I began watching Japanese Anime and Japanese drama when I was fourteen years old. I watched the shows purely for entertainment, but as I was watching them, something unexpected happened. I found that I was able to recognize and understand certain words, as I associated them with English subtitles. Gradually, I grew from picking up certain words, to being able to understand entire conversations. I learned how to speak basic Japanese - by accident. But I wasn't just learning the language, I was falling in love with it. I came to have a deep appreciation for the Japanese language and the Japanese culture that is integrated into it. I began wanting to be able to communicate well in Japanese and be able to read the world around me when I visit Japan someday, and I was offered the opportunity to learn how to do those things in college. Naturally, it was a chance I couldn't pass up. Something I found both interesting and challenging in my first four weeks of Japanese class, however, was that some phrases I had been used to hearing in Japanese TV are actually not supposed to be used with certain age groups. I struggled with forcing my mind to use one word instead of another. I am very excited to learn new aspects of Japanese culture, such as these, and improve my conversation and writing skills. I can't wait to be able to read in all the alphabets of Japanese. I am so excited to see what the semester will bring.
- Theyju
