Current location:health >>
VOX POPULI: Vertical writing an indispensable part of thinking in Japanese
health763People have gathered around
IntroductionWhen you picture a timeline of Japanese history, which side is the Jomon Pottery Culture Period (c. ...
When you picture a timeline of Japanese history, which side is the Jomon Pottery Culture Period (c. 14500 B.C.-1000 B.C.) on?
Is it right or left?
Since ancient times, the passage of time has always flown from right to left in Japan.
This is clearly evident in “emaki” picture scrolls and “byobu-e” folding-screen paintings.
Cherry trees blossom in mountains, while leaves grow thick, wither and are covered with snow. The transition of the four seasons has always been portrayed from right to left.
Makoto Yanaike, an expert on the Japanese language, says it is probably because Japanese has traditionally been written from top to bottom and right to left.
It is a fresh reminder that our consciousness and thought are inseparably connected to the arrangements of words.
Horizontal writing was introduced during the final years of the feudal Edo Period (1603-1867).
By the Taisho Era (1912-1926), the newspaper industry was also using horizontal writing for headlines and other elements.
But reporters have always written their stories in vertical format even though their tools changed from manuscript paper to word processors and to personal computers.
But alas, the time has come.
Although the appearance of the paper remains the same, The Asahi Shimbun’s computer system has just been refurbished. Now I have to input manuscripts for this column horizontally.
It is all part of adapting to the digital age, I heard.
The fact is that the majority of online texts are written horizontally, even in Japanese today, and from left to right.
The situation is apparently the same even for newspapers in China, where the system of writing in kanji characters originated.
I can’t help but think it is a trend of the times.
Still, the difference between vertical and horizontal writing is significant because the presentation looks different.
For example, novelist and poet Kenji Miyazawa (1896-1933) recites in his poem “Haru to Shura” (Spring and Demon): “Oh, I roam at the bottom of the shining April/ As I clench my teeth with bitterness/ I find myself being a demon.”
I wonder if he could have etched out his deep torment using a writing mode other than a vertical one.
I confess I wrote this manuscript vertically on a different file before pasting it into the system.
In Japanese, there is a saying for a lazy person: “One who doesn't even bother to put something that is standing vertically horizontally.”
But things are not that simple.
--The Asahi Shimbun, April 6
* *
*Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.
Tags:
Reprint:Friends are welcome to share on the Internet, but please indicate the source of the article when reprinting it.“Culture Channel news portal”。http://colombia.graduatethesis.org/html-85d199906.html
Related articles
I was 'brokefished' by my friend for £400
healthI need your help. My friend K has been recently telling our friendship group about how dire his fina ...
【health】
Read moreSmall Manufacturers Harness E
healthContact Us HomeNewsHighlightACWF NewsSocietyWom ...
【health】
Read moreXinjiang's Urumqi Sees Record Number of Tourists in 2023
healthContact Us HomeNewsHighlightACWF NewsSocietyWom ...
【health】
Read more
Popular articles
- Sophie Morgan suddenly quits ITV show Loose Women as she reveals plans for emigration
- Shutterbug in Northeast China Records Growing Winter Sport Popularity
- Countdown Starts for China's 14th National Winter Games in Inner Mongolia
- Staff Members Prepare Flour Products for Spring Festival in China's Shandong
- Tamara Ecclestone is criticised as her daughter Fifi, 10, heads out wearing heavy make
- Highlights of Gangwon 2024 Winter Youth Olympic Games
Latest articles
Kid Rock 'uses N
Festive Events Highlight New Year Celebrations in Macao
Wedding Bus a New Fad Among Chinese Newlyweds
Efforts to Improve Lives of Those with Disabilities Lauded
Verona confirms Serie A status for another year after beating Salernitana
Are Americans feeling like they get enough sleep? Dream on, a new Gallup poll says
LINKS
- An Overview of Xi's Diplomacy in Spring 2023
- Mount Huangshan in E China, World Cultural and Natural Heritage
- First Shangri
- A visit to Fuzhou: Don’t miss these sublime historical and cultural sites
- Breathtaking view of oldest palace in Tibet 'Yumbu Lakhang'
- View of spring in Beijing
- Sceneries of Hutuo River after ecological restoration in Shijiazhuang, N China
- Xi Holds Talks with Eritrean President
- Xi Focus: Xi Inspects Xiong'an New Area, Urges New Progress for 'City of Future'
- Xiplomacy: China