{"id":414,"date":"2017-10-16T18:32:14","date_gmt":"2017-10-16T22:32:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/guidetojapanese.org\/learn\/?p=414"},"modified":"2017-10-17T15:07:05","modified_gmt":"2017-10-17T19:07:05","slug":"explanations-and-expectations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/guidetojapanese.org\/learn\/complete\/explanation","title":{"rendered":"Explanations and expectations"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/D7wRJug13d0\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>In English, changing the order of words in the sentence can often change the tone as well. For example, asking &#8220;Is he a student?&#8221; sounds very different from &#8220;He&#8217;s a student?&#8221; While the former is a very neutral question simply seeking a yes or no answer, the latter expresses surprise that the person is in fact a student and is seeking confirmation of that fact.<\/p>\n<p>In Japanese, we saw that sentence order is very flexible due to how particles clearly define the grammatical role of each word. So in order to express this kind of biased question or answer, we add \u300c\u306e\u300d to the end of the sentence to show that we are seeking or providing an explanation. <\/p>\n<p>For nouns and na-adjectives, you also need to add \u300c\u306a\u300d before \u300c\u306e\u300d.<\/p>\n<h3>Example<\/h3>\n<ol>\n<li>\u5f7c \u3010\u304b\u308c\u3011 &#8211; he<\/li>\n<li>\u5b66\u751f \u3010\u304c\u304f\u30fb\u305b\u3044\u3011 &#8211; student<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<ol>\n<li>\u5f7c\u306f\u3001\u5b66\u751f\uff1f<br \/>\nIs he (a) student?<\/li>\n<li>\u5f7c\u306f\u3001\u5b66\u751f<em>\u306a\u306e<\/em>\uff1f<br \/>\nHe&#8217;s a student? (Seeking explanation why he&#8217;s a student)<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>In the second sentence, because the person is implicitly seeking an explanation for why he&#8217;s a student, it gives the impression that the speaker is surprised or considers the fact that he may be a student to be unexpected.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/obOAAmHHHVI\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h3>Health is important too<\/h3>\n<ol>\n<li>\u3068\u3053\u308d\u3067 &#8211;  by the way<\/li>\n<li>\u3069\u3046\u3057\u3066 &#8211;  why<\/li>\n<li>\u5fd9\u3057\u3044 \u3010\u3044\u305d\u304c\u30fb\u3057\u3044\u3011 &#8211; busy<\/li>\n<li>\u50d5 \u3010\u307c\u304f\u3011 &#8211; me, myself (polite, masculine)<\/li>\n<li>\u6c34\u6cf3\u90e8 \u3010\u3059\u3044\u30fb\u3048\u3044\u30fb\u3076\u3011 &#8211; swim club<\/li>\n<li>\u3048 &#8211; eh, huh<\/li>\n<li>\u305d\u3046 &#8211; so<\/li>\n<li>\u3067\u3082 &#8211; but<\/li>\n<li>\u8da3\u5473 \u3010\u3057\u3085\u30fb\u307f\u3011 &#8211; hobby; interests<\/li>\n<li>\u30d1\u30bd\u30b3\u30f3 &#8211; computer; PC<\/li>\n<li>\u30b2\u30fc\u30e0 &#8211; game<\/li>\n<li>\u5065\u5eb7 \u3010\u3051\u3093\u30fb\u3053\u3046\u3011 &#8211; health<\/li>\n<li>\u5927\u4e8b \u3010\u3060\u3044\u30fb\u3058\u3011 (na-adj) &#8211; important<\/li>\n<li>\u306a\u308b\u307b\u3069 &#8211; I see<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>\u30b9\u30df\u30b9\uff1a \u3068\u3053\u308d\u3067\u3001\u30ea\u30fc\u541b\u306f\u3069\u3046\u3057\u3066\u5fd9\u3057\u3044<em>\u306e<\/em>\uff1f<br \/>\n\u30ea\u30fc\uff1a \u50d5\u306f\u6c34\u6cf3\u90e8\u3060\u304b\u3089\u3002<br \/>\n\u30b9\u30df\u30b9\uff1a \u3048\uff1f\u305d\u3046<em>\u306a\u306e<\/em>\uff1f<br \/>\n\u30ea\u30fc\uff1a \u305d\u3046\u3060\u3051\u3069\uff1f<br \/>\n\u30b9\u30df\u30b9\uff1a \u3067\u3082\u3001\u8da3\u5473\u306f\u30d1\u30bd\u30b3\u30f3\u3068\u30b2\u30fc\u30e0\u3058\u3083\u306a\u3044<em>\u306e<\/em>\uff1f<br \/>\n\u30ea\u30fc\uff1a \u305d\u3046\u3060\u3051\u3069\u3001\u5065\u5eb7\u3082\u5927\u4e8b\u3060\u304b\u3089\u3002<br \/>\n\u30b9\u30df\u30b9\uff1a \u306a\u308b\u307b\u3069\u3002<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#\" onclick=\"toggleSpoilers(); return false;\">Toggle Translations<\/a><br \/>\n<span class=\"spoiler\"><br \/>\nSmith: By the way, Lee-kun, why are you busy?<br \/>\nLee: Because (I&#8217;m in) swim club.<br \/>\nSmith: Eh? Is that so?<br \/>\nLee: That&#8217;s so but?<br \/>\nSmith: But isn&#8217;t (your) hobby computers and games?<br \/>\nLee: That&#8217;s so but health is also important so.<br \/>\nSmith: I see.<br \/>\n<\/span><\/p>\n<h3>Explanation for \u300c\u3060\u300d and \u300c\u3067\u3059\u300d<\/h3>\n<p>When the sentence has additional things following the \u300c\u306e\u300d such as \u300c\u3060\u300d or \u300c\u3067\u3059\u300d, the \u300c\u306e\u300d is replaced with \u300c\u3093\u300d to make pronunciation easier. While \u300c\u306e\u300d can still be used, it is considered to be old-fashioned.<\/p>\n<h3>What&#8217;s the problem?<\/h3>\n<ol>\n<li>\u30aa\u30bf\u30af &#8211; otaku; geek; enthusiast<\/li>\n<li>\u3042\u306e\u3046 &#8211; um, er, excuse me<\/li>\n<li>\u3042\u307e\u308a &#8211; not very (when used with negative)<\/li>\n<li>\u3044\u3044 (i-adj) &#8211; good; fine<\/li>\n<li>\u8a00\u8449 \u3010\u3053\u3068\u30fb\u3070\u3011 &#8211; word; language<\/li>\n<li>\u306f\u3044 &#8211; yes (polite)<\/li>\n<li>\u3044\u3044\u3048 &#8211; no (polite)<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>\u30b9\u30df\u30b9\uff1a \u5c71\u672c\u5148\u751f\u3001\u30ea\u30fc\u3055\u3093\u306f\u3001\u6c34\u6cf3\u90e8\u3060\u304b\u3089\u3001\u30aa\u30bf\u30af\u3058\u3083\u306a\u3044\u3067\u3059\u3088\uff01<br \/>\n\u5c71\u672c\uff1a \u3042\u306e\u3046\u3001\u30b9\u30df\u30b9\u3055\u3093\u3001\u30aa\u30bf\u30af\u306f\u3042\u307e\u308a\u3044\u3044\u8a00\u8449\u3058\u3083\u306a\u3044<em>\u3093\u3067\u3059<\/em>\u3088\u3002<br \/>\n\u30b9\u30df\u30b9\uff1a \u305d\u3046<em>\u306a\u3093\u3067\u3059<\/em>\u304b\uff1f\u3067\u3082\u3001\u30ea\u30fc\u3055\u3093\u306f\u30aa\u30bf\u30af\u3058\u3083\u306a\u3044\u304b\u3089\u3001\u3044\u3044<em>\u3093\u3058\u3083\u306a\u3044<\/em>\u3067\u3059\u304b\uff1f<br \/>\n\u5c71\u672c\uff1a \u30b9\u30df\u30b9\u3055\u3093\u30fb\u30fb\u30fb\u3002<br \/>\n\u30b9\u30df\u30b9\uff1a \u306f\u3044\uff1f<br \/>\n\u5c71\u672c\uff1a\u3000\u3044\u3044\u3048\u3001\u3044\u3044\u3067\u3059\u3002<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#\" onclick=\"toggleSpoilers(); return false;\">Toggle Translations<\/a><br \/>\n<span class=\"spoiler\"><br \/>\nSmith: Yamamoto-sensei, Lee-san is not an otaku because (he&#8217;s in) swim club.<br \/>\nYamamoto: Um, Smith-san, Otaku is not a very good word, you know.<br \/>\nSmith: Is that so? But Lee-san is not an otaku so isn&#8217;t it fine?<br \/>\nYamamoto: Smith-san&#8230;<br \/>\nSmith: Yes?<br \/>\nYamamoto: No, never mind (lit: (it&#8217;s) fine).<br \/>\n<\/span><\/p>\n<p>The phrase \u300c\u3044\u3044\u3093\u3058\u3083\u306a\u3044\u3067\u3059\u304b\uff1f\u300d shows a very important way setting expectations can enhance your abilities to express certain things. By setting the expectation that it should be good and asking the opposite allows you to ask questions like, &#8220;isn&#8217;t it?&#8221;. You can compare the difference in meaning by looking at the different variations below. This is only to give you the general idea as you&#8217;ll naturally get the hang of it through the regular course of exposure to the language.<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>\u3044\u3044\u3067\u3059\u304b\uff1f &#8211; Is it good? (neutral yes\/no question)<\/li>\n<li>\u3088\u304f\u306a\u3044\u3067\u3059\u304b\uff1f &#8211; Is it not good? (neutral yes\/no question)<\/li>\n<li>\u3044\u3044<em>\u3093<\/em>\u3067\u3059\u304b\uff1f &#8211; It&#8217;s good? (seeking explanation as to why it&#8217;s good)<\/li>\n<li>\u3088\u304f\u306a\u3044<em>\u3093<\/em>\u3067\u3059\u304b\uff1f &#8211; It&#8217;s not good? (seeking explanation as to why it&#8217;s not good)<\/li>\n<li>\u3044\u3044<em>\u3093<\/em>\u3058\u3083\u306a\u3044\u3067\u3059\u304b\uff1f &#8211; It&#8217;s good, isn&#8217;t it?<\/li>\n<li>\u3088\u304f\u306a\u3044<em>\u3093<\/em>\u3058\u3083\u306a\u3044\u3067\u3059\u304b\uff1f &#8211; It&#8217;s not good, isn&#8217;t it?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h2>Various degrees of explanation and expectation<\/h2>\n<p>It&#8217;s important to note that this way of seeking explanation or expectation is not explicit and can be more of a subtle nuance as opposed to directly asking for an explanation. It&#8217;s common to use \u300c\u306e\u300d for just about anything that&#8217;s not completely neutral in tone especially in casual speech. How strong the explanation or expectation is will depend on the context and tone.<\/p>\n<h3>Example 1<\/h3>\n<p>A: \u3054\u3081\u3093\u3001\u4eca\u65e5\u306f\u3060\u3081\u3060\u3002<br \/>\nB: \u3058\u3083\u3001\u660e\u65e5\u306f\u5fd9\u3057\u3044\uff1f<\/p>\n<p>A: Sorry, today is no good.<br \/>\nB: Ok then, is tomorrow busy? (neutral yes\/no question)<\/p>\n<h3>Example 2<\/h3>\n<p>A: \u3054\u3081\u3093\u3001\u660e\u65e5\u306f\u3060\u3081\u3060\u3002<br \/>\nB: \u660e\u65e5\u306f<em>\u5fd9\u3057\u3044\u306e<\/em>\uff1f<\/p>\n<p>A: Sorry, tomorrow is no good.<br \/>\nB: Is tomorrow busy? (mild curiosity, low level of seeking explanation)<\/p>\n<h3>Example 3<\/h3>\n<p>A: \u660e\u65e5\u306f\u30c6\u30b9\u30c8\u3060\u306d\u3002<br \/>\nB: \u3048\uff1f\u660e\u65e5\u306f<em>\u30c6\u30b9\u30c8\u306a\u306e<\/em>\uff1f\uff1f<\/p>\n<p>A: Tomorrow is test, isn&#8217;t it?<br \/>\nB: What? There&#8217;s a test tomorrow?? (surprised expectation of no test and high level of seeking explanation)<\/p>\n<h3>Example 4<\/h3>\n<p>A: \u3054\u3081\u3093\u3001\u660e\u65e5\u306f\u7d76\u5bfe\u3060\u3081\u3060\u3002<br \/>\nB: \u660e\u65e5\u306f\u3001\u3044\u3063\u305f\u3044<em>\u3069\u3046\u3057\u3066<\/em>\u3060\u3081\u306a\u306e\u3088\uff1f\uff01<\/p>\n<p>A: Sorry, tomorrow is no good for certain.<br \/>\nB: Just why in the world is tomorrow no good?! (explicit demand for explanation)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In English, changing the order of words in the sentence can often change the tone as well. For example, asking &#8220;Is he a student?&#8221; sounds very different from &#8220;He&#8217;s a student?&#8221; While the former is a very neutral question simply seeking a yes or no answer, the latter expresses surprise that the person is in &hellip; <\/p>\n<p class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/guidetojapanese.org\/learn\/complete\/explanation\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;Explanations and expectations&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"series":[7],"class_list":["post-414","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-nouns-and-adjectives","series-complete-guide"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/guidetojapanese.org\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/414","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/guidetojapanese.org\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/guidetojapanese.org\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/guidetojapanese.org\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/guidetojapanese.org\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=414"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/guidetojapanese.org\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/414\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/guidetojapanese.org\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=414"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/guidetojapanese.org\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=414"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/guidetojapanese.org\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=414"},{"taxonomy":"series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/guidetojapanese.org\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/series?post=414"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}