japanese

learn with anime pt.2

Why You Should Learn Japanese With Anime

Really, it ain’t all bad! Anime has a lot to offer any budding Japanese student. It’s sort of similar to how you’ve been watching Japanese dramas and movies to learn. Settling in with a bowl of popcorn to watch your new favorite program is certainly a break from your ordinary language learning routine of scribbling alphabets into a notebook, copying grammar charts, and attempting to cram more vocabulary into your brain.

It’s going to be even easier since you’ve learned how to study Japanese with subtitles. Kick back, relax, switch those subtitles on, and enjoy the many benefits of watching anime.

Practice your listening skills.

Despite some noteworthy differences, anime Japanese is, obviously, real Japanese. This means that you will have the opportunity to reinforce your listening for vocabulary, grammar, and speech patterns.

Learn about Japanese culture through anime.

It’s not something that only children watch – it’s a cultural obsession. As you walk the electric streets of Tokyo, anime characters spring out at you from every direction. There are statues, paintings, posters, billboards, advertisements, stuffed animals, and virtually all possible kinds of merchandise prominently displaying popular anime characters. Large crowds of people dress up anime style and congregate in downtown Tokyo on a weekly basis. The artistry and storytelling which characterizes anime permeates every aspect of modern Japanese culture. Watching anime will bring you closer to understanding various aspect of Japanese history and society.

There’s an anime for everyone.

Did you know the Pokemon itself is a true-blue anime? You might have been a fan all along without even realizing it. That’s okay, it’s pretty normal – lots of newcomers to anime are under the impression it’s just about samurai adventures or the antics of high school girls. In reality, anime comes in all imaginable flavors: romance, action, adventure, horror, comedy, sports, spaghetti western, historical – you name it, there’s an anime in that genre. That means you can pick whatever is most fun for you to watch!

Tips and Tricks for Learning Japanese with Anime

1. High quality anime means high quality learning.

There’s tons of anime out there. While this means you have lots of options available, on the downside you will have to filter through a lot of shows using uncommon Japanese. The worst offenders are often science fiction and fantasy anime shows. The more outlandish the anime, the more likely you will hear rather unusual Japanese. As a first step, when you are looking at prospective anime for the purpose of learning everyday Japanese, you should steer clear of anything involving giant space robots, magic powers, fantasy worlds and ghosts. Three broad anime themes can be trusted to have more normal, casual language, and are generally the best choices for learning Japanese: high school, detective dramas, and sports.

2. Watch actively, not passively.

It isn’t enough to just catch the gist of what the anime characters are saying and doing. Really pay attention. Writing will help you remember your new words for later. When you pick up on grammar, vocabulary, or speech patterns that you recently learned while studying, take note to strengthen this concept in your mind. If you hear something odd that you haven’t learned yet, jot this down in a notebook and look it up later. Don’t get too obsessed with understanding every little detail from the get-go – complete comprehension will take time and practice. Just do your best to fill in the blanks as you go along.

3. Double-check what you’ve learned.

Now you should be fully aware that anime Japanese is not to be fully trusted – it can be hard to tell if you’re hearing made up words or silly, messed-up grammar. When you encounter something new, remember to cross-check your notes with online Japanese language guides and ensure that everything is accurate, real world Japanese.

 4. Listen carefully.

For all of the tips given in this post there is a common theme: you have to listen. One of the best reasons to watch anime is to develop your listening skills. Try not to rely on subtitles more than you need to.

5. Use the accompanying manga to aid in comprehension.

Manga refers to graphic novels. One fun approach is to buy the manga version of your new favorite anime program (the original Japanese version tends to be very cheap in Japan) and read it first. While you may be tempted to cheat and buy the English manga, Japanese manga generally always have hiragana written over kanji, allowing for easy comprehension. If you are intermediate and above, challenge yourself with Japanese manga is a must. It’s a great way to strengthen your reading skills! Anime tends to follow manga dialogue relatively closely, so you’ll basically have a script to follow along with while watching the show.