「シュルルル」,Onomatopoeia, なるとまんが
カタカナ is often used for emulating sounds and noises. As indicated in our なかま textbook and various online sources, this is one of the easier-to-spot uses of カタカナ. In this sense, カタカナ can be interpreted as conveying no inherent meaning in the characters, similar to its use serving as a loanword alphabet, in which the word itself contains no meaning, instead referring to a borrowed concept. Contrast this with ひらがな or かんじ, in which characters or sets of characters carry meaning.
「スズキ」、「ニュ－スリリース」, Business words, Suzuki Motors website
In orders of official business, カタカナ is often used. This is likely due to the historical/traditional relationship between カタカナ and patriarchal society. That is, areas of life more commonly associated with males is likewise linked to カタカナ. The visual appearance of カタカナ itself may also suggest a more serious, more reliable nature, contrasting with the more curvy, free form of ひらがな.
「シュルルル」ってなんですか。「ニュースリリース」ってなんですか。アナリシスはいいですが、コンテクストはありません。だけど, ビジネスワードのアナリシスがおもしろいですね。かたかなとひらがなは Gender Roles があります。
ReplyDeleteI liked what you said about katakana. However I think our project is more about analyzing the specific examples of katakana that we used. I would like to see a more detailed analysis of the specific words you chose. By thinking about their respective meanings you might find out something interesting.
ReplyDeleteI think your point about the association between Katakana and patriarchal society is very unique. But, I'm not sure whether Katakana necessarily implies something "male". For example, fashion magazines are definitely a very female domain. However, the sentences in Japanese fashion magazines are dominated by Katakana. In this case, the usage of Katakana is irrelevant to something male.
ReplyDeleteInteresting read, I have never thought about connecting Katakana to the historical tradition. Especially in using business name スズキin Katakana, I also think it gives a sense of formality. However, I think A san's point also has a good point. Since the word such as cosmetics are written in Katakana in fashion ads, I think here the main point is emphasis/advertising.
ReplyDeleteHere, the word ニュースリリースcan combine both functions: 1) formality 2) advertising. Not only does the press want to emphasize the formal message but also highlight the news' urgency.
Keep up the good work, Huang San!
You wrote many interesting points! I never realized that katakana was commonly used in business. When I think of business Japanese, I normally think about secretaries answering phones and using keigo. I never really thought of katakana as having a reliable image, probably since most of my exposure to katakana comes from manga. But since it has that image, it makes sense that it would be used in business. I don't agree that katakana is limited to 'male' areas as it is widely used in advertisements appealing to people of all ages and genders.
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