Though English is my "native language" (insofar as a doll has a native language), English language and culture have never made any sense to me, and while my English communicative skills aren't bad, my ability to socialize is near nil as we have so little in common.

Japanese language and culture just make much more sense to me, even though my Japanese ability is poor.

as one grows, one's priorities change. If before I studied japanese because I liked kanji and japanese media, I now study it because I like the language, I feel good when I use obscure but interesting vocabulary with japanese people and because I'm going to need an even better japanese level when I start working. So that's why I study it.

Also, I feel that japanese language as improved my memory a lot! I spent the last 2 years procrastinating on my japanese studies (I live in japan though, and my classes were in japanese) but now that I'm back at it, it seems that everything just sticks very easily, even difficult words, I read them 2 or 3 times, and write them a few times and bam, the next times I see them in anki I have no trouble recognizing! A few years ago it was frustrating.

I lived in Japan for 12.5 years, up until about 8 months ago. I got married there 10.5 years ago.

In all that time, I learned quite a bit of vocab, grammar, hiragana, katakana and several hundred kanji, but it was a very sporadic, almost random approach. I was never good enough to watch the news, read a newspaper or read books and magazines, nor have particularly deep conversations. I really want to be able to do all that. The kanji is the key for me.

I am going back there to live soon, and while I am going to be getting divorced, I still want to be able to penetrate the culture more deeply this time, and as I say, the kanji is the key for me.

1: I've pretty much read everything I can find that is worth reading non fiction at both the local library and a nearby university library. I am sure there are many uncovered gems but the effort/reward ratio isn't worth it. So something to do. That or dive into fiction.
2: Although I am not bored, I am sure I come across as a pretty boring guy, I read, watch TV, movies, go on the internet. I could use a little spice.
3: As a self learner I don't think I have what it takes to handle tones, otherwise I'd probably do Chinese.
4: Hindi script might have many fewer characters, they do add up when you add those double consonants the writing of which changes. Also a lot of those letters sound pretty much exactly alike. I think I'd rather deal with Kanji. Also learning resources are limited.
5: I do like the idea of the JLPT. Everyone and his monkey can claim to be fluent [in three months ] but it is nice to have an actual test to back things up even if it is incomplete and has issues at least it is hard. Even if I never go to Japan, and never meet anyone who knows Japanese much like I haven't in my first 45 years except for one half Japanese girl I spoke to about 2 or 3 times and a linguistic stud friend of mine who got up to what he would estimate as an N3 level, at least I'd have something to show for it.

When RTK gets me down and the last 2 or so lessons I get that WTH am I doing this for, it is going to keep getting worse and it's bloody hell impossible, it doesn't help that I seem to lack any of the usual motivators. Not an Amine or a manga dude. Don't do martial arts. My tastes in females are widespread, about as widespread as their disinterest in me. I might have Yellow Fever but I have Pale Ginger cancer and Awkward adorkable dementia. I don't need to work. If and a big if I find myself living in Japan I can't see it being more than a year or two. Demographics, public finances, the geology trying to kill you etc... well maybe if Canadian financials really take off and the Yen collapses far ahead of inflation.

Oh well, have way through the pdf sample and I just ordered the book. At least it is good memory work. Sort of thing to give a bro confidence for taking on something else if I don't stick it through.

Dudeist Wrote:As a self learner I don't think I have what it takes to handle tones, otherwise I'd probably do Chinese.

Tones being too hard seems like a myth to me. I'm sure Chinese is just as easy to master as Japanese if you only put in enough time and actually study. Everything I've read/heard about Japanese before starting suggested it would be super hard/ next to undoable but it turned out to be no problem at all, and Chinese is probably the same.

I myself study just for fun since I really like languages and because it seemed like a great challenge compared to boring Uni. It was also pretty random that I started with Japanese, also considered starting Mandarin/Spanish instead but now they will have to wait for a few years.

z1bbo Wrote:

Dudeist Wrote:As a self learner I don't think I have what it takes to handle tones, otherwise I'd probably do Chinese.

Tones being too hard seems like a myth to me. I'm sure Chinese is just as easy to master as Japanese if you only put in enough time and actually study. Everything I've read/heard about Japanese before starting suggested it would be super hard/ next to undoable but it turned out to be no problem at all, and Chinese is probably the same.
.

I've read too much of people who have "learned" Chinese only to go over there and have nobody understand them because of tones. Stories of teachers who don't bother teaching and pushing proper tone use because it is too hard.
Myself I've never tried them, so maybe I'd take to them like a duck to water but without someone to correct me I'll pass.

As for Japanese, even at the RTK stage I get that super hard undoable feeling every day Oh well, at least the adorkable cutie pie working the information desk at the library seemed impressed... too bad she isn't otherwise warm for my form.

I love reading classics. So one day I thought, what's more classic than the first novel ever written?
So I'm doing this to read the Tale of Genji. That's why I started anyway.
But I'm just a language-lover really; I want to learn as much of them as I can.

Ironically, learning Japanese has given me indelible insight to my native tongue as well.

(2015-11-16, 9:55 pm)Zeina Wrote: Ironically, learning Japanese has given me indelible insight to my native tongue as well.

Still at the RTK stage.

I am not 100% but I think writing out all that Kanji has improved my English handwriting.

Who would have thunk it.

I am getting that WTH am I doing this for thought quite a lot still.

I study Japanese because I want to read hentai manga which nobody cares to translate into English.

My study is strictly limited to understanding Japanese language, mostly written form, without any need to speak Japanese.
This poses some problems because all Japanese courses are focused on speaking while almost completely ignoring understanding of Japanese. To make matters worse instead of explaining stuff they just provide some shortcuts for "safe versions of sentences"
So I have to create my own learning methods as well.

My native language is not English and Japanese seems to be pretty close in grammar, but learning Japanese from English perspective is much harder.