Katakana Literary Work (Final)

Here is an advertisement for "あたらしい　クレンジングクリーム”。　
In order to emphasize what the product does, katakana, hiragana and romanji are used together.

Instead of using the Japanese words for "fresh" and"face" (in their hiragana form), katakana is used to make the selling points of the product stand out (I intend to change "face" from loanword katakana to "kao" in katakana and perhaps for "fresh" as well).

The words "dull" and "smooth" are written in katakana here because they are loan words.

Simple english words (written in romanji) are used for aestetic purposes in order to complement the katakana. Hiragana is used everywhere else for aestetic purposes as well.

PS: I wanted to use the "onomatopeia" word to express "shining", but I decided to keep it as is. Thank you to Jocelyn for finding out the Japanese translation!!


Enjoy!!!

Katakana Literary Work (Draft)

Here is an advertisement for "あたらしい　クレンジングクリーム”。　
In order to emphasize what the product does, katakana, hiragana and romanji are used together.

Instead of using the Japanese words for "fresh" and"face" (in their hiragana form), katakana is used to make the selling points of the product stand out (I intend to change "face" from loanword katakana to "kao" in katakana and perhaps for "fresh" as well).

The words "dull" and "smooth" are written in katakana here because they are loan words.

Simple english words (written in romanji) are used for aestetic purposes in order to complement the katakana. Hiragana is used everywhere else for aestetic purposes as well.

PS: I wanted to use the "onomatopeia" word to express "shining" but I can't recall what it is. If anyone knows it, please comment below. Thank you.

This is a ROUGH DRAFT ONLY!! I realize I need to fix the text size, spacing, and arrangement!!! And maybe make it more appealing.

Katakana Analysis (Final)

 

 

 

#1. Hisamitsu Mask
          -スクワラン ,  コエンザイム, ダブルでカバー
          -foreign words/technical terms/emphasis(?)

Notice how some words are written in Hiragana but others are written in katakana. Here katakana is not only used for foreign scientific terms like: "squalene" スクワランand "co-enzyme" コエンザイム but it is also used for words like "double cover" ダブルでカバー . Double cover is written here in Katakana but it is not a scientific term. It is written in katakana (as the way it sounds) to emphasize that the corners of the mask overlap creating a "double cover" seal. This is emphasized this way because it is the "selling point" of this brand of mask.

 

#2. Shiseido Anessa Sunscreen
                     - プロテクター ,  シミプロテクト , ダメージプロテクト
                     -Emphasis/foreign words

This product is a sunscreen that gives daily protection from harmful UV rays. However, "protection" in Japanese is ぼうえいor えんご. Here they use Katakana to spell out the word as it sounds in English: "protector" プロテクター. This is used in order to emphasize what the product does. Also when listing the types of protection they follow the same style. For example, シミプロテクトmeans spot protector and ダメージプロテクト means damage protector. What is really interesting about this is that spot in Japanese is しみ but here it is written in katakana, not hiragana. This too is for emphasis in order to get the high points of the product across to the consumers. Another reason why this might be written in this way is that since "protection" is written in katakana, it would be more aestetically pleasing to have both words written in katakana.

 

 

#3. Shiseido Aqualabel: Deep Clear Oil Cleansing
                     - プラ ,
                     -Foreign Words 

Notice that the recycle symbol uses Katakana for "pure" プラ instead of the Japanese word さいじゅんかん　or the foreign word Katakana リサイクル for recycle.  My hypothesis is that it could be the short hand term for "plastic" written as "pura" in order to create a nice short national symbol that is cheaper to reproduce than spelling out the full term in katakana. Another possibility is that many English words are shortened and used in Japanese language.

 

How is Katakana explained in Japanese Textbooks? 

            Japanese textbooks explain that katakana is a form of writing used in order to express:

 

                      1) foreign words or loan words,

                      2) sounds or onomatopeia,

                      3) express emphasis,

                      4) for technical terms.

Some differences from these textbook uses occur in real life situations. For example:

       1) Names
               -Some choose to write their first or given name in katakana instead of the
                traditional or widely used Kanji or even Hiragana.

      2) Products/Ads that target younger audiences
               -Since youngsters are in the process of learning Kanji, ads that target them

                use a combination of simple katakana and hiragana.

      3) For aestetic purposes
              -Some use katakana not really for emphasis but because it looks better on a
               product or advertisement.

Katakana Analysis (Draft).

#1. Hisamitsu Mask
          -スクワラン ,  コエンザイム, ダブルでカバー
          -foreign words/technical terms/emphasis(?)

Notice how some words are written in Hiragana but others are written in katakana. Here katakana is not only used for foreign scientific terms like: "squalene" スクワランand "co-enzyme" コエンザイム but it is also used for words like "double cover" ダブルでカバー . Double cover is written here in Katakana but it is not a scientific term. It is written in katakana (as the way it sounds) to emphasize that the corners of the mask overlap creating a "double cover" seal. This is emphasized this way because it is the "selling point" of this brand of mask.



#2. Shiseido Anessa Sunscreen
                     - プロテクター ,  シミプロテクト , ダメージプロテクト
                     -Emphasis/foreign words

This product is a sunscreen that gives daily protection from harmful UV rays. However, "protection" in Japanese is ぼうえいor えんご. Here they use Katakana to spell out the word as it sounds in English: "protector" プロテクター. This is used in order to emphasize what the product does. Also when listing the types of protection they follow the same style. For example, シミプロテクトmeans spot protector and ダメージプロテクト means damage protector. What is really interesting about this is that spot in Japanese is しみ but here it is written in katakana, not hiragana. This too is for emphasis in order to get the high points of the product across to the consumers.


#3. Shiseido Aqualabel: Deep Clear Oil Cleansing
                     - プラ ,
                     -Emphasis

Notice that the recycle symbol uses Katakana for "pure" プラ instead of the Japanese word さいじゅんかん　or the foreign word Katakana リサイクル for recycle. Here the manufacturer used this strategy in order to emphasize the importance of recycling the product once used. My hypothesis is that they use the word "pure" to emphasize how well the product recycles. Also a reason could be the short hand term for "plastic" written as "pura" in order to create a nice short national symbol that is cheaper to reproduce than spelling out the full term in katakana.

How is Katakana explained in Japanese Textbooks?
           Japanese textbooks explain that katakana is a form of writing used in order to express 1) foreign words or loan words, 2) sounds or onomatopeia, 3) express emphasis, 4) for technical terms.

Some differences from these textbook uses occur in real life situations. For example:
      1) Names
               -Some choose to write their first or given name in katakana instead of the
                traditional or widely used Kanji or even Hiragana.

      2) Products/Ads that target younger audiences
               -Since youngsters are in the process of learning Kanji, ads that target them use
                a combination of simple katakana and hiragana.

      3) For aestetic purposes
              -Some use katakana not really for emphasis but because it looks better on a
               product or advertisement.

Katakana Samples

#1. Hisamitsu Mask
          -スクワラン ,  コエンザイム, ダブルでカバー
          -foreign words/technical terms/emphasis(?)

Here katakana is not only used for foreign scientific terms like: "squalene" スクワランand "co-enzyme" コエンザイム but it is also used for words like "double cover" ダブルでカバー . Double cover is written here in Katakana but it is not a scientific term. Why is this?



#2. Shiseido Anessa Sunscreen
                     - プロテクター ,  シミプロテクト , ダメージプロテクト
                     -Emphasis/foreign words

 Here they use Katakana to spell out the word as it sounds in English: "protector" プロテクター. Why did they decide to do this? Also when listing the types of protection, Katakana is used instead of the normally used Hiragana words. Why?



#3. Shiseido Aqualabel: Deep Clear Oil Cleansing
                     - プラ ,
                     -Emphasis

Notice that the recycle symbol uses Katakana for "pure" プラ instead of the Japanese word さいじゅんかん　or the foreign word Katakana リサイクル for recycle. What is the purpose of doing so?

About Me

 

はじめまして。ラチィシャ　イ―　です。コルビアのだいがくはよんねんせいです。アメリカのフロリダからきました。わたしはにじゅよんさいです。

わたしはおんがくがすきです。にほんごのポップスがすきです。でもえんがはあまりすきじゃありません。わたしのはははジャズがとてもすきです。わたしのちちもジャズがすきです。わたしはジャズがまますきです。

わたしはえいががすきですから。テレビをみます。アニメとホラーとミステリーとアクションときげきのえいががすきです。でもれんあいとせんそうはきらいです。おもしろいくないですから。わたしのはははホラーのえいががとてもすきです。

わたしはスポーツがじょうずです。サッカーとテニスとじゅうどうがじょうずです。けんどうがすきです。でもけんどうはへたです。わたしのははとちちはスポーツをみます。フトバルがすきですから。

わたしはくるまがあります。NISSANのくるまがあります。わたしのははとちちはBMWのくるまがあります。でもわたしのおとうとはくるまじゃありません。

わたしのかぞくはえいごがよくわかります。わたしもえいごがよくわかります。にほんごがすこしわかります。かんこくごもがすこしわかります。ちゅうごくごがぜんぜんわかりません。

どうぞよろしくおねがいします。

Reason(s) why I study Japanese

When others ask me what languages do I study, most of them are surprised by my response. Why do I study Japanese? I suppose the desire to learn the language goes back to over a decade or so. Yep, I became infatuated with anime. First it was those shows that came on television late at night, then I found out that I could see the original, "unAmericanized" versions. The only problem was...they were in Japanese. Sure, English subtitles were available, however I began to notice subtle changes in those subtitles depending on who made them. I picked up on certain words and their English meanings by watching anime. Certain words like "sugoi" and "chigaimasu" were interpreted slightly differently. To solve some of this confusion I discovered Japanese dramas. I wanted to see and hear the language being used in more everyday situational occurrences. Finally upon entering college, I decided there was no other time better than now to start learning the language formally from a teacher. Once I revealed my desire, someone suggested that I take this course in order to "ease" into the language rather than to be "slammed" with it (First year Japanese I course).

 

"Cowboy Bebop", to this day remains to be my favorite anime of all time. :)