The only reason Japanese people need to learn English is that it’s a compulsory subject at school. After that, why bother? After all, technology is getting so advanced it can do all that for you, can’t it?
New methods of third-party translations
There’s Google Lens, Apple Live Text, Pocket Talk, there are even earphones that can translate what you hear and say in real(ish) time. Masami and I are not needed any longer because the internet has taken our jobs. This is a modern concern for many people with the advancements in AI, smartphones, and super-fast internet speeds. I’m not too concerned though.
Old methods of third-party translations
Before this modern technology, there were ways for Japanese people to communicate in English without having to learn it; hiring a translator or interpreter at the high level, or using an English-Japanese phrase book at the lower level. These methods didn’t stop every Japanese person from learning English or any other language for that matter.
Is your voice being heard?
The main reason why I’m not worried is, all of the above translation methods are missing a very important thing; authenticity. Your voice and feelings are authentic, and original, and can come only from you. By using a third-party, your voice cannot be directly conveyed, and I think that is important for heart-to-heart communication.
All of these modern methods of translating are useful however, they are only a version of what you have said and not always exactly what you mean. Inaccurate and awkward translations can occur which will misrepresent you. Unless you do it for yourself, it’s a third-parties understanding of what you want to say.
Lost in translation, language & culture
Phrasebooks will be accurate although restrictive, it’s what the writer of the phrasebook wants you to say. It’s easy to test the other methods by translating from English to Japanese and then translating the Japanese translation back to English. For example, I used a popular translating software to do this, “I like to relax on weekends” = “週末はゆっくりしたい” = “I want to relax on weekends” What I wrote doesn’t translate back exactly, and the meaning has changed.
Another thing that cannot be communicated are the cultural differences, the Japanese conversation dynamic is not the same as an English conversation dynamic. The flow of a conversation is also impacted by waiting for technology to do its thing.
Your voice
I think Masami and I will continue helping Japanese people to learn and communicate in English for a long time because people want the power to speak for themselves.
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【あなたの心が伝わるあなただけの英語】
英語でのコミュニケーションをあなたらしい英語で。一人一人のレベル、能力、
興味に合った教材や方法を用いたテイラーメイドの英語コミュニケーションプログラムです。
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