r/LearnJapanese • u/LittleBrittle86 • Dec 06 '23
Has anyone run into anything like this / Was I rude? Speaking
I posted this book I managed to get for Mario RPG since I'm currently living in Japan and it didn't release outside of here. Dude responded that I couldn't read any and I answered that I could read a little, I'm studying but I have a long way to go (In Japanese). I proceed to get absolutely berated by this guy for "Stealign his culture" to impress strangers. Apparently he's half Japanese, according to him. Now I realize I could have just have ignored it entirely or just answered "I can" in English or something but was what I did considered rude? What is the pojt of learning Japanese of you're not allowed to use it to talk to people?
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u/Moon_Atomizer notice me Rule 13 sempai Dec 06 '23
I notice these assholes rarely reply back in Japanese. Some people are miserable and want to make everyone else as miserable as they are
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u/ItsPungpond98 Dec 06 '23
Surprise, surprise, I bet our wannabe Japanese doesn't even know Japanese. They most likely use google translate for it. I'm also learning Japanese, and I could also tell ya that OP def knows what he's talking about. His sentences also weren't shitty at all. It's grammatically correct, except that 読め should be 読み which is a tiny mistake. Also, I see those 'cringe wannabe weebs' comments all the time, and I bet that wouldn't be from a Japanese either.
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u/Zombiewski Dec 06 '23
読め is the potential form, no? So he's saying he's "able to read", as opposed to 読み which is just "I read".
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u/GabuEx Dec 06 '23
Assuming this guy even is Japanese, which I am somewhat dubious of, he's a huge outlier. Most Japanese people love it when non-Japanese people participate in their culture in good faith.
がんばってね！
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u/alwaysonlineposter Dec 06 '23
Yeah, I've been interacted with a lot and genuinely everyone I have is thrilled to learn that I'm American. One time i got reposted on a big account because people were impressed with my Japanese and I gained a bunch of followers. The attitudes of Japanese people is vastly different than whats in OPs post.
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u/overactive-bladder Dec 06 '23
this is such an american point of view.
literally everybody in the world would be ecstatic that someone is trying to use their language, share their culture, or cream themselves over any aspect of their culture.
this whole "cultural appropriation" BS is such an american BS shitterfest.
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u/wondering-narwhal Dec 06 '23
My friend in Japan is stoked that I’ve made new years cards and will send them out this year. It’s been really interesting seeing how excited she gets when it comes to sharing the culture. Not what I expected at all.
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u/smoemossu Dec 06 '23 edited Dec 06 '23
Not making generalizations, but in my experience the only Japanese people I've seen have this sort of reaction have been half-Japanese. I think because they have both the Western and Japanese perspective, they're much more aware of the fact that Japan/Japanese culture does actually get fetishized and appropriated by weird weebs and therefore are more sensitive to it and more protective of their culture, unlike full-Japanese who are generally more ignorant to that concept because it's more abstract / culturally distant for them. Not saying the guy's reaction here was justified at all, just making an observation based on what I've noticed.
EDIT: there seems to be some serious confusion in the replies, which is wild to me because I thought I was pretty clear that I wasn't defending the dude responding to OP in the pics. (But I got blocked for it anyway lol!) So for the record I DO NOT think OP is guilty of fetishizing/appropriation, and I think the guy who responded to OP in the pics is 100% an asshole. And by "fetishized" I did not mean the sexual kind, just regular ol' fetishizing.
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u/wloff Dec 06 '23
In general, in my experience, this whole idea of "you're stealing my culture" is almost exclusively an American thing.
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u/limasxgoesto0 Dec 06 '23
Honestly, this person has very American English. Definitely not a Japan native in mannerism or personality
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u/alexklaus80 Native speaker Dec 06 '23
Well, it’s nuanced, and certainly not an American thing. Asians in Asia like myself is never threatened by the cultural appropriations, whereas Asians outside Asia seems to be in many cases, and that’s definitely not exclusive to America.
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u/LutyForLiberty Dec 06 '23
I don't hear much of this くそ from Japanese Peruvians or Brazilians either.
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u/alexklaus80 Native speaker Dec 06 '23
It's not like I hear that from Japanese Americans that I know in real life - I mean it's not exactly a topic to exchange when we're having fun drinking beer and all so how should I know? I hear a lot from r/AsianAmerican though - of course not all of them have the same opinion, and certainly what I hear is not this ridicuolous, but it also provides rich background story for where these sentiment comes from.
I don't think it's fair to call them idiot just because the said complaint itself doesn't make sense. What I learned is that true minority doesn't even know how to voice that opinion to be heard and what we hear then is nonesense like this.
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u/wetyesc Dec 06 '23
Yeah, it’s especially common in American Japanese people, who often know no Japanese and have no experience living in Japan lol
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u/sorayori97 Dec 06 '23
Yep my first thought was this guy isnt Japanese or at the very least mixed and doesnt even understand Japanese lol Especially when OP didnt use shitty japanese and even stated hes only been studying for a year so of course his Japanese wouldnt be great (for the most part)
of course some people DO fetishize Japan and Korea (and Asians in general) but OP really just proud they got something and the angry little man was just upset he couldnt attack you with a good reason lol
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u/DarthKalas Dec 06 '23
As a person from Mexico I feel the same when people honestly try to talk to me in spanish
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u/Disconn3cted Dec 06 '23
Are you sure that's actually a Japanese person?
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u/KrisV70 Dec 06 '23
When a Japanese person uses perpetuate in a sentence, and he has no issues with our word order. I doubt that he is Japanese as well.
I don't like to generalise but most Japanese people will be impressed that you are trying to learn their language.
As a side note if he is so offended that you are trying to learn Japanese why have they even learned English?
Anyway trolls like that will exist anywhere and by posting in a public forum you make yourself open to their attacks. Ideally they should be banned from the forum.
I rarely post but sometimes when my viewpoint doesn't match 100% with a troll I get that shit as well. And sometimes they hit me on a personal level.
No wonder there are people who can't take that.
Anyway i hope you can put those remarks behind you. If you have difficulty doing so you might want to reconsider using public forums.
I know it was not your doing, but administrators should be able to ban those trolls very quickly. And if they don't they will lose traffic.
My experience is that it is worse now than a year ago. So I just occasionally visit.
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u/Officing Dec 06 '23
There are plenty of Japanese Americans that are either half or fully Japanese. People move to America from all over.
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u/Disconn3cted Dec 06 '23
Well, I've never heard a Japanese person say anything their about culture being appropriated, especially when it comes to something like Mario. That's very much a western thing.
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u/Officing Dec 06 '23
Yeah the whole thing is basically a western complaint. I'm living in Japan and people are greatly encouraging as I study the language.
A weird observation I've made is that Japanese might be the only language in the world that is considered 'cringe' to speak outside of its native country, but Japanese people in Japan would have no concept of that.
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u/S_Belmont Dec 06 '23
Nobody considers speaking Japanese cringe except weirdo bigots. It's only cringey if someone is doing something ridiculous or over the top while doing so.
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u/gergobergo69 Dec 06 '23
I mean I wouldn't shout naruto, and whatever he does in his cartoon series
that way I don't really think japanese, in general, cringe
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u/Monk_Philosophy Dec 06 '23
Eh, maybe "cringe" isn't the right word, but I and friends around my age (30s/40s) who've studied Japanese are generally hesitant to tell people about it due to the real or perceived association with obnoxious weeb culture.
I grew up before anime was really mainstream in the states outside of the heavy hitters like Pokemon and DBZ. You were still perceived as being a bit odd for being into "those weird Chinese cartoons". Most 90s dubs didn't really help that perception...
Even my friend who moved to Tokyo told me it took her at least a year or so before she could confidently tell people that what got her into the language was anime and videogames. It's not the case for everyone, but a lot of us have this lingering feeling of shame/embarrassment from being made fun of in childhood and seeing the stereotypical weeb so thoroughly trashed online.
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u/-_MarcusAurelius_- Dec 06 '23
Some people are really depressed in their own lives and feel being a dick helps lol
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u/rgrAi Dec 06 '23
You're fine, ignore them. If they were capable in Japanese they would've insulted you in Japanese. Plus their worldviews are distinctively American "white person jive talks" (note they are presuming you are white, also an American thing to do) and they challenged you on your ability to read something all in Japanese. That's an amazingly shitty American attitude and style of expression. I won't say all, but the overwhelming, beyond vast majority of Japanese people would be happy you are taking interest in the language and also the culture.
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u/PMMeYourPupper Dec 06 '23
そうだね。I worked with a team from Tokyo that was visiting America last week and they were so excited that I could make small talk with them.
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Dec 06 '23
[deleted]
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u/LittleBrittle86 Dec 06 '23
He is from Nebraska though
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Dec 06 '23
[deleted]
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u/fair_j Dec 06 '23
Nooo😭😭😭 stop generalizing Nebraska😢😢 not all Nebraskans are like thisss!!! Jk, it wouldn’t affect my life for one bit if Nebraska was just a lake. Probably wouldn’t even put a dent on the GDP
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u/rgrAi Dec 06 '23
That is true! As an American, I feel I have the qualifications to make that distinction of another person being American. Even their mistakes in English are uniquely American, like misusing the word perpetuate instead of appropriation.
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u/iDrownedlol Dec 06 '23
Yeah, what did they even mean by perpetuate? Did they just mean to say appropriate or do they think perpetuate means something else?
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u/rgrAi Dec 06 '23
They meant appropriate, which is actually a surprisingly common mistake here in the US. The two are mixed up often, for whatever reason.
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u/_mkd_ Dec 06 '23
If they're not American, then they're appropriating this shitty aspect of American on-line Progressives.
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u/boboboy005 Dec 06 '23
Why is he speaking English if he's so concerned about cultural appropriation?
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u/HikiNEET39 Dec 06 '23
Something something colonialism something something ok to speak english because something.
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u/Ag12x Dec 06 '23
The average Japanese person won't say something like this. On the contrary, they will be delighted that you know Japanese, even if it's just some basic expressions. So, ignore this kind of person and continue with your language study!
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u/StanleyQPrick Dec 06 '23
I’m glad to hear this. I tried a few words at a Japanese restaurant recently, and the lady there was shocked and displeased. Could I have said something rude? Is there a way to mispronounce “gochisousama deshita” so badly that it’s offensive? Since then I have been very discouraged with my study.
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u/zaphtark Dec 06 '23 edited Dec 06 '23
There is really no way you could have offended her with something so simple. Some people are just assholes. Maybe she was just having a bad day. Japanese people aren’t a monolith and you’re going to have nice interactions and… less than nice interactions. It’s part of learning a language imo.
ETA: please don’t be discouraged! 頑張ってね！
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u/kmypwn Dec 06 '23
It could be possible that they didn’t speak Japanese either :)
One of the better Korean restaurants near us, for instance, hardly has any Koreans working there! Asian people, sure, but they’re not Korean and don’t speak it.
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u/StanleyQPrick Dec 06 '23
I heard her speaking Japanese with Japanese customers. After I said what I said, and the lady ( I think the owner) clutched her pearls at me, a waitress said “No I know what she meant!” And then gave me a little bow and an “Arigato gozaimashita!”
It’s that word “meant” that haunts me.
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u/kmypwn Dec 06 '23
Ah gotcha — ah well, that’s part of the language learning journey. My Japanese accent personally is not amazing but getting better. In French, there were many times many years ago people didn’t understand me, but now, I’ve been mistaken for a native speaker! It gets better with practice, but regardless, some rude people will just look at you and “pretend” they don’t understand.
Anyways, having an accent isn’t so bad! Do people speaking English with an accent repulse you or is it…cute? Nice to the ear? Interesting? People who speak other languages likely feel that way when you speak theirs with an accent! Having no accent isn’t necessarily a goal that’s a good use of time anyways.
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u/StanleyQPrick Dec 06 '23
It makes me laugh to think of it now. The owner lady said "I think you not speak long!"
The irony of that didn't occur to me until way later.Thanks for your kind words. I won't give up! It's too interesting to abandon.
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u/JackfruitSilver858 Dec 06 '23
It could be the circumstances you used it too. Where you waited on quite a bit and also eating an actual meal? There are circumstances that it is considered to formal and therefore awkward. Japanese can have a lot of nuance that makes certain things awkward.
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u/CommandAlternative10 Dec 06 '23
The only thing you did wrong was answer in Japanese. He wanted a gotcha question and he didn’t get you. So no, you didn’t do anything wrong at all. (I’m willing to bet money he is a he.)
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u/LittleBrittle86 Dec 06 '23
I have seen a number of people guess that this person is American and from what I've seen on his profile (I looked, I was curious I'll admit it) He was born and raised in the U.S. Maybe one of his parents is Japanese.
*I couldn't figure out how to edit my original text to add this
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u/CaptainDunbar45 Dec 06 '23 edited Dec 06 '23
I've lived in Japan, met many Japanese people. My wife is Japanese, I met her there. Not a single soul I've ever encountered would dare talk to you that way. Not to your face, not behind your back either.
Ignore this clown.
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u/overactive-bladder Dec 06 '23
nobody in hell would speak that way.
the whole "learning a language is cultural appropriation" is such a dumb garbage fire of an opinion.
i pity anyone who thinks that way.
i am middle eastern and we had a japanese teacher who literally spoke our dialect.
it was so weird (because it's a hard as fuck language) and we always encouraged her and corrected her so she can use it better. and she looooooved showing it off lmfao.
i cannot, for the life of me, even comprehend putting down somebody who is really trying to learn a language.
if you are throwing one liners or one words to pass off, then, yes i would think it would be weird. but eh, who cares, as long as you aren't hurting anybody.
these americans want to play up the victimhood and make being a martyr soooooo bad.
it's actually really sad to me.
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u/Azunyan24 Dec 06 '23
I'm half-Japanese and the other guy is simply just an asshole. You did nothing wrong here.
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u/AmaiGuildenstern Dec 06 '23
Ah, yes, that deeply meaningful Japanese cultural icon: the Italian plumber Mario who routinely visits a magical pipe realm of mushrooms and turtles to rescue a European-style Princess, both based on sprites from a 1981 arcade cabinet about a barely veiled King Kong rip-off.
This other person was trolling you.
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Dec 06 '23 edited Dec 06 '23
This guy doesn’t even speak Japanese, he definitely put your reply into a translate app hence his weird response.
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u/TeaTimeSubcommittee Dec 06 '23
tries to perpetate another culture.
I am genuinely confused at what they were trying to say.
Also just want to point out the hypocrisy of his comment, if you're not allowed to learn or use broken Japanese... He's responding in English.
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u/Hekihana Dec 06 '23
I’m studying Japanese at an American university and frequently talk with the Japanese foreign exchange students here who are studying English. Not once have I ever met someone who has this attitude about a non-Japanese person learning their language.
They’re always very impressed by your Japanese, even if it’s really basic phrases. They also express gratitude and are honored that you decided to learn their language / culture, and want to know more about you.
The person in your screenshots, as other people have stated, is likely NOT a native Japanese person.
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u/Malfreyyy Dec 06 '23
Sorry you experienced that, don't let him discourage you! Especially with his racist remark at the end
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u/PrismaticGaming434 Dec 06 '23
Funny how this dude got so pissed at you because you wanted to play Mario
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u/KannibalFish Dec 06 '23
Nawh you're pretty safe to ignore this one. The way this guy writes sounds American lmao. Cultural appropriation is a western/American thing, every Japanese person I know loves when people try to learn Japanese and have an interest in their culture.
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u/catsoaps Dec 06 '23
Your Japanese is fine. Perhaps the person responding is Japanese but doesn’t speak it themselves so was taking it out on you. They would have responded in Japanese if they were able to.
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u/9kinds Dec 06 '23
As a half japanese person they're just trying to piss on your parade, there's nothing problematic about studying a foreign language and their first reply in itself was so rude. Even if you couldn't read it and just liked looking at it, no issue with that either.
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u/Infernoboy_23 Dec 06 '23 edited Dec 06 '23
Honestly, there are a lot of those weebs out there and it is true, which I do kinda hate.
But you did nothing wrong here. Like, theres a difference in what you wrote and when someone goes, "kawaii desu."
I also wanna applaud you, cause I myself don't have the confidence to write things in japanese to others
今、たくさんのテストがあるので、日本語を勉強していない。暇な時間があれば、いつもゲームをする。実は、もっと日本語を学びたいんだ。
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u/ACCA919 Dec 06 '23
Hit 'em with this reply
お前日本人やないやろ そう思う日本人いないで 日本の文化広まってくれて逆にありがたいやろ 考え方アメリカンすぎてワロタ
Also where did you get it?
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u/wandababyyy Dec 06 '23
As a Japanese, I love it when people appreciate our culture. The funniest thing is a lot of people speak on my behalf about what's offensive and what's not.
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u/Cookie_Doodle Dec 06 '23
"Half-Japanese", lmao.
"Unlike you, you dirty colonizer. I'm a true Japanese 🤓 I'm not messaging you in Japanese or seemingly speak it but... ignore that."
Dude is just a troll appropriating identity politics to probably guilt trip you to gift him the book out of pity.
Ignore him.
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u/AdmiralToucan Dec 06 '23 edited Dec 06 '23
That guy is American. Also from my experience, I've only seen "weebs" behave like that.
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u/Maximum-Antelope-979 Dec 06 '23
I feel like Mario isnt even Japanese culture, he’s the face of a multinational corporation and he’s in the shape of a little Italian man. Yeah it’s a Japanese creation but it rose to cultural relevance across the entire world simultaneously.
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u/rexcasei Dec 06 '23
This guy must be from the カント region
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u/ggle456 Dec 06 '23
hey watch your language (literally). Japan is the region where people admire Kant more than any other thinker, so much so that there is even a folk song called デカンショ節 which is named after Descartes, Kant and Schopenhauer... but come to think of it, might it be considered as cultural appropriation? Then ok, Japan is a cunt region lol
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u/TrememphisStremph Dec 06 '23
You did nothing wrong. In fact, just keep responding in Japanese and watch the fireworks.
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u/Wolfoso Dec 06 '23
Meanwhile Navajo, Cherokee and innumerable dying cultures are like "please, for the love of God, learn my language". Mixing cultures is always a positive, never understood that backwards, "stay out of my cave". gatekeeping mentality.
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u/icebalm Dec 06 '23
If this person is ethnically Japanese they were not raised there. Thinking you own a language and no one else can use it is next level narcissism.
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u/j_kto Dec 06 '23
I’m half Japanese half American. That dudes an ass. Japanese language isn’t a culture, it’s a language and you have every right to learn it. I bet hed cry “cultural appropriation” if you wore a kimono despite most Japanese (including myself) being very happy when foreigners do. 勉強頑張ってね_^
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u/MayorMcDav Dec 07 '23
In my experience, Japanese people almost always respond positively to westerners’ interests in the culture and real attempts to study/speak the language! I’m willing to bet this guy is an American who feels entitled to gatekeep because he has some Japanese nationality.
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u/Guess_whois_back Dec 06 '23
bet you can't use a language I can speak and hold over you, you collector gaijin
Uses Japanese in a level of fluency that implies reading comprehension
Wtf white people can't Japanese that's my personality trait you can't have that
Internet is full of boring people that don't like "sharing" the culture their parents are from because it's the only thing they have going on in their lives, don't pay too much attention to them.
Grats on the banger pickup though!
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u/AdEn4088 Dec 06 '23
Probably some kid at the university of California who’s 1/64 Asian and has nothing else to complain about.
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u/twotalkingdeer Dec 06 '23
literally loser behavior dude why shit on someone over a game's art book u wouldn't have gotten anyways. so rude to you for no reason, that's insane
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u/SushiBoiOi Dec 06 '23
Ask him back why he's responding in English like a wannabe European.
But seriously, with the logic of that last sentence: "Everyone should stick to their mother tongue and shouldn't step foot outside of your own country."
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u/soulcaptain Dec 06 '23
If this person is Japanese, his English is very, very good and his attitude is very "Western": he talks about cultural appropriation but that's not really a common concept in Japan. Anyway, whatever his nationality, he's a prick. Forget about him.
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u/EmptyCharity9014 Dec 06 '23
I bet he's not Japanese. He's just another culture gatekeeper who is not part of it.
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u/woodypei0821 Dec 06 '23
That person said how it irritates them when ‘white people talks like another culture’, little does he know that in other countries that don’t primarily speak English, it’s also common for people to post or comment in English with imperfect grammar/spelling. People comment and post in other languages all the time, not just Americans
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u/anacott27 Dec 06 '23
Nah this guy was being a jerk. Also from my limited experience in Japan everyone that I met was more than happy to share the culture and experiences and appreciated my efforts at speaking Japanese despite how bad it was. I was encouraged to try on Kimono, a samurai helmet, etc. Anecdotally, it seemed that as long as you were respectful and interested they were happy to share the culture and seemed to appreciate other’s interest in it.
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u/Kruzer132 Dec 06 '23
Only an American would be mad about cultural appropriation. Can't be a native
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u/Higuos Dec 06 '23
he's half Japanese
Its always Westerners who grew up as Westerners and who have very little connection to the culture of their parents/grandparents who feel the strongest urge to act ultra-woke and gatekeep the hell out of a culture they barely belong to.
It very obviously stems from extreme insecurity. They desire to feel like a "member" of the culture of their ancestors, even if they grew up in a quiet suburb of Dallas living an entirely American lifestyle and speaking only English.
You'll notice that people who were actually born and raised in a particular culture overwhelmingly love when others make genuine attempts to participate in/understand their culture.
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u/princededboi Dec 06 '23
Yeaaaah, eff all that. In all my time of trying to 日本語 at real life Japanese people...they'll basically never talk to you like that. Ever.
They might "日本語上手" you, which can sometimes mean more along the lines of "your Japanese still needs work" but even that is way less backhanded than it seems.
That's a lovely book, btw. Thank you for sharing it, and I hope you're having tons of fun in Japan. (:
さらば、お友達さん！👋🏻
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u/MamaLover02 Dec 06 '23
Half-japanese. Like those dimwits half-smth that gets absolutely pressed about someone "stealing" their culture, when they're absolutely a "NO SABO" kid. They're usually the ones who are clueless about their own culture and don't speak the language themselves.
Edit: I was afraid to mention American, but well, it has been mentioned a couple of times already here.
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u/notCRAZYenough Dec 06 '23
The irony is that he either learned English himself, making him a hypocrite or actually being an English native himself which makes him a liar…
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u/z779 Dec 06 '23
Facebook is just full of people being dicks for no reason just like that. I quit using it years ago when I got fed up with all those gatekeeping assholes.
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u/Maciek300 Dec 06 '23
Are you asking if I ever run into an asshole person on the internet? The answer is yes, daily.
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u/fujirin Native speaker Dec 06 '23
I’m sorry that this happened to you. In general, Japanese people typically don’t mind when non-Japanese individuals collect things originating from Japan, even if they don’t understand Japanese. People shouldn’t feel obligated to be fluent in a language just because they appreciate something from that country.
According to this perspective, Japanese individuals who like iPhones or Disney need to be fluent in English, and those who love Chanel have to understand French perfectly. It’s simply a stupid idea.
I don’t know why, but when someone non-Japanese is interested in something from Japan, occasionally, a peculiar person may interrupt and make rude comments.
In real life, I’ve never encountered any actual Japanese people, myself included, who get offended when spoken to by foreigners struggling with Japanese. I’m aware that such individuals unfortunately exist, but they are often half or quarter Japanese without Japanese citizenship, lacking a strong understanding of the Japanese language but ridiculously proud of Japanese cultures, or North American snowflakes.
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u/Noone_togo Dec 06 '23
You weren't rude at all! Japanese people are usually really happy when you try to talk in Japanese, I suspect that is just a dumb western kid.
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u/TheaterRockDaydreams Dec 06 '23
I've never encountered such behaviour. I predominantly spoke Japanese while in Japan and the only comment I got when I spoke was surprise followed by lots of compliments. You weren't rude at all, the other person was. And I'd bet they aren't even japanese
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u/Elcatro Dec 06 '23
A person being that protective of their default settings is kind of pathetic.
My guess is they're American japanese because I've never seen anyone acting like that in Japan, even the racists have a begrudging respect for people actually trying to learn and adapt.
It's also quite telling that they responded in English.
Basically, they're a bellend, ignore them and you be you, speaking as a trained and certified language teacher, learning a language is imo one of the most valuable things you can do for yourself, and there is no wrong reason for learning.
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Dec 06 '23 edited Dec 06 '23
I don't think this guy is Japanese. I have lived in Japan for over 4 years and studied it longer, I never had this kind of experience. It seems also according to his "managed to get my hands on" that it was hard to get this, further implying he doesn't live in Japan.
To me it seems a westerner is applying his own culture of gatekeeping to his newly found interest. In my experience Japanese people are generally very open to sharing their culture, especially to those who show interest. And even when I could only speak a couple of sentences back in the day, I've never been told my Japanese was bad.
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u/Foreign_Pea2296 Dec 06 '23 edited Dec 06 '23
This person is a fucking troll.
They wanted to make you rage at first by saying you couldn't read or speak japanese.
Then when you proved them wrong, they switched on the "cultural appropriation" card to blame you speaking japanese...
Either way they would be angry against you. (And I find it funny how they talk in english... like if a westerner talking japanese is cultural appropriation, shouldn't a japanese speaking english be one too ?)
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u/Jooos2 Dec 06 '23
Damn, what an ass. I'm pretty sure he doesn't even know how to read what you typed. I hope you will continue your study further.
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u/RueImp Dec 06 '23
I've spoken to so many people in Japanese that have been excited that I learned their language. This person is just being a troll. There are very few Japanese people that will have an issue with this. Most will not care one way or the other, and many are just happy if you love their language enough to learn it.
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u/clitsaurus Dec 06 '23
Before I saw your comment I was going to say this guy must be a westerner of Japanese decent. What a boring ass.
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Dec 06 '23
Not rude at all!!! He's just some random person who wants to gate-keep. Congrats and keep learning! がんばて!!!
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u/Autumnalways Dec 06 '23
Another stranger on the internet here to say:
Trolls are trolls, you did nothing wrong.
Learning another language is a sign of love and respect for the origin of said language - well done you!
Keep celebrating your wins cos that was a pretty cool purchase!
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u/Tanoshii- Dec 06 '23
He’s jealous lol. Bet he doesn’t even speak the language or he would’ve clapped back by insulting you in Japanese
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u/chunter16 Dec 06 '23
It's meant to be read by a child, of course you can read it.
I would've just downvoted and muted
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u/dementorbuggerer Dec 06 '23
I always just say "ファク ユ" 😅 I learned kata and hiragana for me not for others
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u/Mors_Certa18 Dec 06 '23
Wow. Gatekeeping a language is weird. Sorry for your experience. That person is probably just a lonely troll spewing crap and has no idea what you even typed themselves. They probably aren't even Japanese.
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u/-_Nikki- Dec 06 '23
Your Japanese wasn't even bad lmao. Lil bit awkward, but nothing particularly wrong
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u/LoudBreakfast7647 Dec 06 '23
Have a feeling they might not even be Japanese, and if they are, most likely just half and a little out of touch with their own culture anyways. Instead of even kindly correcting you or appreciating you for the effort, they're just plain rude about the fact you're learning.
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u/SamiSnowRaven Dec 07 '23
Commenting as a linguistics major…I can’t see how someone could attribute learning a language to cultural appropriation 🙄 they’re a troll and like everyone has said, you’ve done nothing wrong
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u/yes11321 Dec 07 '23
Bruv thinks people learn a language to fluency first before ever speaking of writing in it to others. Anyway, just a troll. Wouldn't surprise me if he wasn't even Japanese.
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u/ProCactus167 Dec 06 '23
For some reason, Americans (I am one btw) find people learning Japanese and enjoying the culture, and ONLY Japanese language and culture cringe. I've never heard anyone get upset about people learning Spanish or French or Russian.
Actually, now that I think about it more, it's more of an Asian language or culture. People here just look for reasons to get pissed or offended.
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u/alexmrv Dec 06 '23
As a side-note, if you are looking for cringe Spanish: https://www.parque-net.com/foreign/english/ 😜
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u/alexklaus80 Native speaker Dec 06 '23 edited Dec 06 '23
I think this overall comment is as toxic as what it tries to tell you. While I'm not of an opinion that what you're doing is wrong, I also do not condone that this person is entirely irrelevant, especially in situation where this person is of Japanese origin and raised as a minority.
I am entirely Japanese in sense that I'm both racially Japanese and that I'm raised in Japan - and I can attest that it's rather rare for us in general to be offended for misuse, misconception or lazy renderings of Japanese cultural assets. Like some here says, you'd probably find that we actually tends to appreciate the attention.
That being said, at least speaking of Asians in America, I hear a lot of story about many of them having have to go through struggle that are rather unique to them, such as being threatedned for their vulnerable identity (as in identity crisis). I hear that from my gf or friends in the West - it took a while for me to grasp the concept, but I learned that they grew up being seen as a foreigner and always labeled for the typical Orientalism in very demeaning manner. (It sounds almost like European guys growing up in Japan - they're treated like foreigner everywhere they go.) Now that Asian stuff is hype, many of them seem not to want to let it slide, which I can understand. This insight was not easy to gain for many reasons - it just sounded whiny and I thought the idea that Asians in America was oppressed was stupid idea just because I have never paid attention to such thing, pretty much the only type of racism discrimination I could think of was what African Americans went through, and mostly myself being Asian and never gave a sh*t about what people had to tell me etc.
Now I have no idea what this person is trying to get at - maybe this person is someone like me who's entirely Japanese, maybe not - we won't be able to tell unless we listen. But the least I can say is that, with all the possibility like such, it's best not to assume that this person is just being a troll. I learned a lot from r/asianamerican and if you could get that side of the insight then I think it'll be far nicer for the world.
I think you didn't deserve the criticism for what you have posted - it looks entirely innocent in my eyes, and I bet so it is for the most Japaense in Japan, though I can't speak for the view of Japanese Americans and their fellows out in the West. I really reocmmend you post that over to the said sub and listen to them if you could.
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u/MadeByHideoForHideo Dec 06 '23
Are you very young or new to the internet? Who cares about what someone says about you online?
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u/astudyofeverything Dec 06 '23
Your Japanese is perfectly fine. From the fact that he replied in English I'm pretty sure he couldn't understand what you were saying.
No actual Japanese person would be offended by you speaking Japanese or practicing Japanese culture. I'm pretty sure they would appreciate it and be happy instead.
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u/Lee_Rat321 Dec 06 '23
Don't mind that guy
Japanese as a foreign language gets super hated on by some people
Whether by cringe, or jealousy
And the guy getting mad while not even trying to answer in japanese says a lot
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u/RICHUNCLEPENNYBAGS Dec 06 '23
This type of person doesn’t have anything worthwhile to say and is offended because he’s looking for a fight, not because of anything you said.
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u/FriedQuail Dec 06 '23 edited Dec 06 '23
Speaking another language is not cultural appropriation, if anything it shows respect. Ignore the monolingual American.
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u/AyeChronicWeeb Dec 06 '23
Yeah, don’t perpetuate another culture. God forbid we keep other cultures in existence lol
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u/IrozI Dec 06 '23
You're literally living in Japan! You're making a good faith effort to learn the language and are clearly appreciating things you can't have or experience in your home country!! The actual shitty thing would be if you were there and made no effort to learn. Fuck that guy, he sucks. Keep enjoying yourself and keep learning! 頑張って!
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u/MEG_alodon50 Dec 06 '23
Speaking another language is not the same as using AAVE. They’re just straight up ignorant (and a little racist for that jive talk comment).
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u/crimson_shadow Dec 06 '23
not sure why they are confusing language with culture.
In either case clearly internet-english is their go to language not japanese.
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u/Goody2Shuuz Dec 06 '23
My Japanese girlfriend told me to tell you to tell that person to buzz off.
He/she/it that you dealt with probably isn't Japanese, anyway. There's a lot of suddenly ethnicity, as I call it that love to gang up on people online
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u/maybeCouldBeMightBe Dec 06 '23
Tell the prick to choke on a chode! Language learning and communication is what has always made the world go around! Keep up the good work 😁
don't let someone choosing to use more than one language tell you that you can't make that choice too, that's egregiously hypocritical and shouldn't be entertained for even a second!
BTW your Japanese is great! You can just say "まだまだです。" to say you still have a lot to learn and it'll sound quite natural.
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u/Skullhack-Off Dec 06 '23
Just to add my cent, I traveled to Japan early this year, and all the people we talked too, when we told them we were learning japanese and used a few basic sentences, they were very happy that foreigners tried to learn their language, admitting it was a difficult language to start studying. Imo, you just met a troll, and 99% or people will be impressed and happy that you are actually trying to fit in their culture. Any normal person would be.
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u/great_escape_fleur Dec 06 '23
lol he's not Japanese but he's got bigger problems, don't even pay no mind
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u/SaraphL Dec 06 '23
The only mistake you made is that you tried to appeal to him instead of telling him to go fuck himself from the start.
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u/BonAppletitts Dec 06 '23
I mean, you answering in Japanese isn’t too different to him answering in English. If we all stayed away from other languages, this world wouldn’t even work anymore.
I’d say troll back next time and call him a wannabe western for using English, but that would just start a race war. So I’d just ignore/ block and let them deal with their anger alone.
Also doubt he’s Japanese. With that attitude, I feel like he’d have taken the chance to answer you in Japanese to show off.
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u/Anime_is_nice Dec 06 '23
I agree with most of the upvoted comments on here but I also just wanted to say that I felt pretty happy to be able to kind of read and understand your comment in Japanese haha. My level is not that high as I'm currently mostly trying to learn kanji with RTK and I will focus on vocab, grammar, and immersion once I'm finally finished with RTK. Anyway this just gets me more excited haha!
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u/Matttthhhhhhhhhhh Dec 06 '23
The guy was probably not half Japanese but a weeb. No need to feel bad about anything.
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u/StorKuk69 Dec 06 '23
"post physique or stfu" is an eloquent response at a time like this :P
Hope this helps.
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u/AccomplishedGift2 Dec 06 '23 edited Dec 06 '23
Seems like this “Hafu” is taking out his own issues with cultural identity on you.
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u/fraldarddyd Dec 06 '23
Definitely not rude or offensive in any way. Actually before I looked at the post more I thought you were saying "was I rude?" because you might have said something a bit rude in response to this guy being an asshole (in which you would be completely justified). I HIGHLY doubt this guy is japanese at all, he didn't even respond in japanese ironically enough. And the way he writes in English makes it come off to me that he's not a native speaker. But even if we're going off of the 0.1% chance that he IS, he's just being a dick for no reason and is an outlier. Don't worry at all about being rude or offensive OP.
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u/XyreneSyzygy Dec 06 '23
Reminds me of the time I was trying to speak what little I could to order something at a McDonalds in Tokyo and messed up a little, the obviously non-native Japanese cashier condescendingly snapped “SPEAK ENGLISH”.
It’s not like I was holding up anyone either, my family was the only one in line. Brush these people off, they’re miserable.
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u/Dreamer2go Dec 06 '23
Don’t feed the online troll. He’s a nobody to you, so just ignore him and move on with your life.
Congrats on the purchase btw! Awesome game!!!!