthesta-tions, however, to forestall charges
of anovemll"mediabias."NHK,for example,is finnly on the sideof the
conservative establishment, while the mayhem= !Ji,)J boryoku!M!th
,,ik/(1forestall = *=1'?.\'.:jljj akiraka ni suru I ;31. ijl:l 't
J.> setsumei suru antics = ..&.. n t Juzake IE t' It odoke
severalyearsago.Sakuraimadequiteanimpressionon viewersby conducting
on-air interviewsinfluent English and Chinese. In the aftermath of
the Tokyo subway gassing of 1995, she earned agreat deal of respect
for refusingtolet any mem-bersof theAumShinrikyoappear
onhershowunlesscult leader Asahara Shoko himself did,
incontrasttothe parade of Aum-iteselsewhere. Another notable female
announceris TV Tokyo's anchor for theII PM "WorldBusiness
Satellite." Nonaka Tomoyo is, in Reid's words,"the queenof her
show":professional,sharp, confident, fullyincontrol.Likemost news
anchors, shecame fromajournalismbackground,buthersspansboththeUS
(journal ismschool)and Japan(newspaper reporter).Sheis
Mangajin15
three hff1f(Gf1by SHINICHIYI1ND firM translation from Japanese:
New Lanchester Strategy Vol. 1 Lanchester's equations of
combat,strategy model, principle of concentration, tactics,
strategy and application to marketing 174pp. 5 ch. ISBN
1-57321-000-5$17.95 New Lanchester Strategy Vol. 2 Sales and
Marketing for the Weak Tactics and strategy for market entry, local
battles, single and close combat, concentration and diversionary
tactics. Case studies in retai l, restaurant and manufacturing
industry. 170 pp. 6 ch.ISBN1-57321-004-8$17.95 New Lanchester
Strategy Vol. 3 Sales and Marketing for the Strong Defense of
existinQmarket position, response to competition, stochastic
wide-area andremote battles for market share. 178 pp. 6
ch.ISBN1-57321-005-6$17.95 SETOF THREEVOLUMESONLYMMQ
Calll-800-247-6553, or fax PO to: 408-732-7723
http://www.lanchester.com assistedby younger male co-anchors and
reporters and converses confidently with guest commentators. Ando
Yilkoof Fuji TV started as a newsroom nobody,but worked her wayup
throughpersistenceand apowerfulpresence.She took over theanchor
roleon "News Japan" atII PM fromamale newscaster, Kimura Taro, who
continues in the elder statesmanrole of commentator. Their gains
notwithstanding, the female anchors did not even figure in the
recent Yomiuri Shimbun media poll. The top five news anchors were,
in descending order, Kume Hiroshi, Chikushi Tetsuya, Tawara
Soichiro, Kimura Taro,andSekiguchi Hiroshi.Connie Chung may
stillhave betteroptionsathome. Itmaybeasign of thematuring of
mediainJapanthattheinfl uence of the media itself isbecoming more
of a topic of public debate. A recent Yomiuri Shimbun pollshowed
viewersare questioning theinfluenceof the TVmediaonpolitics andthe
tumof public events.Indeed, a TV Asahi executive once claimed,
"Itwas televis
ionthatcreatedthenon-LOPgovernment."Atarecentinternational
symposium on TV coverage of the50th anniversaryof the end of
WorldWar IT, criticismwasvoicedatthefailureof
theJapanesenewsprogramsto"present their audiencewithconcrete
examples indicating that Japanwas the aggressorin
thePacificWar."Ttwasdecidedthat,sincethemediacanshapemankind's
values,they"should dotheirbesttocontributetothepromotionof
universal ethics forthebenefitof mankind,"reported the
DailyYomiuri.Itremainstobe seenhowthese
loftygoalswillbeaccommodatedinthechangingTVnews environment. J
eanmarie Toddwatches the 6:00AM NHK news in her cozy apartment in
Tokyo. persistence= tl nebarizuyosa - notwithsLanding=- !.:b 1!'
1!' t? I? i ' mo kakawarazu ethics=J!l!. rinri I I1l:
f!/l\d/Jtoku_J Finally,NEW I-SHIRTS MangajinfJ Stylish,
comfortable, and definitely not available at your local store. Two
new shirt designs enhance the Mangajin line and carry on the
tradition of comfort and great style. Perfect to give as a holiday
gift! loc T (top left) This shirt features asymbol familiar to
anyone who has visited Japan during the summer. The kanji is for
"ice" and is used by shops selling the Japanese version of
sno-cones. Two-color design (red and blue). 100% colton Hanes
BeelyT. #M0020 Lor XL $1S.OO Super Gaijin (top right) So you're not
Japanese. No need for embarrassment. In fact, let everyone know
you're OK-even super! This long-sleeve Tbears the kanji characters
Cho-Gaijin, with the words "Super Gaijin" underneath. Great to wear
to the next Japanese Friendship Society meeting you attend. Black
design on white shirt; 100% cotton Hanes Beefy-T. #M0019 Lor XL
$17.SO H6't don't -Forget the original designs! Logo T
(bottomleft)-traditional Mangajin logo shirt. Black design on
whiteshirt. SO/SO blend. #M0018 Lor XL $12.50 Samurui
T(bottomright)-the original Mangajin shirt.1 00% cotton. Six-color
design on white shirt. #M0017 Lor XL $15.00 Four Styles To Choose
From! TO oru>m Add S&H charge (if order total is under $15,
S&H=$2.75 / $15.01-$30=$3.75 I $30.01-$50=$4.75 I over
$50=$5.75). We accept MasterCard, Visa. checks, and money
orders(made out to Mangajin and drawn from US funds). Please allow
24 weeks tor delivery. -fax to 57Or[;.
lf?;l)>1:t).,ojige-zukaseru I(}).. i1:t)..lrirumaseru hefty=
lf!:t.; v'omotai I;t;' ').:x. - 1.. IJoryiimuno aru obsessive =
it\'!l!l!: (J)kado no III):'? ;/)> tt t.;toritsukareta
pedestrian = t.;(J)arikitari no I I) h. tt t.;arifurew be enticed=
tt).. yiiwaku sareru I ltJ> h. .0hikaruu Mangajin55 COMPUTER
CORNER ing-lt-with-y0u Some words of wisdomfroma seasoned
computer-totingtraveler M ovingis oneof li fe'
smoststressfulexperiences.
Oftentimesit'sthelittlethingswhicharethemost aggravating. Things
likenothaving theright electri -cal adapter or being chastised for
putting ones trah i n the wrong colorbaghaveawayof
acceleratingthatfirstfalldownthe ''W-curve of sojourner adjustment.
When computers are intro-duced into the equation. it's possibleto
go from "honeymoon to "hel l'' in an afternoon. Where to Buy
YourComputer Whether youshouldbuyacomputerhereor inJapanisa
difficult question thesedays since computer prices in Japan are
much more reasonable than they were j ust a few years ago. On
lightlyolder systems. it"s often possible to find deals that are
veryaltractive- providedyoucanuseaJapanese-language operati
ngsystem. Unless you need a really powerful desktop system. you
should considerbuyinga laptopcomputerbeforegoingtoJapan.If you buy
a laptop. don' t shi p it-carryit with you on the plane. PCMCIA(PC
card) modems range in price from $100 to $250. sobuy onewhenyou
getthelaptop.Many newlaptopshave built-in CD-ROM players.If you get
a set of powered spc:lkers, you'll be abletouseyour laptop asa
stereo.Don't skimp on RAM- if you planto usc Windows 95 or a
Macintosh make sure your computer has atleast16 megabytes of RAM.
Thecomputer shouldawarrantyspecificallystating that your machine is
eligible for worldwide service. Most com-puter makers will not
service your equipment unlessyou have such a warranty.Al ways check
thefine print before you buy. Shipping a desktop system to Japan is
an expensive and risky proposition.I f you decide to do so.keep in
mind that shipping your desktop system out of Japan will cost more
than a one-way ticket backtowherever you camefrom.For those of
youwho do decidetoship desktop systemstoJapan.thinkaboutthe
possibility of making the trip "one way" ( i.e., sell it in Japan).
PhoneandElectric Lines Electrical current in the western half of
Japan ialmost thearne as in the US ( I 00 volts AC at 60 Hz): i n
the eastern half it is not ( I 00 volts AC a150 Hz). (The US
standard iII 0 volts AC at 60 Hz.) The split in current is
east/west with the dividing line along 56Mangajin by Erilkansei
surucomplete (v.) miokurisend/see off [on atrip]i L.mochironof
course Jt!'ic-t J.>shihai suru rule/take over plfQ -L,I'ic
shinpaiworry/concernj!-fg meishinsuperstitjon yabunlateat night
muue hunger/starvation JfH!f:yifkenitem/matter of bus iness
gizenshahypocrite tsukiairelati onship;n{z;.:r idensh.igenes
}JIJhl.> wakarerupart/separate/break up (v.)tf(dojosoil
j!fkyodohometown/district h.iryo fertilizer !:l:.trumuproduce/give
birth to ntF-1-tJ.>seiikusurugrow issokutalented
person/prodigy;J, 3( komugiwheat :iR* senkyoelectionL f.p
'->shikamomoreover f urinadultery shokubutsuplant (n.) chimei
-teki 1zafatal/mortal*!IJ"jj saikinbacteria yosoelement yobun nutri
ents 1iiJ$nanitozopl ease/kindly1"}!:1:.-tJ.>saisei suru
resuscitate/regenerate naisho deinsecrecy;R;:J-tensaigenius
Janomirequest(11.) sosho lawsuit saishiwife &child jidan
out-of-court settlement go-zonji desuknow lililJ'Gsai
-yiisenhighestpriority tJJiitbaaisituation :?ubau steal (v.)
doto noequal Amhitogarapersonality tsum.iguilt "'etainoshi
renaimysterious 15-lf 7,;,tsugerutell/ informJtiJ'gjogen
advice/counsel :t31iv'o-tagaieach other'fmi:!rinri ethics
shoraifuture il!!.1Jchiryoku [soil] fertility
tl:\'"(*7,;,detekuruemerge/comeout T-=ECTJfumo no in ferti
Ie/barren J,qf-r 7,;, biko surufollow/tail
*Lt.:taishitaadmirable/amazing .ilU'i!Af4sanfujin-kaobstetrics
dept./clini c From Mammoth-like Ojosama,82;JvtlJ-'F
kogitte[bank]check hiyocosts(n. ) sassokupromptly
if.P;>j:?makanaupay/finance (v.) denkiyaappliance store
1383jiyiifreedom ;tffi S!:iJshiishokukatsudojob search
kenriright/authority:'l;l;rj. c igaitosurprisingly saguru
probe/investigatefJJ-l.,1\rshoshinshabeginner The Vocabulary
Summary is taken from material appearing in this issue of
Mangajin.It 's not always possibleto give the complete range of
meanings for aword in this limited space,so our "definitions" are
based on the usage of the word in a particular story. Mangajin93
Kaji Ryfisuke no Gi KajiRyusuke's Agenda (Part 3) by~ ,EHirokane
Kenshi HirokaneKenshiisknownforhis complexdramasandforaysintothe
depthsof thehumanpsyche.Utilizingarealisticdrawingstyleinwhich
JapanesecharactersactuallylookJapanese(no blondehair or
hugeDiney-esqueeyes),Hirokanehas enjoyedgreatpopularitysi
ncethedebutof hi s fi rstserializedmangai
n1974.Storiesemergefromsettingsrangingfrom boardrooms tobedrooms to
newsrooms, andthough some of his best-known manga-NingenKosaten and
Last News- werewrittenby other authors and drawn by Hirokane,Kaji
Rytlsuke no Gi is solely Hirokane's work.Kajihas
beenserializedinMR.Magajinsince1991. KajiRyusuke, the 39-year-old
second son of a powerfulpol itician,is from Kagoshimaontheislandof
Kyushu.Inthefirsttwoepisodes presentedin
Mangajin,wesawRyusukepersuadedtogiveuphissuccessfulbusiness career
in Tokyo to takeup politics inhis hometown.Now he is determined to
be electedto represent Kagoshima in the Diet, butonly if it is onhi
s own terms:hehashisownagenda.focusingonnationalpolicyinsteadof the
standardpork-barrelfare. lchinosekiAyumiis aformerco-worker of
Ryusuke' s. Sheis al sohis loverandhasrecentlyrevealedthat
sheispregnant.Inthelastepisode, RyusukecalledonAyumitolether
knowthathewouldbereturningto Kagoshima (andto hi s wife and son).
But he assuredAyumi that she would stillbea partof hislife. Chapter
8: Now, the Launch On paper:Taishoku-negai ("Request for
Resignation"). YamamotoMakioistheheadof Ryusuke'selecti
oncommitteein Kagoshima.Itwas Yamamoto'smi-sionto convinceRyusuke
to takeup politics,andhavingcompletedthat task,it seems heis now
11yingto put Ryusuke'spersonallifein order. In this episode, the
last of the excerpts presentedin Mangajin,Ryusuke meets againwith
his friends lJmori and Kurachi, the chief of the Dainichi
newspaper's political desk and an officer for the Foreign Mini
ster, respectively. 0llorokaneKcn,ho. All right' rc''""'d. FoN
publi'hed on Japan in1992 by Kodansha.o ~ O . Engli>h
tran,lation nght' arranged through Kodan>ha. Mangajin17 !Jn;t;
ili 11"(J) Kaji Ryusuke no Gi 18Mangajin Gaimu-sM MiDistry of
Foreign Alrairs -shii is a suffix used in tbe names of government
ministries; gaimu = "foreign/external affairs,'' so Gaimu-sM =
"Minis-try of Foreign Affairs" (equivalent to the US State
Department). Sign:Kissa-shitsu TeaRoom kissa refers to the drinking
of tea, and -shitsu is a suffi x meaning 'room": kissa-shitsu
=''tea room/coffee shop." Omori:-f-)iJ'o"?lt'l:11fli)f.;iJ'o
SOlea.Tsui-niyameUJka. tbat way(?)finallyquit(?) "Is that so? You
finally did quit, did you?" "Abaa. so you ftnally took
theplunge."(PL2) sii ka is used to acknowledge that one has heard
and understood what the other person has said, like"Is that so?/1
Abaa." tsui-ni ="at longlast/finally," implying "after much
effort/many hardships," or "after much anticipation/waiting."
)VJIMUl is tbe plain/abrupt past form of yameru ("stop/quit"),
which when written with this kanji specificallymeans "quit
wort/resign from office."
Kaji:-)!v,ats"'-::>LJ::''v'"t'I61f:f}J'>t.:.
t;;f-lj-7;-{l.J.:.o Urz,kirziJippaidejfirokurzerztsutometaMaruko
Bussantoosaraba shita. uh-huh yesterdayfull/end of day(scope)16
yrsworked(co. name)withpaned/said goodbye "Uh-huh. As of the end of
the day yesterday, I said goodbye to MarukoProducts, where l worked
for16 years." ''Ub-huh. Yesterday markedthe end of16ears at
Maruko."(PL2) ippai (daldesu) means "isfull." but- ippai de after a
time word referring to a day/week/month/year makes an expression
for "as of the end of [the specified day/weeklmonlhlyear]." De
often marks a n a moun! or scope; in this use itin effect marks the
specified 'full day/week/month/year'' as the scope in time.
rswomera is the plain/abrupt pastform of the verb tswomeru, whjch
means "work [as an employee]";jtlrokunen tsutometa is a complete
thought/sentence("! I)worked [there)16 years") modifying MarukiJ
Bussarz("Maruko Products"). osaraba shira is the plain/abrupt past
form of osaraba suru, which means "say goodbye (to)" or "part/break
off relations (with)." Mangajin19 Q_Q I ' ... 20Mangajin Kuracbi:
rr "t"v>-r.to-t- C:> kankei no naiwatashigatanominikuru
unrelatedUme(subj.)request(purpose) come ;>j:!v"lc'-?
-rtH1H...v'o nalltedokangaetemookashii. a thinglikehoweven if
thinkis Strange ' 'I know. No matter how you lookat iit's odd for a
straner like me to come toou in secret and ask athing like
this."(PL2) tanomi is the noun fonn of ranomu ("request"), and ni
marks it as thepurpose of kum ("come"):tanomi ni kuru = "come to
ask/request." nanre can be considered a colloquial equivalent of
nado, or of an entire phrase like nado to iu korolmono wa
(literally. "a thing/place/person/action that is something like -
). It's often used toimply the preceding is
""ridiculous/inap-propriate/unthj nkable."
Yamamoto:l-fJ'l-,.:.-?Tol-fJ' ;>j:v' !! do - remo, with
averbfillinginthebla nk,makes theex-pression, "no matter how [one
does the action]."Kangaete is the -tefonnof kangaeru ("think
about"), so do kangaete mo ="no matter how one thinks about
it/looks at it." Shikashi,kOsurushikanail butthiswaydomust ' 'But I
had no other choice!"(PL2) shika nai after averb implies that doing
that action is the only option: " have no choice but to/must(do the
action)." @]Yuaamoto: .:. nl;;l:B= A(J)r..,ll"t'To
Tashilea-nilwrewao-futarinonwndaidesu. certainly/IISSIUedlythisas
for (hon.)-2 persons'sproblemis "'t's true tbat tbls is a matter
for tbe two of you."(PL3-4) l,fJ>\...., f.t1i1:bfi!J bv'fJ'C
f!of oJ"t' {>;>j: v'0 Shilcashi,anoia nohonimonani nw hi ga
naileatoiebaso denwnai. butyoursideonalsothere's II()( any
fault(?)(qu01e) if say/asknot necessarily so "But if one asks
whether there is not any fault on your side, it's not necessarily
so." "But you're not necessarily wltbout fault, eitbe!!''(PL3)
tashilea ni - da/desu means "It is certainly/assuredly _.. or "it
is true/indeed the casethat -." futari ="two persons/a couple'"; he
uses the honorific pre(ix o- because his listener is one of the two
people he' s referring to, so o-futari is effectively like saying
"you two/the two of you." nani nw followed by a negative means "
not anything"; nani mo nai = "thereis not anything/there is
nothing." When one wishes tobe more specific about what there is
nothing of, the specificwordis inserted in the middle: uani mo hi
ga noi = "there is not any fault/error/blame." anaiiJ no hO ni nw
nani mo hi ga nai leais a complete embedded question, "isthere
nofault on your side, too?" ieba is a conditional ("if/when") form
of iu ("say,"but here meaning "ask''); tomarks what is asked: "if
you ask' Is there no fault on your side?"'"
8JYamamoto::IJOi5lv1:li7Jr o o.7r: (J).:. c .::rHo-r:-tJ:h o
Kaji-sanniwasaishigaaru.Sonokotoogo-wnj i de.wyone. (name-hon.)
toas
forwife&child(subj.)exists/hasthatthing/fact(obj.)(hon.)know(cmph.)
(colloq.) "Mr. Kaj! has awife and child. I believeou' re aware of
that."(PL4) normally, iru isusedto speak of the existence/presence
of people or other animate beings. but sometimes aru is used with
kinship tenns. go-zonji daldesuis aPL4 honorific equivalent of
shitte iru ("know"). 0lcbinoseki:X.X.. . . E . .. e is aless fonnal
'yes''than hai, but it' s still quitepolite. 0Yamamoto: ''Yes
."(PL3) " '"'"t:Ti.P?!'l'fffi...,-r:(J)l;;l:ffi"F(J)1J1:*l!t1Jf(J)
lidesu ka?Furintte110waaite110honikateigaantnooshiue good/OKis
it?adultery (quote) (nom.) as forpartnerofsideonfamily(subj
.)(nom.)(obj. ) know-and ?-r "' J.>tli*!;;l:-f(J)2$:-A1.:b$1Jr
o(J)"t:TJ:! tsukiatle irubaaiwasonohonninnimodora
norsumigaaru110desuyo! carrying on relationshipsituationas
forthatperson herselfinalsoequalguilt(subj.)exists(ex plan.)(emph.)
"You seeifou carronan adulterous affair knowing that your partneris
married, you yourself bear eualuilt."(PL3) ii desu kais
literallythe question "is it good/OK?," but it's sometimes used
idiomatically when beginning an explanation (like " You see, ...")
or an admonition (like "are you listeningtome?'" or "now listen
here' "). rte here is a coll oquial equivalent of to itt; -to iu no
wa after a nounis literally as for what is called - ."'which is
often j ust afancy way of marking the topic ("as for - "). nois
anominalizer that makes a completethought/sentence, aire no ho ni
katei ga aru ("thepartner has a family") act as a singlenoun.
0thenmarks that nounas the object of shiue. shitteisthe-teform of
shiru ("know"); the-teformisbe ingusedtoindicatethemanner of
thenextmentionedaction, tsukiatte iru ("is carrying on a
relationship," from tsukiau, "socialize/have a re lationship "carry
on arelationship knowing [thepartner has a family)."(continued on
next page) Mangajin33 .IJD1-8l!lfl' (J)~ l t Kaji Ryiisuke noGi
"'f* .f~ . 1 -'-~ fp tt (J) ?f;t- ._ \ 't:t1?1l (J) "'(t:.1: "?
li.~ 1: Jj\ "'( .m iri~lL.if. t:.t> t;> If .1) 0 t) ~ ! 1:-t
34Mangajin - (continued from previous page) from aite no to
tsukiatte iru is a a complete thought/sentence ("[the person] is
carrying on arelationship knowing that her partner has afamily")
modifying baai ("situation"). Wathen marks baai as a topic ("as
for-"}-in this case a second topic that serves to narrow down the
main topic: "[As for adultery], as for in a situation where the
person is carrying on ... [that person, too, has equal guilt]."
12]Yamamoto:4- it!. 11.:cSore ni,imanoraosolamaitoiunowaanoia
noo-karadQ.no kotoo besides thatnowif it isis not too
late(quote)say(nom.) as foryour(hoo.)-body/healthabout(obj.) .Z
-cQ).: c"t' b.oA-"t'To kangaetenokotodemo arun desu.
thinkingofthingis also(explao.) "Besides that, as for my saying 'If
it is now, it' s not too late,' it is also something that comes
from thinking about your physical condition." "Also, when I say
it's not too late if you do it now, I'm thinking about your present
physical condition, too."(PL3-4) he uses w iu no wa here to quote
what be saidpreviously andmake itinto his new topic. kangaete is
the -te form of kangaeru ("think'');- no koto o kangaeru ="think
about -."lbe -te form of a verb followed by no koto daldesu implies
"it is a thing that comes from [doing the action]." demo aru is de
aru (a more formal/literary equiv. of desu, "is/are") with mo
inserted for the meaning of''too(also" ..."is also." IT] Yamamoto:
't"Tt;r,fl,tt c.1!;1.-::>"C71'\- 1- Q)liiJ't">d:'
f.}:-::>"Cit'"C,
Shitsureidesuga,watashiwaanataniaiJtoomotte,apiitono mae
deanataomatte ite, rudeisbutlimeas foryouwithwillmeet(quote)
thinkingapartmentin front ofyou(obj.)was waiting for-and tl'. "C
*f::. T:tf::.Q)f&>d:' "?"'L. "CL. ;b> 'L.f::. o dete
kitacmatanoa tootsuibikiJ shite shimaimashita. emerged/came
outyouofafter (obj.) carelesslyfollowed/tailed-(undesirable) "I
must be2 vour pardonbut I was waitin2 forvou in front of
vourapartmentintendin2 to speak with you, and when you came out
Iinstinctively followedyou."(PL3) shitsurei is anoun for
"rudeness," so shitsurei desu ga is literally "it is a rudeness,
but ..."The expression is essentially an apology for having done,
or being about to do, something rude: "excuse me, but ..." aiJ is
the the volitional ("let's/l shall") form of au ("meet"), and
omotte is the -te form of omou ("think"); a volitional form
followedby to omou expresses intent, so aiJ to omotte ="I intended
to meet/I planned to meet [yu], and ..." The -te form is being used
to indicate the purpose of the next mentioned action, matte ite.
matte ite is the -te form of matte iru ("am/is/are waiting"), from
matsu ("wait"). This -te formmerely indicates that the preceding
took place before the following. dete kita ("came out") modifies
anata ("you") --+ "you who came out"; no makes this a modifier for
ato ("after/behind"). tsui implies doing an action
"carelessly/without really thinking/automatically/instinctively";
he's trying to imply that he found out about her physical condition
by accident. bikiJ shire is the -te form of bikiJ suru
("follow/tail"), and shimaimashita is the PL3 past form of shimau,
which after the -te form of a verb often implies the action was
undesirable/inappropriate: dete kita anata no ato o tsui bikiJ
shite shimaimashita = "I instinctively followed after you who came
out." [!)Yamamoto:Q):fi'tJ>ttf.:.ilffl'li ..A#o111!-tt A-
Q).i3T-tt A- "t'TQ.?
Anotanoikaretabashowasanfujin-ka.Ryiisuke-sannookosandesune?
you(subj .)wentplace as forobstetrics deptlclinic (name-bon.)'s
(hoo.)-child-(bon.)is(colloq.) "The place you went was an
obstetrics clinic. It' s Mr. K!Ui' s chUd, isn' t it?''(PLA) -EB-
daSan'in (name)obstetrics clinic - da Obstetrics ikareta isthepast
form ofikareru, aPL4 honorific equivalentofiku ("go"); anata no
ikareta is acomplete thought/ sentence ("you went [there]")
modifying basho ('place") __."the place you went."(continued on
next page) Mangajin35 bOIii l!i: 11' fJ)Ul Kaji Ryusuke noGi
36Mangajin (continuedfrom previ011S page) 8] Yamamoto:.:..:I:'J'
IjJ=f.-!Jf1:1$1:Kolwnikogiuegaarimasu.Anatani tamenimotte
kimashita. hereatcheck(subj.)exists/haveyoutog1vepurposeforbrought
"Ihave a check here. Ibrought it to give to you."(PL3-4) sashiageru
is aPL4 honorific equivalent of agertr ("give [to you]"). anata ni
sashiageru is a completethought/sentence ("[I] will give[it] to
you") modifying tame ("purpose"); anata ni sashiageru tame ni ="for
the purpose of givingitto you." motte is the -te form of motsu
("hold/carry") and kimashita is thePL3 past form of kuru ("come"),
somotte kimashita = "carried and came" -+ "brought."
q)Wffl,-tq)-ftl!11.:n-e
Shochinohiyo,sonotowalwredentllkanattekudasai.
dispolitiooofcostsetc.as fortiUswithpay/financeplease "Please use
it to cover the costs of disposibon and such." "PieMe to take care
of ' tblnp.."'(PL3) fllfiill!.:tli!i (partly bidden)Kogitte-
GinlcO1/cebulcuroShiten cbec:k(name)bl!lk (place)branch Check -
Bank Ikebukuro Bnmcb ._____ _ shochi refers 10 actions/measures
taken lo deal with/take care of/resolve a problem - "disposition."
makantute is the -te fonn of fMkanau ("paylfinance/cover lhe
COSI"), and kudasai makes it a polite request.
IT)Jddno-lrf:7Lilt:f.tll>b,-t lvf.t.: t!! b-? t"' tfl.q)El Ell"e
L .1:II Jiidanja naiwa,sonnalwto!!Umii to unuunai towatashi
nojiyUdesho!! jokeis not(fem. colloq.)that kind of wbccher give
birth or notUme'sfreedomis surely "Where do you get off, suaestiDg
a D.ke that! It's my own free cboke whether I have the baby or
DOt."(PL2-3) JthhiG8eld: 11t'-) "' -?-!Jf"IJ-?-rfl.q)t-
.olv"t'Til'?! AnatowaittaidO
iulcenrigaattewatoshinopura_ibashiiosagurun desulca?! youas for
(emph.)what kind ofright(subj.)havinglime' spnvacy(obj
.)probefmvestigate(explao.-?) ..As for you, with what kind of right
is it that you probe my privacy?'' "What rl&bt do you have to
10 diaio& Into my private life?!"(PL3) jQdlmja nai is literally
"il is 1101 a joke," and it's an expression for dismissing whatlhe
other person has said as ridiculous/ out of lhe
question/outrageous. Idiomatically it corresponds to expressions
like, "No way/Forget ii/You'vegOI to be kid-ding!Xou're out of your
mindflbisis DO laughing matter/You can't be serious/Mind your own
business!" wrr6 ta and unuunai to come from lhe verb umu
("bear/give binh"); lhe -oto- mai to (for some verbs, - yii to -
mai to) pattern means "wbether one does lhe action or DOl"-"whether
I give birth or not/whether I have lhe baby or 1101." jiyU
="freedom" and watoshi no jiyii = "my freedom"-" my own free
choice." desho (or deshO) literally expresses a conjecture ("il is
probably/surely [my free choice]"), butlhe conjecture here is
strictly rhetorical. Her sentence is acnaally avery strong
assertion, and feels more like: "It's my free choice, and you know
it!" inai is an emphasizer for question words: "(What)in the
world?/(How) on eartb?/(Where)lhe blazesr atte is lhe -te form of
aru ("exists/have"); ittai diJ iu lcenri ga atte = "having wbal
kind of right" - "with what kind of righl"
0Ichinoseki:.:.ttli.fl.'IWAq)r..,m "t'TtrGfl.q)"t'i*V>o:b!!
Korewawataslzilwjinnomandaidesukarawatashi110ishidekimenrwa!!
thisas for1/meindividual'sproblemisbecause/soVme'smindusingwill
decide (fern. colloq.) "Thisismy individual problem, so Iwill
decide usingmy own mind." "This is aurelrsonal matterso I'll make
umown mind."(PL2-3) watashi no mondai ="my problem"; watashi kojin
no mandai = "my individual/personal problem""a purely personal
mauer." ishi is anoun for "intention/intent/mind/wish," and de
marks it as themeans of an action: wataslzi no ishi de kimeru ="I
will decide according to my ownwishes/using my own mind."
[!)lddlaeld: LiT! Shilsureishimosu! rudenesswiUdo "Excuse me!"(PL3)
shitsurei is literally "rudeness/bad manners," and shimasu islhe
PL3 fonn of suru ("do"), so the expression essentially means"' will
do/commit a rudeness." Shitsurei shimasu is normally a polite way
to take one' s leave, like saying excuse me"when talting one's
leave in English, but in this case it's quite clear lhat her tone
is no longer polite. Note that becauae of !heir social relationship
(she is female,he is older. and they are not well acquainted) she
continues to use many PLJ forms even when she has become angry and
is DO longer coocemed about being polite. Mangajin37 Sawayaka
SandaMr. Fresh !l .::: 00 c c .2
c s Thunder 11 38Mangajin
Boss:4-8 *"'::r.. 7";:1'./1tlt"C , "t'T i.l'?! Rei- reidesu ka?l
(stammer)spirillghostis it? "G- ghost?"(PL3) sendai, literally
"previous generation" is used for speaking of thelast, and now
deceased, proprietor/master/head of household. In this case it
refers to the former shachii ("company president"). rei=
"souVspirit," especially of the dead, so it's often equivalent to
"gbost." OL: :j';f,f./{! Magogal grandchild(subj.) (PL2)
Shacho:f./>Q? Yil.zangyoka ne? (greeting) working late(?) " Hi
thereworking late, are you?"(PL2) Newcomer : (f)11:-RC ' Q. 1!!
.w.4::J ?{l:gf iOO The 4-Panel World Plan by 21.l.J :::J/'') .I J(;
/I Hatakeyama Konzern Agent:t 1"t'T,Uiitlv,:: Q) Jvt.t lv-IJ'?
Dodesu,slwcho-satr.ko11obiru what/howisco.
pres.-(hon.)thisbuildinga thing/place like ''What do_ou think,
sir?How about this building?"(PL3) I:' t':t::.!i-IJ'I:'it.!t- ::1Q)
b.A-::>"( i-ttlvJ: o
Dekitabakaridemadadoka110kaishamohaittemasenyo.
completedjustis-andstilVyetwhereof companyevennot entered/moved in
(emph.) "It's ' ust been comletedand no other comhas moved
ineL"(PL3) do desu? asks '' how is it?"in the sense of "what do you
think of it?"; coming from a salesperson/agentit essentially asks
whether thelistener is interested in purchasing/renting. nanka is a
colloquial nado ("something/someone/someplace like"), here
essentially functioning to mark the topic, like wa ("as for"). The
syntax isinverted; normal order would be korw biru narlka do desu?
(''as for this building, what do you think?/how about it?'} dekita
is the plain/abrupt past formof dekiru ("be completed"), and bakari
after a past verb means the action occurred ''just now/very
recently.'' haittemasen is a contraction of lwifle irnase11, thePL3
negative form of lwitte iru ("has entered/moved in"), from hairu
(''enter/move in"). Shacho:ifJ(!)i1f'i1-/){7.lQ)fj:fPJf.t(!)-IJ'P?
Agent: A11otochiigahanareteru110wa11a1111a 110 kane?
thatmiddle(subj.)is separatedpanas for what(explan.-?) "As for
thatpart where Lhe middle is separated, what 's the explanation for
that?" " What's with thatain the middle?"(PL2) '? A.. ? huh?/what?
" What?"(PL2-3) hanareteruisacontractionofhanarete
iru("isseparated").fromhanareru ("separate/become separated").
110hereislike"pan."' andit's modified by the
completethought/sentence tochii ga hanareteru ("the middleis
separated") - "thepan where themiddleis separated"; ano ("that")
modifies the combination,makingit "that pan where themiddleis
separated," andwamarks thewhole thing as thetopic: "as for that
panwherethemiddleis separated." no ka 11e (after averb) or na no ka
ne (after a noun or question word) asks for an explanation. Asking
a questionwith ka 11e ismostlyreserved for personswhose
socialstatusishigher thanthelistener.
Agent:ilr.>ilr.>,ilr.>:tt."t'T -IJ'? A,aredesu ka?
(intelj.)thatis it? ' 'Oh, that?"(PL2) Agent:;:Q) Q);f--t-
iJ*1:Ji!.t- -:::>lj""( SiJ yiitolciwashiomiZMniashioISUete
flOI'GII. !hat kind of time as forsalt watea- infeet (obj.)cry
..tiDa "At times Uke that you should try yoar feet in salt
water."(PL2) k4chan is an informal equivalent of o1t:asan
("mocber"). flllllka is a contraction of nan, literally
"something," but often uscd lithe beginning of a senlenee as a
"softener," like "somehow/vagueJylkmd of - ... yo is an infonnaJ
particle for emphasis; when spoken with a plaintive/ whiney/put
upon tone, it gets eJongared to yo. -f- ?is a variant spelling of
-f 1 1 (so iu, "that kind or'); s6 U. toll "that kind of time" -
"at times like that/when you feel that waylwben that happens."
tsukete is the -te fonn of tsulceru, here meaning "soakfliDIJiei'SC
in," and go ran after the te fonn of a verb is a light command
meaning "do the action/try doing the action." Sound FX:r.J-? Piiu
(effect of chil Udraft) piiu, a non-standard "sound" effect, is
very close to 1 (pyii), the effect for a wind or draft. m Sound
FX:'(f- -1 Piiu (effect of chiWdraft) Yunbo:tJ'- "1:3>A,Jj:
"'J:-?o Kiichan,naonnaiyo. momnot gel bener(emph.) "Mom, it's not
getting better."(PL2) Mother:-t-n,*!R(J)i:li t.}j:o,>t!-:d:.o
Gomen.Sore,mizumushinoo-ma]maldaua. sorrythatathlete s
footforincantation/remedywas "Sorry. That was the remedy for
athlete's foot." (PL2) naonnai is a contraction of naoranai, the
negative form of naoru ("become better/be cured"). gomen, from the
honorific prefix go- and menjiru ("exempt/excuse"), is
aninformalwordfor apologizing/begging pardon. Amore formal version
is gomen nasai. majinai literally means "spell/incantation/magical
formula," but here it refers to a "folk remedy." The honorific
prefix o- is almost always used with majinai even in informal
speech, especially among female speakers. datta is the past form of
da ("is/are"). Mangajin43 Yunbo-kun by SaibaraRieko Cll .. f-:1 "0
'C: c .2 ;:;; -.;; c g .c .!a co lfi 0 .8 0 .c Cll >. .0 .E c
"c. .. ..... .E ] .c .!a :0 :1 c. i'! u: [) ..; " i: .'!l .c 04) c:
< 0 -" " 02 .0 ... Cll Ci;!)44Mangajin 19>A-IlIt ?
ObocluJn.Yunboiru? aunt/auntie(name)exists/is present "Obadum, Is
Yunbo here?"(PL2) Yuabo's Mother:!3( Q "(J:o Okudeneteruyo.
back11is sleeping(emph.) "He's asleep In the back room."(PL2)
oboclaan is a less formal obosan (lit., "aunt/auntie"), which can
be used to refer to any woman past her mid-twenties or so. autdren
refer to their playmates'mothers as obasan or oboclaan. in
colloquial speech, questions can be asked without the question
particle ko simply by raising the intonation on the fiDal syllable.
ob refers to the "back/depths/inner reaches" of a confined space.
Yunbo's mother here is either at the front door or in a room
relatively near the front door, and obi can apply to ay room
"farther back" in the house. neteru is a contraction of nete iru
("is sleeping"), from nern ,19> A-llo!:31:>J: o
Oi,Yunbo.Okiroyo. (interj.)(name)wake up (emph.) a;.f ll?-tfo
Asobi'Jze. let's play(emph.) ' 'HeYunbo. Wake u (PL2) SoundFX:
iTUSTLIKE.YOUAND ME. \.. lCOULD YOULIKEAHf\HAHA HAHAHAl / Dilben
reprintedltranslaled by pennission of Uniled Media. New York.
[I]Boa:"You've been randomly selected to have lunch with a senior
executive of the company," '/ -1- (J)t&C(J)!iJ:(J):fllllli-e
1JfiJIIfttf.:o
Ucltinojiiyokutonohirunokoislwkunimusakuichiishutsudelcimigaerabarel4
our company'sexecutive withthat
ismiddayofmealforrandomsamplingbyyou(subj.)were choeen you've =you
have. 1: havelunchwith ...r... o ....'.. L t ., ;!iiljpor...
t-t:tl: bil'-? "t' ti:> "'t.: v'Jo I'm = I amojustrt.: t!. Q) Jo
.:.=Cl l?lflv\'-.. r.tA.JJ,t:.:.J: l.fb"' t:\. auy ot.:t!.L, "tn oO
o 0 Executive:"Oh. sure. I make a little more money. and I have a
nice office ..." -t- '? iihli'ru,H: ,fl.(/)'i -?tJ{*lfn';ti? J: ?t
l , Soryamliwshika ni,watashinohoga/.ryiiryowachottooishi,
thatiswellccnainlyUmes(bubj .)as fora lillielargeris-and It
'v':;j71:Ab1\1.! ?"( 1.>J: .. . iiofuisumotsulwtteruro . . .
good/niceofficealsoam using(emph.) ..hA.t "Jb\J..""Jit
sure7.>HiJll It>"( ,f 'b 7:JlvjQ);"(j,P...f;:l.: 1\1!-Jo '0.
fJ-\t makemoney o sorya is a contraction of sore wa. ma is a
sofVgentle/agreeable-sounding interjection that adapts to fit its
context "well/you know/really/1mean/ let's see." @]Executive:"And
of course. I'm much, much smarter." b i?7.Jiv,fl.(/)-/){-r-? t Sore
nimochiron,watashinohogaz.iino alsoof courseUme'sside(subj.)much
more j(iJfv'v'ljhc' Q0 atama ga iikeredone. smanbut(colloq.)
js""'"'.. ' smart rj{tJtv'v'JC.v>?:6:'*1:fflv''->o atama ga
ii, literally "[one's] head is good," is an expression that means
"smart/sharp/intelligent." keredo is a colloquial contraction of
keredomo ("but"). Here it is merely serving to soften the end of
the sentence (though this executive seems only slightly more
concerned about diplomacy than the one on the facing page).
Mangajin47 Humorous Haiku Poems submitted by our readers
Illustrations by Anthony Owsley as in the US, the winning team of
the JapanBaseballSeriesholdsa celebration party,where inevitably.
beer (or other alcoholicbeverage)is poured overteammates' heads.
This year, the Orix Blue WavefromKobe won the championship.
doshaburi refers to a"driving down-pour"; adding nomakes it a
modifier for biiru (from the English "beer") "beer that is a
driving downpour"-"a driving downpour of beer." ganbaua
istheplain/abrupt past form ofganbaru("stri vehard/do one' s
best"). }Jij ht.: 0) Wakareta no iEOO:v t Shojiki iu to wt? ht-:0)
Furareta no. Ibroke up with him; If Itell the honest truth, he
broke upwith me. by /IQ)Ji\ ( Taka no Tsume, "Hawk Talons")
Kanagawa, Japan 0) Doshaburi no t:'- Jv hL v' Biiru ga ureshii
ShukushO-kai RejoicingIn adriving downpour of beer: VIctory party
by '/J'/.., If. -:>t.:. A(Ganbatta Hito, "Tried-hard Person"),
Kobe, Japan Bukkyo-to 17''0) B t! lbu no hi dake wa 7 1)/
Kurisuchan Nation of Buddhists-onceayear onChristmasEve,
becomingChristians by B 4'A (Girigatai Nihonjin, "Faithful
Japanese"). Tokyo, Japan SENRYU wakareta is the past formof
wakareru ("breakup/part company"). shojikiiumeans"speakhonest ly/
speak the truth";toafter anon-past verb can make a conditional
"if/when" meaning. so shojiki iu to= "if I speak/ tellthetruth.''
furore/aisthe pastform of furareru ("be dumped/jilted").
inbothcases.noisexplanatory, indicatingthat the poet ismaking an
explanation. Bukkyii means "Buddhi sm,"and the s
uffix-todenotes"cohorts/group member,B :ifi:UH: .tt.Qtl:fali Bii"o
Mangajin63 o 2.eto by ltliJ 1Okazaki Jiro - The Devil's Seeds,Part
1-Subtract the dark, Cold War Era edge fromthe Twilight Zone, add
a'90s Japanese backdrop-plus too much Kooi-Aid before bedtime-and
you have a typical short manga "episode'' of Okazaki Jiro's After
Zero.Like anybizarre dream, the plotlines are often less
thanwatertight, but di stincti ve artwork andfantasticstories make
After Zero a timeless classic.Debutingin1990 intheweekly magazine
BigComic,the After Zero stories are now published as independent
volumes of collected shorts by Shogakukan. "TheDevil's Seeds" isthe
fourth After Zero episode to ap-pear in Mangajin(issues 22, 30-32.
41-43).
A-'? 'If 11 0 =f . Umezawa is a greedy man with big ideas.His
key to fame and fortunelies inan ancient seedrecentlyunearthed inan
archeo-logical expedition.Legend hasit thatthe seedproduces arobust
grain that can grow inany soil.Unfortunately, Umezawa lacks the
brains to unlock the seed's potential. At first,he triesto exploit
thegenius of anidealistic young biochemist, Konoue. Already wary of
the seeds' purported curse,Konoue isturned off byUmezawas
self-serving scheme. Almost 20 years later. Umezawa isthe president
of a large chemical company. Hehasfinall yfoundthe genius who can
make hi s dream areality: the youngandlovelyDr. Kamimura. The
broody Kuze, high-level executive and moral con-science of the
chemical company,steps aside to allow Dr.Kamimura to head the
company's most important project: cultivating the miracle seeds
they callMR-99. ({) Oka1..akiJiro. All rights reserved. First
published in Japan m1990 by Shogakukan. Tokyo. English translation
rights arranged through Shogakukan. Mangajin65 7' 7 - 0After Zero
66Mangajin Title: Q)f!UT-Akuma110Shushi devil'sseeds The Devil's
Seeds 110between twonounsmakes thefi rst into amodifier for the
secondin a widevariety of ways. one of whichis tomake thefirst
nounintoa possessivenoun, so a kuma no = "the devil 's - ." shushi
is amoreacademic/technical-soundingword for rane ("seed'' ).
CDInscription:fiiJ At.:: Q){Ia- oort.1:til L. "( l:l:I? ilo Nanpito
molwnolaneolwkugainidashite wa naranu. everyooelno
onethis/theseseeds(obj.)outside of the countrytomust not .akeJiet
out No one must take these seeds outside the country. These seeds
must not be permitted to leave our borders. 00Q) Q)1.:'ff! -)-"{ L.
0 Kuninotamino tame nitsukaubeshi.
countryofpeople/populaceforuseshould/must They must be used only
for the people of this country. tL.;:Q)#a- I\ttLI!,J.OtLo
Moshilwnokinoyabureba,osoru-bekisaiyakugaotozurerude ari5.
ifthisprohibition(obj.)if tear/breakfearsomecalamity(subj .)will
visitprobably/surely U anyone vaolates this prohibition, a fearsome
calamity shall befall the land. 7 3'11x,.)(J:I) Aslwlca-ohibunyori
(name)king epi.aphlstooe inscriptionfrom From an inscrition in
KinAsoka' s tomb nanpito is aliterary/archaic equivalent for dare
("who"); nanpito mo in an affirmative sentence means "everyone,"and
in a negativesentence, "not anyone/no one." kono can mean either
"this" or "these" depending on the context. kokugai literallymeans
"outside of the country," and ni marks it as a destination. naranu
is aliterary negative form equivalent to naranai, so dashite wa
naranu is equivalent to dashite wa naranai, a "must not''form of
dasu ("take/let/put out"). 110 tame ni isliterally "for the
purpose/sake/benefit of' -+ "for." beshi after the plain, non-past
form of averb can variously mean ''can/should/must."Beshi is a
holdover from classical Japanese, and although its modifying form
beki is stillvery common, the dictionary form beshi is now
relatively limited and sounds archaic; it's usually replacedby beki
do/desu at the end of sentences today. One place beshi cootinues to
be seen is on public signs givinginstructions of onelcind or
another. moshi typically works together with a conditional form
later in the sentence to give the meaning of "if';is a conditional
("if/when'') form of yaburu ('lear," or in the case of
arule/law/prohibition, "break/violate"). osoru-beki combines an
archaicform of the verb osoreru ("fear") with beki ("should/must"),
making a modifier that literally means "should be feared/is tobe
feared"- "fearsome/frightful."Osoru-beki saiyaku ="fearsome
calamity." ototMreru literally means ' visit"-+ saiyaku ga otowreru
= "calamity will visit/befall [us/the country)." de ari5 is the
conjectural form of de aru, which is a more literary/formal
equivalent of da/desu, so it's essentially equivalent to
dar01deshi5 ("is probably/surely"). -iJ denotes a king, and
Asholca-i5 ="King Asoka," ooe of the greatest rulers of ancient
India, who reigned from around 273-232 BCE andunified most of the
country for the first time. yori sounds more formal/literary than
kara ("from"). Mangajin67 7' 79- 0After Zero of t '' 11.if t, L.
"'( ft ,- * t:."? 7J 4
L'L'U: t:1.>! ! 0 68Mangajin T
1) fJ
Jt "'( h 7) ! ! tr ! ! OJNarntloa:1973 K7c
Sen-kyiihyaku-nanajiisan-nenKe-daiRigaku-buSeikogakuKenkyii-shitsu
1973yearK univ.science facultybiochemistry 1973, KUniversity,
FacuJty of SciencesBiochemistDe Umezawa:13Mlit.Jt.=!! "t'"lvt.:!!
Emu-iim kyiijiikyiiotsulwlleselwinoshushisangyooore-taclzi deshihai
surun da!/ (seed variety)(obj.)usingworld'sseedindustry(obj.)we/us
togetherrule/take over (explan.) "we will use MR-99 to take over
the world's seed industry!" "We'D leave tbis musty university and
use MR-99 to take over tbe world's seed indus!"(PL2) kabi = "mold,"
and the suffix -kusaimeans "smells/reeks/stinks of- ,"so kabi-kusai
= "smells moldy/musty." nanka is a coUoquialnado ("something
Idee"), here essentially equivalent to wa ("asfor"), but with a
feeling of belittling/ making light of what comes before it: "as
for the likes of this musty university." tsulultt is the -te form
of tsulwu ("use"): the -te formis here indicating the manner/means
of the next mentioned action: how or with what they willtake over
the seed industry. ore is an informal to rough. masculine word for
"Ume." and adding the suffix -taclai makes it plural, "we/us.''De
gives it the feeling of "just the two of ustogether." Konoue: ::.
1.- ' "?!i"!I!:J;f(J)Hf-T" AJ.!.1fo
Umewll"a,koitsu11a"'AkwnanoShushi "na 11da:;e. (name)this
one/thingas fordevilsseed(is-ex plan.)(cmph.) "Umezawa, t hese are
' the Devil's Seeds 'ou know."(PL2) Kiinoue:::. (J).fl-T(J)A-:>
-r 1.-' f.:fa\.1::tt XfJf 0t .: o Kono shushinohaille
itadokinimeibungaana. theseseeds(subj.)were containedearthen
vesseloninscription (subj .)exisled zeis a rough, masculinepanicle
for emphasis; withthe explanatory 11an da hereit gives the feeling
of a strong reminder. "The eartben vessel that contained tbese
seeds bore an inscription."(PL2) r1iif ::. U>tl OO;t1::llL: t
.li I? J "Nanpito mokonotuneokokugainidashite wa ntJranu."
everyooefno onetheseseeds (obj.)outside of the countrytomust not
take/let out '" These seeds must notbermitted to leave our
borders."' haitte ita is the past form of lwitte im ("is in/is
contained in"); kono shushi no haitte ita is a complete
thought/sentence ("these seeds were contained in[it]") modifying
doki (' 'earthen vessel"). The subject is often marked with no
instead of gain modifying sentences. alta is the plain/abrupt past
form of am ("exists"); ga marks meibun ("inscription") as the
subject of alliJ. and 11i marks doki as the place of existence, so
dold ni meibun ga alta = an inscription existed on the earthen
vessel"- "the earthen vesselbore an inscription." Umezawa:;\"/J. .
.H-f{g t: -c(/)fJ'? Baka na ... Omae,sonnameishinoshinjiteruno ka?
foolish/crazyyouthat kind ofsuperstition(obj.)believe(explan.-?)
"This is crazy. You really believe a superstition like that?"(PL2)
baka naasamodifier means "idiotic/foolish/crazy": asan exclamation
it ' slike"Thisiscrazy!ffhat can' t be!ffhat' s impossible!"
shinjiteruis a contraction of shinj ite iru. from shinjiru
("believe''). asking a question with no ka? ismasculine and can
soundvery abrupt/rough. Konoue: t=lt (::/j: ,ffH';o* vli W. ....tJ:
1::,OOP;f:: lvt!.o liya.Dakedona,Umezowa.Orewameishinijo
nikane11i/..yominain da. nobut(colloq.)(name)Vmeas
forsuperstitionmore thanmoneyininterestnot have(explan.) "No. But
you see, Umezawa As for me, even more than the superstition, I lack
interest inmoney." "Not reaU Buou seeUmezawa. I have even less
interest in monethan in tbe sorstition."(PL2) iiya is a variation
of iya, which is an informal "no": a regular iya can feel quite
abrupt, but iiya has a "softer" feeling, something like "not
really." na. like ne, can be used in themiddle of a sentence as a
kind ofverbal pause. It can be like English you know/you see/ I
mean." kyiJmi = "interest" ; kyomi (ga) aru = "have an interest [in
- ]," and kyiimi (ga) nai ="have no interest [in - ]." Konoue:;tv
nt!J!JPA;:U)!i,::.U> fJ'i? a:- -r:
Hozon)Otatgayokauanode,idenshiokanzen 11akarachit!etoridasukato ga
deki, preservationcondition (subj.)was goodbecausegenes(obj.)
complete/perfectformmextractwere able to-and " Because the seeds
were weU- reservedit wassible to extract genes in comJete foand .''
(PL2) st7- is a prefix meaning "several." and tsllbu ="grain,'" so
siitsubu ="several grains'': something like dete kita
("emerged/came out/appeared") is understood after siitsubu. yokatta
is the plain/abrupt pastform of the adjective iilyoi
("good/fine''). /Qridasu =''take out/extract," and koto ga deki is
a continuing form of kato ga dekim, which after a plain, non-past
verb makes a potential ("can/be able to") form:toridasu koto ga
deki = "is/was able to extract, and .. : Mangajin73 t1 .ft t:.b
iil" .- tJ' if "f -t II 7' 7:$1 - 0After Zero Executive:
l"'(-::>H:, l6:11#tl t.,,
soshitetsui-ni,sonoidenshiokinshuniisholal shi,
andfinally/ultimately!hosegenes(obj.) close
varietiestotransplant/graft-and .::.t1: (J)"t"To
holsugensaserulcotoniseikD shitono desu.
expressioncauselhinginsucceeded(explan.) "now, ftnally, we have
succeeded In lntrodudnl those genes Into modem varieties ud maid
tbeiD viable."(PL3) Ellecutive: b1:-t,1111#it!! Soremo subeteanoia
no okogedesu,Kamimuro HoluJse!! thatalsoallthanks to youis(name)Dr.
"And it is all thanks to you. Dr. Kamimura!"(PL3) tsui-ni ="at long
last/finally," implying"after much effort/many hanlships." or
"after much anticipationlwaitiDg." isholal shi is the stem form of
isholat sum ("transplant/graft''); the stem form is being used as a
cootinuing form: "tnas-plantlgraft, and .. : luJtsugen here implies
idenshi horsugen ("gene expression"); its verb form is luJtsugen
suru, which can mean either "reveaUrnanifest/express" or 'be
revealed/mani fested/expressed," and hotsugett soseru is the
causative form of the verb: cause to be manifested/expressed."
seikO shiro is the plain/abrupt past form of seikD suru
("succeed"); - ni sei/c4 suru ="succeed inial - ." Koto is
literally "thing," but here refers to an action, so - koro ni
seikiJ shiro is literally "succeed in/at [the described action]."
anota ="you," and- no okage da/desu means "owes to/is thanks to
-,"so anota no oluJge desu ="is thanks to you.'" Executive:MR- 99 .
. .t: lv.tftI: t l I:lilt 1fT o1Hl:o Emu-iin1 kyiijiikyii. .
.donnadojodemohiryonashi deseiiku surukomugi. (seedvariety)what
kind ofsoileven if itisfenilizcrwithoutgrowswheat "MR-99-wbeat that
will grow in any kind of soilwithout fertilizer."(PL2) Executive:1:
191-? l ilt.:7Jf, SluJchowaosshane imashitoga, (name)co. presas
forwas sayingbutland/so "President Umezawa was saying, but ..."
t!ltt.:t' dakedato, onlyis(quote) "President Umezawa was sayin&
that no one but Dr .r-oooue could reproduce MR-99, so" saisei
dekiru is the potential ("can/be able to") form of soisei suru
("resuscitate/regenerate/reproduce'"); dekiru replaces suru to
malce the potential form of suru verbs. No here islike the pronoun
"one," referring to a "person";kyiijiikyii o saisei dekiru is a
complete thought/sentence ("[he] can reproduce MR-99") modifying
this pronoun. and wa marks it as the topic ("as for'')-+ "as for
the one/person who can reproduce MR-99." ossluJne imashita is the
past form of osslratte imasu, from thePIA honorific verb ossluJru
("say"). Executive:i lie'(!):R.J"1J{.&tlotli!!
masalwanaralwdonotensaigaarawarerutowa!.'
hardly/neveryouextentthatisgenius(subj.)will appear(quote)as for "
I neverimagined that a genius likeou(Pl3-4) masako emphasizes
statements of incredulity/disbelief. Something like omowanakotta
("didn' t think") isimplied after the quotati ve-
towa,makingitlike"I hardly thought/1never imagined- ." X !Jodo noY
means "a Y that is to the extent of X."so anata hodo no rensai ="a
geniusthat istothe extent of you" ''a genius of your caliber/a
geniuslikeyou." Mangajin75 76Mangajin iik:SK i:>F./J* u '1Ji I,\
5F ;g .:. 1Ji(.:L-t:. VF
!_; m-A .... I'll.=.-, ;r.t'in *!!:! tt -: n 7> --c$r:;..
I.\,q'/)t )..' "\
G.fAM tl. t7)it R 1>1l!!.$t l t)1:99
1t'lt A-1-L L-c o L' 0 7' 79- 0After Zero "'\m-t
_t llitt t .f L- {> ft t:. 1JiYl t7), 1iJfR I 0 * t7)99
!i I? t7) ,: , , /.._t7) 'tlt -t c ..J.
,_ ....
oif: A
c7).f. -ii ,1 7 1-11.-[II Kuze:llnJ:.iJ' .. . Konoue HakaseJw ..
. (name)Dr.('1) "Dr. Kiinoue, hunh . ."(PL2) Kuze:MR-99li19:iJtQ)
K*iitih.I:IH..t.:Q)f!.o Somosomo Emu-iiru
kyiijiikyiiwaUmezawaSllaclliigakenkyii
noissaio,Ke-daiJwranusumidashitono da. to begin with(seed
variety)as for(name)co. pres.(subj.)researchofentirety(obj.) K
uoiv.fromstoleout/away(explan.) ''TonwithPresident Umezawa stole
all the research on MR-99 from KUniversit"(PL2) Kuze:K*'IJfL.t.;
'b*!!iii,1:'IJf .. .
Kl-daigaokoshitasoslllimokekkyoku,jidanniochitsuitaga .. . K
univ.(subj .)brought/filedlawsuitalsoin the endout-of-court
settlementinculminated/endedbut ''The lawsuit rtled bK
Universiended in an out-of-court settlement, but . . .(PL2) issai
is more commonly seen as astrong emphasizer for negatives
("entirely/absolutely [not/none]"). but here it's a noun meaning
..entirety"; kenkyii no issai =''the entiretyof the research.''
nusumidashita is the plain/abrupt past form of nusumidasu, from
nusumu (..steal") and das11 ("take out"). okoshita is the
plain/abrupt past form of okosu (lit., "raise," but when speaking
of lawsuits, "bring/file"); Ke-dai ga okoshita is a complete
thought/sentence ("KUniversity filed[it]") modifying soshO
("lawsuit"). ochitsuita is the plain/abrupt past form of ochitsuku,
which can mean ..conclude/end/cu]mjnate [in]." Kuze: .sono
sai,shachiiwaKonoue Hakaseni taishitearanuhibochiishooshi, on that
occasionco. pres.for(name)Dr.againstunfoundeds
lander/defamationslander/defamation(obj.)did-and "at that
timePresident Umezawa made unfounded slanderous and defamatory
statements aainst Dr. Konoue,and ... .i:>tJ'If-c'" liK* okage
dehakasewaKe-daikaraoi-dasarete shimal/a. thankstothatthedoctoras
forK univ.fromwas driven out-(rcgret) ' 'thanks to thatDr. Konoue
was driven out of KUniversity."(PL2) Kuze:il?ttll c'Q)iJt
,/fli..!!.i tt-r, Are hodono gakuslwga.imawamegumarez.u. that
extenllcalibcrofscholar(subj.)nowas foris unblessed-and
=:ii!E*?-c'"*HI -' ? Hal? " Yes?"(PL3) GJKamimura: i!.t lvo
Kuze-san. (n;une-hon.) "Mr. Kuze."(PL3) Ita!? is a somewhat stanled
but formal yes?/what?" 4-8iJ'.f;1.iJt Q)c"'?.:. c-r--t1Jt,[!]
Kamimura: KyokarawatashigaKenkyii Kaihatsu-bunobuchotoiukotodesuga,
todayfrom(subj.)R&D Dept.ofdept.
head(quote)saything/situationisbut MR-99a- iift$lj{c L. ""(-t
Q)fl!l.1:7"J-T L. ""( v' l.> liif:>IJi-t:t lv-nr o Emu-iiru
kyt1jt7kyiiosat-yusenjikiito shitesono hokanitatchi shite
iruhimawaarimasenga. (seed variety)(obj.)highest
priorityitemasother thingsontouchingtimeas fornot havebut
"Beginning today, Iam head of the R&D Department, but with
MR-99 being the highest priority Item, Iwon't have time to deal
with anelse."(PL3) tatchi is from theEngl ish 'touch"; tatchi
slrite iru is from theverb tatchi suru ("touch," or by extension.
"meddle with/ take a hand in"). ga ("but") can be thought of as
implying something like "but is that lilcely to be a problem?''
She's really just telling him the way things willbe, but implying
that she' s inte!"Csted in his response "softens'' themessage.
Mangajin77 7'7?- 0After Zero M 11 : fLIWl\.'
Rc c
tJ ' IA'I" ]{Xl.t' l8699c -=> t)'{> l'(/)(/)'"[ l .:t, -rM
.At
' t)!A tJ>(/) -r '/ !-r ..f t.lfLT7 Tjj(J) el: IJ"t.t
et)ftl1. l.t
fiiJ.: fA -=>l:-A 7{>(/)-=> 'tit "LA. (J)
* -=>A i,' A t:.t:. t:.(:
' (/)IJ IJ> f;t(/)}..$_ "[(;,\. ' :r.-=> o-
-t.:A.At:. tJ> 01- .. Tl.t J:' 0 78Mangajin
Kuze:(>1?0/v-fc7)-fjgc7) li,.::ni"t')iJ!IJfl.1Jf IJiTo
/yo,mochironsono hoka nokoihotsuwa.kore
made-diiriwarashigatorishikirimasu. (interj.)of
courseotherdevelopmentas foruntil nowthe srune asI(subj.)will
manage/supervise ' 'That' ll be fine. I will of course continue to
handle aU other deveJomentro'ects as I have before."(PL3)
Kuze:c;J-:> "( (>,fi c lv C' c7)A.77liMR-99c7) .fl"t'Ttro
Toiue mo,hotondo nosutaffuwaEmu-iiru kyiijakyiinoyamdesugo. (quote)
even if saymost ofstaffas for(seed variety)of/fornecessary
pernonnel is/arebut "Not that that means much, since most of the
staff are assigned to MR-99."(PL3) iya is an informal "no: here
implying "No, it won't be a problem'' (answering her implied
question) .... 'That' ll be fine." torishikirimasu is the PL3 form
of torishikiru ("manage/run/be in charge of'). itte mo is a
conditional "even if'form of iu ("say"). To itte mo often
introduces a qualifying statement that sheds different light on
what one has just said. Kuze:;t;h, fill1&::c7)#.1.:1;t b o
Mii,buchohosanowatashi ni waf usawashii desugane. (interj.) dept.
headasst.(=)limeforis suited/befitsbut(colloq.) "Anyway, it is
suited to r who am the assistant department head." "Anyway, it
befits my role as assistant departmenthead."(PL3) @]Kamimura: -tl!T
1Jf, Kuze-san,hitokotoitte okimasuga, mii is a "warm-up" or pause
word that adapts to fitits context: " I mean/you
know/really/anyway/of course." (name-hon.)one word/thingwill say
nowbut ''Mr. Kuzethere's one thinI'd liketo make clearfrom the
be."(PL3) Kamimura:fl..1Jt.:. c7) 1.:A :>f.:.c7)l:i,fPJ (>
t.f. t.:. c7):f-.A?13t:.t.f. "' lv "t"T.t o
watashigak01wkaishanihaillaIWwa,nanimoanara noposwooubautameja
nai11 desuyo. I(subj.) 1hiscompanyinto entered (nom.) as for [not]
at allyourpost/job (obj.)stealpurposeisnot(explan.)(emph.) "As for
my entering this company, it is not at allfor thepurpose of
stealing your job." ' 'I didn't ' oin this comanbecause Iwanted to
take awaour ' ob."(PL3) itte is the te fonn of iu ("say"). and
okimasu is the PL3 form of oku, which after the te form of a verb
implies the action is done now/ahead of time in preparation for
some future need; here the feeHng is that she wants to head off any
later misun derstanding by making one thing clear now/up front/at
the beginning. haitta is the plain/abrupt past form of IUJiru(here
meaning "enter/join [a company]"). No is anominalizer that makes
the complete/thought sentence Watashi ga kono kaisiUJ 11i haitta
("l joined this company") act as a single noun, and wa ("as
for")marks that noun as the topicas for my joining this company:
nanimo combines with a negativelater in the semence to mean "not
anything/in no way/not at all.'' tame ja nai is the the negative
form of tame do/desu, which after a verb (or complete sentence)
means''in order to[do the actionJ/for the purpose of [doing the
action]." FX:.::. ..; ! Ni!(effect of a grin) ki ,; itta is the
plain/abrupt past form of ki ni iru ("like/be pleased with").
Kamimura:Utic7)AM1J .A!Itt!.o Ruiwatomooyobuka.KamimuraJoshimoetai
IW shirenjinbutsuda. kind/typeas forfriend(obj.)
calls/attracts(?)(name)(title)too/alsomysteriouspersonageis ''Like
are drawn to likeIsu. Ms. Kamimura is amsterious onetoo."(PL2)
Kuze:(>-?,fl.c7)lli'JHt.f.cli1t blltl"'-r . -"' -a 0\ 0\ .:
0.
.: "2 ..c .!!! ::0 :::l 0.
-ci ., i':. ., "'l!l ..c 00 ;: <
0 " "0 " .:.: 0 Mammoth-like Ojosama!! by 1\'iilEDti JvI Okada
Garu '?' 1j .A.,. ip'-In 82Mangajin Ojiisama:-?-? t.:- ! !:::n, -t:
-? t.:Yattii!!Tsui-nikattazo!! didfinallybought(emph.) ' 'I did it!
I finally bought one!"(PL2) yaua is the plain/abrupt past form of
yaru ("do"); it's used as an exclama-tion of joy, like "1/he did
it!" or "All right!/Yeah!/Hooray!" tsui-ni ="at long last/fi
nally." zo is a rough/masculine particle for emphasis, but female
speakers can use it for special effect in informal siruations
(e.g., talking to kids or among closefriends) or when speakingto
themselves. Qjsama:-)tL lv'1j-? t.: C,-)tL lv'1j!
Ureshiinatiaraureshiina! am happy (colloq.) (quote)am happy
(colloq.) "I'mSOOO ha ohhh so happy!"(PL2) Sound FX:-)v'- lv Uiin
Rrreee(whir/whine of computer) Ojosama:-".. - .: tLiJt77AtJ'o
He,koregamausuka. ( interj.)this(subj.)mouse(?) " Hmm, so this is
amouse, is it?"(PL2) /larais a contraction of 10 itlara, a
conditional ("if/when") form of the quotative to iu("say").
ThepatternX tiara X essentially says "when l say X, I really mean
X" andserves as a very emphatic way to express a view or feeling.
The colloquial particle nahere also adds emphasis. ka literally
makes the secondlinea question ("Is thisamouse?"), but the question
formis often used rhetorically when observing/confirming some-thing
for oneself.with the feeling of "So thisis- , isit?/1 guess/it
seems." Ojiisama:J:l !!t:, .. . Yoshi!!Ja,sassoku . . . all
rightthen/in that casepromptly "Allright then, I will immediately
..." "All right, then, Ithink I ' D get right down to busi-ness and
" yoshi is an interjection that signals the speaker is ready
to/about to begin an action. o
osama:77A1:mausuninamaedemotsukeruka. mousetonameor
somethingattach(?) "Shall Iname the mouse or something?" " name the
mouse."(PL2) X.- t ,X.- t, 7;;;:\'- -7 7 A,;J :r_1)-, E to,e
to,Makkii Mausu,Jerii, urn/let's seeurn/let's see(name)(name)
"Urnlet's seeMackMouseJ erry_,__,__," -)-lv,7-.::L-*,-7-.::L-JlJJ .
. . Dn,Chiita,Chiisuke .. . hmm(name)(name) " Hmm, Chuta, Chiisuke
. . . " Narration:!>It'!!ii: -Jt! 0! Oi.'!Chigaudaro! heyis
different/wrongprobably/surely Hey!You know that'snot what it's
about!"(PL2) namae o tsukeru= "attach/give[something]aname" - "
name[some-thing]."Demoliterallymeans
"orsomething/someone/someplace,''but hereit's best thought of
merely as a "softener." the question indicated by kais again purely
rhetorical; a rhetorical question typically assumes an affirmative
answer, and in this case it's essentially like saying "Will UshallI
-? Yes,I thinkI shall -"- "I think I'll - ." e to and anboth imply
an effort to think of something: "uhh/umllet' s see." chii
isthesoundamouse-thelive kind- makes, and-taand-sukeare common
endings for boys' names. daro(or darif) makes a conjecture
("surely/probably- "), but, especially whenthelast vowel is short,
it can have thefeeling of "you surely know that- " or "you know
verywellthat- ." .; .= "' "' .&>9 "' Ll. .= Ol) "'
-g Ol) c
.= Ol) c::c .2 ;; -.; c "' !:: .= Co c UJ 0 >. ""' {!. .. .=
:!J .&>9 "' Ll. >. .&>
.: Q.
.: "0 " .= ::0 "'Q. i?!Li: '3
!:!
.= Cl) 'C:: < 2 "0 "'"0
0 0 Mammoth-like Ojosama!! byfll'iiiE 7l JvI Okada Garu
-{ "'" I :;...-1*jf
I ti' *' .F I 1 I i 1cf:f. 'Y Di t: c fb. T.0'MS 1.0
Magazine:*i1i1Jt Gaishi-keikigyosiishaga foreign
capitalaffiliatedenterprises several companies(subj.) 1 ;; ?- :r-
:;1"1:J:lntiinettoniyorusatyoojisshi
Internetonrelieshiring(obj.)implemented Several finns
affiliatedwith foreign capital are imple-menti ng hiring via the
Internet ForeiFinns 1mlement Hirinvia Internet
O'iisama:......__,1'/?-_:f,:;1- -IJ' o He,lntlinettoka.
(interj.)internet(?) "H.mm, internet, bunh?"(PL2) sii- is a prefix
meaning "several." and -sha refers to kaisha ("company"). so siisha
= "several companies." - ni yoru means "thatrelies on -";
l11tlinetto ni yom saiyo= "hiringthat relies on the Internet"
....."hiring via the Internet." saiyi5 refers to the
''use'employment' ' of something for a particular pwpose, or of a
person for a job ......"hlring:'1be verb form is saiyi5 suru
(''use/hire"). jisshi here impliesjisshi suru ("implement [a
plan/system/policy]"). Qjosama:J:0L.. ;fl.btlf546 c i' 1.:> n' -
! Yosshli!!Watashimohajimeruto suru kli! all rightIalsobeginshallI
do? "All riht then. Let 'setriht to it!"(PL2) yosshli is a spi
ritedvariation of yoshi, aninterjection used when the speaker is
ready to/about to begin an action. to suru ka after a plain.
non-past verb is like a rhetorical question, "shall Uwe[do the
action]?" Anaffirmative answer is assumed. [I)Sound FX:1f- -:;
Gli(sound of automatic door motor) StoreKeer :"';-? lrasshaimasi.
welcome/come in "Come rlht in!"(PL4) O'iisama:i;(J)- ... Ano . ..
''Umm, excuse me, but " ani5 is ahesiwlion word similar
to"uhh/um."It's often used to get someone's attention, essentially
Like "Excuse me." Ojosama:1'/?- ;f,1- r"'o lnrlineuolwdasai.
Internetplease give me "I'd like an internetlease."(PL3)
Arrow:J:< Yokuwakauenai wellnot under. ""'" 0 1-..; -5;
"'.&>"':; u. >. .&>"' 0\ 0\ .: c "' 0. .5 "0 ., :c
"'0. -d ., ;:: ..c::00 t: 0 ""0 " ""'"0 iQ) Mammoth-like Ojosama!!
by!Ril IIl il Jt..- I Okada Garu ; ; 1'/t-JJJ1::::1;., ;1- n '? t.:
!3ii-t?1:.-t!."'' o
/nt6netto-yiinilconpyiitiilwttakorao-konechiJdai.
Internet-purposeforcomputerboughtbecause(hoo.)-moneyplease give me
"Ibou&ht a computer to use tbe Internet, so Ineed some
money."(PL2) 0......:aamlb1."ft?Q)o ShiisholallwtsudOdetsuk.auno.
job searchinwill use (explao.) "I'm going to use it in my job
search."(PL2) Mother:L.J:.?btl.o"'' < SM ga naiwane.lkura? can't
be helped(fern.colloq.)bow much "You're hopeless. How much do you
need?"(PL2) the suffix -yo means "purpose,'' and--yo ni ="for
thepurpose of - /ro use with- ." k.ana is the plain/abrupt past
form of kou ("buy"); o, to mark konpyiitii as the direct object of
this verb, has been omitted, as it often is in coUoquial speech.
chOdai is an informal "(please) give me/let me have." shiislwku is
a noun for "getting a regular/permanent job'' and kotsudo refers to
activity" that is directed toward a specific purpose, so shiishoku
kotsudo ="job search." shlf ga nai is an expression for "there's no
help for it/it can't be helped." Sometimes it's used to express
exasperation with one's listener: "there's nohelp for you/you're
impossible/you' rehopeless." Q'osama:; 71- 'b?;>
