IE3 ICC Seminar: Lesson 10

6/17/2015

Hi everyone,

We just have a few more units to cover, and then it'll be time for our presentations. Once you get your outline back, start preparing your slide presentations.

Language as a Barrier to Communication:
In today's lesson, we looked at examples at how language is center to identity since it allows a group of people to share experiences. We then listened to samples of changes to the English language from the 8th century to the 20th century. Languages are dynamic and are always changing.

We also looked at how translation affects intercultural communication. In class, we had time to analyze challenges with vocabulary and idiomatic equivalence. In next week's lesson, we'll finished up with grammatical-syntactical, experiential and conceptual equivalence. You can review the lecture with the slide presentation: Language as a Barrier

Homework:
1. Complete your presentation
2. Blog Comment #9
3. Reading pp. 105-125 (ch. 5) and worksheet

Please download the worksheet at the end of the summary. This will be your "reflection topic" for this week. I'll collect the worksheet at the beginning of next week's lesson.

Blog Question #9:

Choose two Japanese idiom/proverbs that reflect Japanese culture.

Give the idiom in Japanese and a direct translation.
Explain the meaning of the idiom/proverb. (How does it reflect Japanese culture?)
Is there a similar idiom/proverb in English. What is it?

*Write 150-200 words.
*Use capitalization, punctuation & spelling correctly.
*Submit by Monday, June 22 by 6:00pm.

Nonverbal Communication Worksheet
File Size:	86 kb
File Type:	pdf

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10 Comments

IE3S-Jumpei

6/21/2015 12:55:31 pm

The first proverb I would like to write about is "急がば回れ",meaning "If you're in a hurry, go around". This proverb means the exact same as the translation. If you're in a hurry, it is likely to succeed if you take the long path rather than taking the short cut, or in other words don't rush, and proceed little by little. This phrase is used in many situations in Japan when we're in a hurry. We often use it when we have so many tasks to do but have a limit of time. We tend to rush but the fastest way is to calm down and to forget that you don't have time. It is hard to think for an example how this phrase influence Japanese culture. Rather, I even think recently in Japan, there is a strong image for Japanese people to be so rushy, which is a contradiction. Maybe remembering this spirit-not to rush but to take the long way when you are really hurrryng- could help Japanese people to finish there tasks more earlier. There is a very similar proverb in English, which is "haste makes waste".

The second proverb I would like to introduce is "同じ釜の飯を食う"meaning "eating from the same pot. This proverb is used when you are a very good friend with someone that shared meals, jobs, and even feelings too. I believe this has a very strong impact to Japanese culture. Like I learned in class, Japan has a strong sense of identification to groups and have a special feeling to whom they ate food with. This phrase is expressing the Japanese culture very well.
The most closet English proverb would be "to drink of the same cup".

IE3S-Yuma

6/21/2015 02:21:08 pm

The first one is 言わぬが花(iwanuga hana).A direct translation is "Not saying anything is flower.The meaning of this is "Saying something is boring.Saying nothing is better because it is more valuable.As we studied,Japan is high context culture.So we do not often say something to others directly.We tend to hide our opinion.In English,"Silence is golden."is similar to this proverb.The second one is 三尺下がって師の影を踏まず(Sanjaku sagatte shi no kage wo fumazu).A direct translation is we must not step their teacher's shadow so we have to take three steps back.The meaning of this proverb is we have to respect our teachers who is in higher position than us and be polite to them.In Japanese culture,there is a unique relationship between senpai and kohai.This proverb reflects this culture.In English,the ediom"A student must never forget to honor teacher"is similar to this proverb.

IES3-Takahiro

6/21/2015 04:24:36 pm

　The first proverb that reflects Japanese culture and I’d like to write about is ”郷に入っては郷に従え(gou ni itteha gou ni shitagae)”. This proverb can be translated into the famous English proverb, “When in Rome do as the Romans do.” I think this proverb describe the Japanese culture that we are apt to have great importance on the public, and, giving it a bad name, we are too sensitive to the others.
The second proverb is “出る釘は打たれる(Deru kugi ha utareru)”. The similar proverb in English to this one is “Tall trees catch much wind.” or ”Envy is the companion of honor.” This means to encourage conformity. Since Japan is collectivist culture and high context culture and we are often obliged to follow others irrationally, we or our culture can be reflected well in this proverb.

IE3S-Kohei

6/21/2015 04:25:12 pm

When we talk about a person who always depend upon his or her parents for financial support, we often say "he or she always 親のすねをかじる". The direct translation of it is "to gnaw the parents' legs". It means "to be dependent on one's parents." As Nicole said before, Japanese people tend to be dependent on their parents however old they are. We Japanese often depend on parents for making a firm decision.
We learned before that Japanese people always try to avoid conflict. The proverb "長いものには巻かれろ" expresses very well. The direct translation for it is "to be wrapped with something long". It means "Do not try to resist the tide". I think this proverb shows that Japanese people always want to stay in a "group". The interpersonal relations in a group is so important for Japanese people that we always try to avoid conflict. The close English proverb is "Don't kick against the pricks".

IE3S-Saya

6/21/2015 06:18:14 pm

First Japanese proverb is "hayaoki wa sanmon no toku." The direct translation is sleeping early and waking up early saves you 3 mon. Mon is an ancient currency. This proverb means that waking up early brings you benefits like you become healthy and also you are able to get to work well. It's a famous proverb from long time ago. In English, it is known as "the early bird catches the worm."

Second Japanese proverb is "Chiri mo tsumoreba yama to naru." The direct translation is many a little makes a mickle. There's a similar proverb in English, which is "an inch an hour, a foot a day." These both mean that even if it's a small thing or amount, the result will be big if you continue on piling it up. It shows the importance of continuing to making efforts.

IE3S-Sayaka

6/21/2015 06:19:54 pm

The first idiom that reflects Japanese culture is "能ある鷹は爪を隠す," (no aru taka ha tsume wo kakusu) which means to hold back. Literally, this means "the wise hawk hides its talons." This idiom reflects Japanese modest culture. People who have great ability do not show off their ability, but try to hide it. The similar ones in English are "Still waters run deep" or "cats hide their claws."
The next one that I chose is "言葉多きは品少なし," (kotoba ooki ha shina sukunashi" ) which means less talkative people have more dignity, and this exactly reflects Japanese quiet culture. There weren't the similar one in English found, but I found an opposite meaning one on the internet, which is "words cut more than swords." That reflects talkative Americcan culture, and I thought that was very interesting that even proverbs vary widely from different countries affected by their cultures.

IE3S-Misato

6/21/2015 06:35:12 pm

耳が痛い
棒に振る
鼻に掛ける
手をつける
手を引く

腹を割る
隠さずに心の中をさらけ出す。本心を打ち明ける

足を引っぱる
集団の進行の妨げになること

The first one is a idiom, "足を引っ張る" (Ashi wo hipparu). The direct translation is "pull one's leg." This means to get in the way and disturb one's success. It is often used in Japan when someone disturb a team work. I think this idiom strongly reflect Japanese culture of being harmony with others. From parents and teachers, Japanese children are often taught "みんなの足を引っ張らないように" meaning "don't be a obstacle of everyone." Using the word everyone reflects Japan as a collective culture. It is thought that people always belongs to a group. The most closet English proverb would be "ball and chain."

The second one is "以心伝心" (i shin den shin) The direct transportation is "convey through heart" It means to understand each other without speaking. Japan is a high context culture society and it reflects Japanese culture. The most closet English proverb would be "That which comes from the heart will go to the heart."

Ie3S-Misato

6/21/2015 06:39:15 pm

The first one is a idiom, "足を引っ張る" (Ashi wo hipparu). The direct translation is "pull one's leg." This means to get in the way and disturb one's success. It is often used in Japan when someone disturb a team work. I think this idiom strongly reflect Japanese culture of being harmony with others. From parents and teachers, Japanese children are often taught "みんなの足を引っ張らないように" meaning "don't be a obstacle of everyone." Using the word everyone reflects Japan as a collective culture. It is thought that people always belongs to a group. The most closet English proverb would be "ball and chain."

The second one is "以心伝心" (i shin den shin) The direct transportation is "convey through heart" It means to understand each other without speaking. Japan is a high context culture society and it reflects Japanese culture. The most closet English proverb would be "That which comes from the heart will go to the heart."

IE3S-Yumi

6/21/2015 06:42:32 pm

The first proverb that I would like to explain is "二階から目薬" The direct translation of this proverb is that "eye drops from the second floor" The meaning of this proverb is that "being in that condition that something that cannot be done no matter how hard one tries and is slightly frustrating because of it", or "one does things in such a roundabout way that there is no good effect." As for the similar proverbs in English, I couldn't find any of those. But you can just say "that will be quite useless" or "that's totally ineffective."
The second proverb I would explain is "豚に真珠" This direct translation is that "pearl to a pig." The actual meaning of this is "it is very meaningless to give valuable things to someone unworthy of it." We can use this proverb, for example, when you see a woman who doesn't seem clean and descent, wearing a quite high brand-name dress. There is a similar proverb for this. It is "cast pearls before swine" which is a lot like what that is translated in Japanese.

IE3S-Manami

6/22/2015 01:11:29 am

One of the idioms that I think it reflects on Japanese culture is "Nagaikono niwa makareyo". It means go with the flow. Japan is a collectivist country and we tend to rely on someone's opinion. It is said that Japanese people feel nervous when they are not protected by the ones who are stronger than them. A similar idiom in English is "If you can't beat them, join them."
There's also an idiom "deru kui wa utareru". The meaning is similar to the one I explained. It means that people who are outstanding from others or have special talent would be disliked. It also means that if you do something too much, then you'll be disliked. People don't like to be too special and they are scared to show their talent because they will not be accepted. The similar idiom in English is "tall trees catch much wind."

IE3 ICC Seminar: Lesson 10

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