The History Of Anime
This isn't some fanatics guide to learning Japanese through only relentlessly watching anime, and not doing any work at all, a feat that I have seen attempted, as well as in all cases miserable failure was the result. No, these are some pointers as to how you can better take advantage of watching Japanese popular media, adding to your other studying efforts.
You can find mainly two issues which watching anime online anime, movies, TV shows and even theater will let you with, if you have little to no previous knowledge. You guessed it, listening right? Well that's one. As well as the other is vocabulary. You may learn to pick up grammar also, but that will have to be after you recognize some core sentence structures.
Take notes of all the recurring words that you do not know. If you see the term used repeatedly over 20 minutes, and it is not something restricted to the confines of sci-fi or fantasy, jot it down and memorize it. The thing about a language that causes it to be difficult to learn from just textbooks and old audio CDs, is that languages do not stay the same. They change with time, and sometimes staying in touch to date with popular media, is the only way to have an up-to-date vocabulary, short of actually living and breathing the language.
One thing about anime, or movies, or TV shows, is the fact that there can sometimes be an abundance of different dialects in play. If you already have experience from living in Tokyo, or somewhere with a relatively neutral accent, you should be fine. But in any other case, paying attention and not mixing up accents is a great idea. Identify where the different characters are from, in anime this really is often not possible, but usually if you steer clear of the characters using a lot of unique expressions and sentence endings, you should be fine. Checking out some countrywide news may be an excellent idea, because they are more more likely to speak within the standardized accent. If you are not considering hyojungoć¨?ćş?čŞ?, the standardized accent, but say Kansaiben,é?˘čĽżĺź you may do some study by watching comedians from Kansai, even though you might want to refrain from using all the expressions you hear.
Speech in anime, or movies for that matter, is usually very casual, and omits elements one would have to use in normal or formal speech. On the opposite side of the spectrum, in samurai themed animes or movies, the grammar is riddled with old conjugations, as well as the vocabulary is archaic. If you attempt to be polite by following suit, you could actually find yourself not being understood, or just make an incredibly weird first impression.
Should you have already established some base familiarity with Japanese grammar, you can learn some basic casual speech by studying the form. Or you can identify when particles are now being omitted, then focus on another parts of the sentence. As you proceed, you realize some parts of Japanese grammar may be learned almost as vocabulary, you learn the specific context through which to use it, and then you simply expand as you see it utilized in other situations.
One thing to note is the fact that the subject is usually omitted from Japanese, even in semi-formal writing. But on the contrary, if you omit it too frequently, people could possibly get confused as to what or who you are talking about, and also you have to go back and explain. There is a balance to be found on the contrary, and media can definitely be a step forward within the right direction.
In regards to learning value, some genres are superior to others. I could have to claim that for the most part, slice of life may be the most beneficial. You will find two reasons for that. Initially, there is just simply more conversation involved, even when battle heavy fantasy or science fiction is often riddled with crazy monologues, there is actual dialogue. Dialogue made to portray actual conversations between people, from our world.
Then perhaps more importantly, since the challenges they face are not murderous robots, or vampires, they are everyday problems. And in the process of going through them, you learn plenty of more relevant vocabulary and conjugations than you do through most other genres.
Sometimes you can find that you are able to pick material that's perfectly suited for you. If you are going to work, or already work, in a big Japanese company, stories revolving around salarymen or even the corporate world can help you remember several of the lingo.
Try and only absorb things relevant to your actual age group. While knowing the terms high school students use might seem a way to remain hip, it will only work against you in the long haul. If you start slipping in incredibly informal words or conjugations into conversation in a formal context, you're bound to give a bad impression.
If you end up in a position the place you have to learn a lot of Japanese in a short time period, you can substitute all your normal media consumption with the Japanese equivalent. Locate a band you like, pick out some movies to watch, rather than TV watch series relevant to what you may need the Japanese for. This is especially effective in between study sessions, as it provides a necessary break, while not completely losing focus of the task at hand.
While there are actually definitely things you can do to benefit more from simply consuming popular media, do not treat it as a complete substitute to actual studying. If you find yourself lacking motivation, do not let yourself fall into the pattern of only watching, and not doing any real work. The most effective effects will be accomplished with a combination of the two, and if you have the opportunity, interaction with others in Japanese as well.
