When the only language you have ever known is English, is it possible as a pensioner to acquire another language, specifically Japanese?
Well, I think that the answer is probably not. From what I have read it becomes more and more difficult to acquire language after one has passed the age of forty, and I will be sixty nine in a few weeks time.
But for the past three years, for a few hours a day, I have attempted to learn Japanese. I have used many apps, and wasted (probably) as much time online reading about acquiring Japanese as I have actually studying the language itself. Some days I have cried in frustration and despair, but these days are very rare compared to the ones of just enjoying the process and the challenge, and the small, slow gains of actually recognising what is being said on Japanese TV and radio broadcasts.
I knew that my journey into Japanese was going to be, let’s say, slow and problematic, from quite early on in the process. It took me nearly a year to learn Hiragana and Katakana! And even today Katakana can still be demanding (meaning I keep forgetting the characters). Somethings stick and some don’t, that seems to be just the way it works. In fact some mornings I can look at Japanese text and not recognise any charters at all. It just needs an extra cup of tea and a couple more hours of being awake and doing some chores for the grey matter to start functioning.
But before I reflect any further on the process, I should probably say something about why. Why am I even trying to learn Japanese? And, as strange as it may seem, there is no clear answer, or at least, an answer that does not make a lot of sense.
Seven years ago a dear friend gave me a copy of a small book, ‘The Sound of the Mountain’ by Yasunari Kawabata (E.G. Seidensticker translation), and I was overwhelmed by Kawabata’s writing. Not about the subject matter or the story lines, but just by the way he wrote. His choice of words and phrasing. I have had a life long interest in Haiku, and Kawabata is a little like reading one long Haiku. There is so much space in his paragraphs, I find his writing impossibly eloquent and sparse. After I had read the book through several times (I had not read a book more than once since my teens) I decided that I would like to read it in it’s original language. That’s it. That is why I am attempting to learn Japanese. To read Kawabata!
It is fair to say that I am drawn to all things Japanese. My all time favourite film is Ikiru by Akira Kurosawa, who is also my favourite director. My favourite living director is Hirokazu Kore-Eda. I do not love these things because they are Japanese, they just all happen to be Japanese. Oh, I should also mention I like poetry, and it was with great delight a couple of years ago to discover the work of Shuntaro Tanikawa, who sadly died last year.
I was still working seven years ago, and had to wait until retirement to find time to attempt to study a language. Since then it has been a long journey of discovery, really one step forward and three steps back. I quickly grew tired of YouTube videos of people saying how they went from zero to N1 in five or six months. I really do not think that there is an easy way, but you do have to spend quite a lot of time finding a way that works for you. I believe that it is different for everyone. What may be a fantastic system for one person may be a total disaster for the next. But I think it fair to say that acquiring language will need a variety of inputs, from various sources, and that those sources may very well change over the years. And we are talking about years.
I think, originally I started with JapanesePod 101 and Duolingo. After six months or so a Japanese friend advised the Genki textbook series, which I still use. Some days I could bloody well strangle Mary Hart! I have tried Anki many times but that sort of regimented SRS just does not work for me. I can only learn from words and characters in phrases and in context. It is only really in the last year that I have been able to get to grips with the language by reading stories, poems and articles.
So I can only really state what items I am using now, some of which I may be using in a year from now, but others may well be superseded. This list is in no particular order, I mention then on the off chance that some may be new to some readers:
Readlang – paste in your favourite Japanese text and get instant translations from a variety of dictionaries and create flashcards.
Satori Reader – “a Japanese language learning app and website that provides learners with reading and listening content, along with tools to aid comprehension”.
Quizlet – “an online learning platform that provides interactive flashcards, games, and practice tests to help users study and master various subjects.
Yomujp – Graded readers – really nice.
Tadoku.org – Graded readers – also terrific.
https://tsunagarujp.mext.go.jp – Website for Foreign Nationals as Residents to Learn Japanese Language.
Makato – Produces some really nice courses for learning Japanese. Some great material.
MyLanguageExchange – A website for language learners to find other learners in their target language. The best thing about learning Japanese is spending online time talking to Japanese people, so that they can practice their English and I can practice my flaky Japanese.
Shinobi – I came across Shinobi last December. I was not ready for it at the time. I liked the look of it, but I did not see a way on fitting it in with my other studies. Also I was in a bit of a health crisis and not really in a space to do any new studying. I began looking at it again some two or three months ago and quickly came to appreciate it as a language learning tool. It looks terrific, it is very stable (not all apps work well all the time). And it progressed very easily from the first lesson, gently increasing vocabulary and grammar points. It is really well graded. I have reached Intermediate level now and it is just getting challenging – but in a good way.
There are a lot of YouTube channels but I do not access them every day or even every week. I also find Podcasts difficult as I inevitably just fall asleep while trying to listen to them. But here are two channels I particularly like:
Oyasumi Japanese Channel – Short stories carefully and slowly read.
ALPC Japanese – Slow Japanese channel and podcast.
Finally I should mention how useful a VPN is both on the computer and TV. There is no evening complete for me now without at least some Netflix Japan or Tver.
I guess the most important thing I have learnt is that learning Japanese may be difficult, but it is terrific fun. It is not so much the destination – it is the journey (and those you make the journey with) and I now have some really good friends in Japan.
Go at our own pace – there is no rule as to how long it may or may not take. I may be inspired by others language learning stories but it is not a good idea to compare myself to others, however well they may, or may not be doing.
A deep passion for all things Japanese helps. It’s history, customs and religions. I follow NHK and Japan Times. There a million things out there to discover and be fascinated by.
But most importantly – you have to love the process and the challenge – whether it is ten minutes or ten hours a day you have to get a kick out of the whole process.
by oldgreyandangry