Re: addressing someone without -san or similar

From: Mark Bradford (tla_at_surly.org)
Date: 06/21/04 

Date: Mon, 21 Jun 2004 11:48:58 -0600

In article
<42373c2f4aa204ec1bd98d3b0e3eb7d9.124837@mygate.mailgate.org>,
 "Adam Atkinson" <ghira@mistral.co.uk> wrote:

> I've been watching the anime "Hikaru no Go" about a boy, a ghost,
> and the game of Go. I can't help noticing that the boy and the
> ghost address each other using just their names, "Hikaru" and "Sai",
> whereas almost all other conversations in the series have -san, -kun,
> -chan, -sensei or whatever. I think Hikaru addresses a bearded man
> called Tsubaki as just "Tsubaki" exactly once out of surprise,
> and is reprimanded for it.
>
> Is there any special significance to Hikaru and Sai's addressing each
> other this way? When we hear characters' thoughts, they think
> about people using names with no suffixes. Is this a usual
> convention?

If you're interested in the observations of someone who doesn't know as
much Japanese as the other responders, but who has the advantage of
having seen _Hikaru no Go_...

First, a general observation: in the anime I have seen (cue the "anime
is not real life" comments -- yes, yes, I know, however we're actually
talking about anime here, and I'm one of those anime fans able to
distinguish between [attempts to portray] fantasy and [attempts to
portray] realistic situations), honorifics are omitted in situations of
conscious insult, or great personal intimacy; in other words, where
normal rules of politeness don't apply. Often (though not always)
honorifics are omitted between siblings, or from parent to child.

Second, a specific observation: Hikaru, as you've seen, is a very rude
little boy. He uses rough speech (usually "ore" and "omae"), and calls
other characters, not just Sai, by their names without honorifics. (And
gets called simply 'Shindou' in return, by some of them.)

As for Sai, my guess is that either he sees himself in sort of a
parental role to Hikaru, being his Go mentor, or it's because they're
essentially thinking to one another. And it's hard to get more intimate
than being haunter and haunted, I suppose. 

-- 
                       Mark Bradford <tla@surly.org>
         "It is good to have an open mind, but not at both ends."

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Hikaru No Go (a Go anime).
    ... The HnG series has filled a lot of children with enthusiasm for Go. ... While I don't usually like manga or anime, I found the Hikaru no Go series delightful. ... You can't hold the manga or anime responsible for the responses of idiots, they're idiots anyway:) We have several new players in our local club, and new players on IGS, that came to the game through Hikaru, and they are polite and serious players. ...
    (rec.games.go)
  • Re: Hikaru No Go (a Go anime).
    ... each time I meet another Sai or Hikaru I want to ... I would suggest that for each Hikaruxxx "thinking" they'll go on to sweep all in their path there is probably another xyzxxx who got interested through the anime or manga but who doesn't have pretensions about being the greatest and is playing under a name without the baggage. ... Though I'd started playing before I read HnG, I hadn't started online at that point. ...
    (rec.games.go)
  • Re: Hikaru No Go (a Go anime).
    ... 'hikaru', and because this name is taken, ending up calling themselves ... wrong to blame the manga or anime. ... I myself dislike the anime for just this reason. ...
    (rec.games.go)
  • Re: [manga] Skip Beat! (anime adaptation in oct 08)
    ... timely updates without honorifics. ... translations that don't preserve honorifics in this day and age? ... translation of the anime, Maison Ikkoku, Godai early on addresses Kyoko's ... father as oji-sama or honored father. ...
    (rec.arts.manga)