Because there are lots of different languages in the world, there comes with it times of opposition. What does that mean? Even the slightest difference in connotation of a word can make the world of a difference. Changing of a word’s connotation due to no direct translation, can completely destroy the origin of the word. Every language has their own ways of how they mean words, how they understand words, and how they are going to use these words in everyday life. In Ethan Watters’ article, “The Mega-Marketing of Depression in Japan” we see the variations of how the word “depression” is used and understood in English and Japanese. Language causes many discrepancies in translation due to the way it is portrayed, especially with the help of advertisers and marketers.
The way something is said can affect the way it is looked at or understood. Between cultures there are different …show more content…
The reason there is a little discrepancy with that statement is because it makes it like depression isn’t a serious issue; that it’ll just go away like a little cold does. As said in Ethan Watters’ “The Mega-Marketing of Depression in Japan”, “As a marketing line, there was one problem with the phrase kokoro no kaze: the metaphor lacked a sense of urgency about the condition (Watters 526).” People should be made aware that depression is an urgent disorder. It is a serious disorder. It may not be so severe for some people, but for others it might be. The Japanese have never recognized the English definition for depression, so they might have not been made aware that they did in fact suffer from depression. It is saddening that the people of Japan weren’t even aware that they can have this disease because of the way society spoke of things. There were doctors that know what depression is in Japan. It wasn’t the culturally accepted thing to believe that being depressed is something so
The way something is said can affect the way it is looked at or understood. Between cultures there are different …show more content…
The reason there is a little discrepancy with that statement is because it makes it like depression isn’t a serious issue; that it’ll just go away like a little cold does. As said in Ethan Watters’ “The Mega-Marketing of Depression in Japan”, “As a marketing line, there was one problem with the phrase kokoro no kaze: the metaphor lacked a sense of urgency about the condition (Watters 526).” People should be made aware that depression is an urgent disorder. It is a serious disorder. It may not be so severe for some people, but for others it might be. The Japanese have never recognized the English definition for depression, so they might have not been made aware that they did in fact suffer from depression. It is saddening that the people of Japan weren’t even aware that they can have this disease because of the way society spoke of things. There were doctors that know what depression is in Japan. It wasn’t the culturally accepted thing to believe that being depressed is something so