Volume 2 Chapter 46 The Classic Japanese Language Subjects Are Studied In A Way That Combines Japanese And English
I tried making short videos during the practical training in the home economics club, and it requires some effort, but I find it interesting. Saikachi-san, who is also making a tote bag, seems to enjoy sewing in a similar way.
Tomorrow, I have a video shoot with Nakagaito, but I need to start getting ready for the end-of-term exams. Nakagaito isn't good at Japanese, and Kokonoe-san, who came back from the United States, seems to struggle even more.
First, I'll send a message to Nakagaito.
[Good evening. I was thinking of turning tomorrow's video shoot into a study session for the end-of-term exams. Is it okay if we focus on classical literature this time?]
After sending the message, I wait for a while, and a reply comes back.
[Yeah, I was thinking of asking you for that, so please go ahead.]
[Got it. See you tomorrow.]
[Goodbye.]
Then I send a message to Kokonoe-san.
[Good evening. Tomorrow after school, Nakagaito-san and I are planning to study Japanese while shooting a video. Would you like to join us, Kokonoe-san?]
After I send a message and wait for a while, I receive a message back.
[Sure, I will joinnn!]
[Okay. Let's meet tomorrow after school.]
[Thank you, I am exciiited about it.]
So, the next day's video shoot will happen in the usual home economics room.
We will set up a laptop, camera, and gather textbooks, dictionaries for Japanese and classical words, as well as English and Japanese picture books that are distributed at school.
"Well, let's start shooting soon."
Both of them agree when I give them a signal.
"Yes."
"Understood."
It seems like they are ready, so we begin shooting.
"Alright, let's begin. Now, with Kenji and Otome."
"Introducing the new student Lottie, who has returned."
"Welcome to GudaGuda high school debut channel."
Now, let's discuss the preparation for the final exam. This time, it is about one of the subjects in Japanese, classical literature.
That's when Nakagaito says.
"Classical literature is difficult to understand, isn't it?"
And Kokonoe-san also says.
"Well, learning Japanese might be a bit muzukashii."
I reply with a wry smile.
"If you're from America, it could be challenging for you, Lottie. So, let's start with something simple. Take this."
I give Kokonoe-san a book with pictures in English and Japanese that I prepared.
"Lottie, read this out loud. Understanding written words is really important when learning a language. Reading aloud is a good way to practice, but let's keep it easy for now. I made the same book in English and Japanese. If the Japanese part is tough, read the English one to get the meaning."
Kokonoe-san agrees with a smile.
"Okayyy. Sounds doable."
"Now, for Otome, it's reading old-style books. Like, the ones with fancy words. Classical literature is part of language studies, and it's like how you study English with classic books. Sadly, there are no simple picture books for this one."
"That's a shame."
"But, even though it looks hard, classical literature can give you points easily. If you think it's tough, you might delay studying it. On the flip side, since it's Japanese, don't underestimate it and skip studying."
"True, feeling like it's hard can make it tough to focus on studying."
"Anyway, first, similar to modern Japanese literature, you should read out loud the novel passages from the first section of the textbook around 20 to 30 times in intervals of 10 minutes. If you encounter words or kanji characters that you don't understand, make sure to search for them in the dictionary and write down the words and their meanings in your notes."
"The approach is like modern Japanese literature and English, right?"
"Yes, that's correct. First, identify the parts that you don't understand, remember the meanings of words and expressions, and then read the passage. Understand the author's intention, what the passage is trying to convey, and what teachers or examiners want you to logically infer from the passage. In other words, it's important to be able to read the passage in a logical way, just like in modern Japanese literature."
"I understand."
"Well, classical texts may seem easy to read since they are written in Japanese. However, there can be differences in meaning even with words that are still used today, or there are many words that are no longer used. So, if you don't understand the meaning when reading a passage, it's important to extract the words and grammar of that part and look them up in the dictionary to memorize."
"That makes sense."
Learning a language seems to be best done in a similar way, but it might be a good idea to confirm with Fumi-chan later if this is correct.
"I see. Well, I will give it a try then."
And so, the two of them started reading out loud.
However, Nakagaito was confused.
"Hmm, I don't really understand the meaning..."
"Traditions and values are often different between modern and classical literature, and besides, classical texts often have a lot of missing words or phrases. For example, if there's a description like 'someone appeared in a dream,' a modern person would probably think 'I like that person.'"
"Well, that makes sense."
"However, in the Manyoshu from the Nara period, it's interpreted as 'the other person likes me.'"
"Oh, really?"
"Yes, during this time, only people of high status could leave written records in the first place."
"I see. So, I guess you also need to remember when the text was written."
"That's correct. In the Shin Kokin Wakashu from the Kamakura period, the meaning becomes relatively close to what modern people would understand. Around this time, the social status of those who wrote the text wasn't as limited as before."
"Remembering all of that is pretty hard, huh?"
"But, the stories they always talk about in school books and tests are kinda limited. It's mostly those old stories from Japan like The Tale of Genji, The Ise Monogatari, Tsurezuregusa, and The Pillow Book."
"Well, it's still something, right?"
"Yeah, I guess it's kinda cool. Oh, and in those old stories, they often leave out who's doing what, so you gotta pay attention to that."
"Why's that?"
"It's 'cause those folks who wrote 'em were like, really important. So, it's a big deal to figure out who's doing what to who, even when they don't say it outright."
"Oh, I see."
By the way, Kokonoe-san is checking out English and Japanese picture books while reading some Japanese ones out loud.
"How's it going with that?"
"It helps to get what the story's about when you read it in both languages. I used to read dese picture bukks when I was a kid, so even without the English version, I can kinda follow along."
"That's good, then. If you can keep up without it."
Eventually, the timer went off, so I talked to them.
"Okay, time's up. How did it go? Any thoughts after giving it a shot?"
First, Nakagaito gave her thoughts.
"Yeah, there are still some parts that I don't understand, but I feel like I kind of got it."
And Kokonoe-san also responded.
"Yes. With dis, it seems rike I can manage."
I see. This time, I took a video of advice that seems helpful mainly for studying classical literature in Japanese language. The reactions of the two were quite positive, which is great.
...
...
Meanwhile, on an anonymous bulletin board...
------Bulletin board reaction------
[Completely] Discussion thread about Kenji's Harem [Beautiful Girl Harem?]
1 Anonymous Boy
This is a thread to talk about the YouTuber Kenji's Harem Channel, who claim to have made their high school debut.
For now, let's avoid talking about other YouTubers.
40 Anonymous Boy
This time it's classical literature for the end-of-term test preparation....
Well, if you're teaching such cute girls, it's natural to be serious.
41 Anonymous Boy
>>40
I understand that.
However, it's quite helpful that they teach the study methods for test preparation in an easy-to-understand way.
42 Anonymous Boy
>>41
Ah, indeed, Kenji's high school debut channel is quite useful at times.
43 Anonymous Boy
>>42
Sometimes, advice can be useful, but sometimes it's not.
44 Anonymous Boy
>>43
Yeah, not many people can start high school like Kenji.
45 Anonymous Sister
>>44
I agree.
Hello, we have a NEW project about mc whose heroines want to become his mother instead of his lover. You can read it on here => Link
Hello, we have other project about someone who has returned from an isekai. The main character is a hero who has defeated the Demon Lord. However, for some reason, the human-demon war has resumed and will take place in the MC's original world. The MC, unaware of this, meets a Saint from that world and asks them to join the war. But what does the MC say? They refuse. Is it because their love was rejected by the princess when they adventured together in the past or are they simply fed up? And are the MC will join later? You can find out by clicking on the following => [Link]
We also have a similar genre returned from isekai but has different MC's characteristic. The story is punishing someone who troll in SNS, someone who cheat and many more. You can find out in => [Link]
Please bookmark this series and rate ☆☆☆☆☆ on here!
Donate me
Support Me with USDC
(ERC20)
Support Me with XLM
(Stellar Lumens)