君の名は。 discussion (Intermediate) August 2024

Book Clubs
#1

Hi Everyone!

This is the official thread for the book we will be reading as of the 12th of August 2024.

君の名は。 (Novel)

Pace :racing_car:

See bottom of post.

General Rules :spiral_notepad:

For a full list of rules, please refer to the book club rules post. However, we would like to reiterate a few things regarding individual books. Please keep the following in mind in this discussion thread.

Keep discussion related to the target series.

You may of course make comparisons between grammar or vocabulary usages between series, but for the most part try to keep discussion related to the unique challenges that each book or series of books presents.

Search the threads for users that have perhaps previously asked the same question as you.

Each book will have its own thread, so if you follow the same pacing as the group, it is likely that a simple search will result in finding someone having asked the same question as you are about to ask. In addition to this, if you jump into a book late, it is expected that you would search the thread history before asking questions about content most participants have already past.

When asking questions, give as much detail as possible.

For example, if you include the page number, who is speaking, which speech balloon (in the case of manga), and explain what you want to know more about, that will be far easier for other users to answer rather than just asking ‘What does てっきり mean?’
Taking a screenshot and highlighting the portion you’re asking about would also be suitable.

Be polite! Not everyone is the same level.

Just because something is easy for you does not mean that it is easy for someone else. Let’s be thankful to those that answer our questions, and thankful also for the opportunity to help others that aren’t quite at the same level as us yet.

Keep questions in line with the pacing.

We know that some of you may want to surge ahead of the group if you are really enjoying a book. However, this can result in confusion if you are asking questions about things that people haven’t read yet. If this applies to you. Make a note of the question you want to ask, wait until the group has caught up, then ask the question

Be mindful of spoilers.

If you are asking a question about something that includes spoilers to the story, please be aware of this and let users know with a ‘SPOILER’ tag at the beginning of your question. Hiding the question by utilizing the Hide Details function of the forums would also be appreciated. Let’s allow everyone to enjoy the experience of reading spoiler free.

Let’s all have fun and create a positive learning environment together! :grin:

Ongoing 君の名は。 :books: :books: :books: :books:

As 君の名は。 is a single volume book, there will be no continuation. However, anyone may use this thread at any time in the future to ask questions about the book if they read it at some other time.

Vocab Deck :writing_hand:

Deck will be coming out soon!

Please read here for info about our vocab decks and their future development.

Okay, hope you’re all set to go! Looking forward to seeing the interesting things that everybody finds as they go through the book! :partying_face:

Pace guide, provided kindly by @krghtj

Week Start and End Dates Section(s) Page Count Final Line
Week 1 08/12/2024 - 08/18/2024 1, 2a 17 BGMなしのこの街は、ただただ息苦しいだけの場所だったと私は思い出す。
Week 2 08/19/2024 - 08/25/2024 2b 19 ・・・私は自分でもわからないのだった。
Week 3 08/26/2024 - 09/01/2024 3a 13 だって私この男のことなんにも知らないんだってば！
Week 4 09/02/2024 - 09/08/2024 3b 15 「みつは」って、いったいなんなんだ？
Week 5 09/09/2024 - 09/15/2024 3c 15 ・・・神様と人間を繋ぐための大切なしきたりなんやよ」
Week 6 09/16/2024 - 09/22/2024 3d 18 俺と三葉との入れ替わりは起きなかった。
Week 7 09/23/2024 - 09/29/2024 4a 16 トンビの鳴きが、高く遠く、また響く。
Week 8 09/30/2024 - 10/06/2024 4b 15 遠雷が、小さく鳴った。
Week 9 10/07/2024 - 10/13/2024 4c, 5 13 そして、星が落ちる。
Week 10 10/14/2024 - 10/20/2024 6a 12 なんだか眩しいような心待ちで、俺はそう思う。
Week 11 10/21/2024 - 10/27/2024 6b 16 ・・・それは嘘みたいに綺麗な夜空だった。
Week 12 10/28/2024 - 11/03/2024 6c 15 ーーカタワレ時だ。
Week 13 11/04/2024 - 11/10/2024 6d 11 やがて、無音が降りてくる。
Week 14 11/11/2024 - 11/17/2024 7a 14 「・・・・・・割れとる！」
Week 15 11/18/2024 - 11/24/2024 7b, 8a 16 その香りに、条件反射のように俺の胸は切なく湿る。
Week 16 11/25/2024 - 12/01/2024 8b 11 君の、名前は、と。
11 Likes
Bunpro Book club (Intermediate)
#2

I have created a reading schedule. It indicates the planned reading every week. Page numbers are derived from the physical version of the book. Pages that are blank or only include the title of the chapter weren’t counted in the page counts for the week’s reading.

I had to structure the schedule slightly differently than when I created the schedule for スーパーカブ. Unlike the previous book, 君の名は has long chapters that need to be split into multiple weeks. Because of this, I assigned reading based on the chapter’s smaller sections separated by a double line break. The final sentence of the week’s reading is also indicated to clarify when to stop reading.

The number is the chapter and the letter is the section (a is section 1, b is section 2, and so on).

The average week has 14.75 pages of reading. Week 2 is the longest with 19 pages. Weeks 13 and 16 are the shortest with 11.

There may be mistakes with the schedule. It is possible that I miscalculated or mistyped something. If someone wants to modify the schedule in any way either before the reading starts or during, please let me know. I made this in a spreadsheet, so it’s super easy to adjust. The schedule is pretty evenly paced, except for weeks 1 and 2 which are slightly on the longer side.

Full Schedule
Week Start and End Dates Section(s) Page Count Final Line
Week 1 08/12/2024 - 08/18/2024 1, 2a 17 BGMなしのこの街は、ただただ息苦しいだけの場所だったと私は思い出す。
Week 2 08/19/2024 - 08/25/2024 2b 19 ・・・私は自分でもわからないのだった。
Week 3 08/26/2024 - 09/01/2024 3a 13 だって私この男のことなんにも知らないんだってば！
Week 4 09/02/2024 - 09/08/2024 3b 15 「みつは」って、いったいなんなんだ？
Week 5 09/09/2024 - 09/15/2024 3c 15 ・・・神様と人間を繋ぐための大切なしきたりなんやよ」
Week 6 09/16/2024 - 09/22/2024 3d 18 俺と三葉との入れ替わりは起きなかった。
Week 7 09/23/2024 - 09/29/2024 4a 16 トンビの鳴きが、高く遠く、また響く。
Week 8 09/30/2024 - 10/06/2024 4b 15 遠雷が、小さく鳴った。
Week 9 10/07/2024 - 10/13/2024 4c, 5 13 そして、星が落ちる。
Week 10 10/14/2024 - 10/20/2024 6a 12 なんだか眩しいような心待ちで、俺はそう思う。
Week 11 10/21/2024 - 10/27/2024 6b 16 ・・・それは嘘みたいに綺麗な夜空だった。
Week 12 10/28/2024 - 11/03/2024 6c 15 ーーカタワレ時だ。
Week 13 11/04/2024 - 11/10/2024 6d 11 やがて、無音が降りてくる。
Week 14 11/11/2024 - 11/17/2024 7a 14 「・・・・・・割れとる！」
Week 15 11/18/2024 - 11/24/2024 7b, 8a 16 その香りに、条件反射のように俺の胸は切なく湿る。
Week 16 11/25/2024 - 12/01/2024 8b 11 君の、名前は、と。

I started reading this book a few months ago but stopped after finishing the second chapter. I’ll start reading again with the club on week three. In the meantime, I’ll try to be active and answer questions. I hope everyone has fun reading!

12 Likes
#3

Hey Asher, this links to one of my comments under the main post. Was this intentional? I think you may have meant to link to the main post.

2 Likes
#4

That’s strange. Not intentional :rofl:. Fixed

1 Like
#5

hello :slight_smile: I just read about half of our assigned reading load for this week and marked everything that I didn’t understand and the vocabulary I didn’t know. Fortunately, I was able to understand most of it through context. I had Chat GPT analyse for me how much I understood and it said I roughly understood 70%. I think I can work with that!

I know the vocab deck will be out soon, right? But is it ok if I already ask something about an expression that I don’t really get? Or is it too soon?

5 Likes
#6

Go ahead :slight_smile:

4 Likes
#7

so, I don’t understand the ぶつり in『来月二十日に行われる、糸守町町長選挙について、町の、選挙管理委員会から──』 ぶつり。 It‘s not 物理 and seemingly there’s no verb called ぶつる. Maybe I‘m overseeing something obvious, but can someone help? :sweat_smile:

2 Likes
#8

So I bought this book on a whim, just to see if I can power through along with others here. It’s probably going to be a tough challenge, but I enjoyed the Yotsuba beginner’s book club a lot (not all that interested in Pokemon, unfortunately), and I’m at least familiar enough with the movie version to have a rough idea of what’s going on.

4 Likes
#9

(Tell me if it doesn’t make sense in the context. I am yet to start reading.)

オノマトペ

Dictionary entry for reference:

  1. １ 物を勢いよく断ち切る音や、そのさまを表す語。また、続いていた物事が突然に断たれるさま。「太いロープが—と切れる」「日記はその日で—と終わっている」

  2. ２ 物を勢いよく突き刺す音や、そのさまを表す語。「あいくちを—と突き立てる」

3 Likes
#10

it does make sense, wow! Thank you!

2 Likes
#11

I finished reading the first part. Its so frustrating to me every time I start something new. Its like I forget how to read :sleepy:
What is BGM? I googled but I’m not sure, it says its “background music”. I’m not familiar with this.

For example

軽快なギターソロなんかに、私の脳内ＢＧＭは切り替わっている。
So does she mean her brain’s “background music” changed?

さっきまで鳴っていたＢＧＭは、いつの間にか消えている。ＢＧＭなしのこの町は、ただただ息苦しいだけの場所だったと私は思い出す。
Is this saying the BGM (background music?) from her brain disappeared?

3 Likes
#12

yes I struggled at first, too! But I‘m relatively sure that this is the concept when someone is kind of playing/hearing music inside their head. I read that this concept is often used in manga/anime/japanese media in general in order to depict how a person is feels or what their emotional reaction towards a certain situation is.

Since I also stumbled at first, maybe someone else here knows this concept better? But I think it‘s used to depict Mitsuha‘s state of mind. You can see that when, at the end of the section, her mood changes for the worse and therefore her inner background music stops to show the negative change inside her mind.

5 Likes
#13

Thank you for the info! I had no idea about it. :joy:

2 Likes
#14

In Japanese video games, the audio settings menu often includes a volume setting labeled “BGM” which would be called “Music” in the English version.

2 Likes
#15

I was quite confused by the following sentence before realizing that it’s a poem using a lot of old expressions and grammar (which I don’t know):

誰そ彼とわれをな問ひそ九月の露に濡れつつ君待つわれそ

I asked ChatGPT to explain the sentence and thought this might interest you as well.
As always with AI, this might not be correct, but it seems to make sense.
Here’s the explanation:

This phrase is a beautiful example of classical Japanese poetry, likely reflecting a tanka (短歌) or waka (和歌) style. Let’s break it down, both in terms of its structure and meaning.

Breakdown of the Poem

誰そ彼 (たそかれ)

This term refers to twilight or dusk, a time when people or things become indistinct and it’s difficult to tell who or what they are. Literally, it can be interpreted as “Who is that?” or “Is it that person?” in the fading light.

と

A particle that connects phrases or indicates quotation. Here, it connects “誰そ彼” to the following action, implying “as” or “when” in this context.

われをな問ひそ (われをなとひそ):

    われ (我)

“I” or “me.”

    を

Object marker, indicating that “I” or “me” is the object of the action.

    な問ひそ (なとひそ)

An old-fashioned negative command form, which means “do not ask” or “don’t inquire.” “問ひ” is the classical form of the verb “問う” (とう), meaning “to ask.” “な” is the negative imperative, and “そ” is an emphatic particle that reinforces the command.

Overall: “Do not ask who I am” or “Don’t inquire about me.”

九月の露に濡れつつ :

    九月

“September.”

    の

Possessive particle, indicating “of.”

    露 (つゆ)

“Dew.”

    に

Particle indicating the indirect object or cause.

    濡れつつ (ぬれつつ)

“While getting wet.” “濡れ” (ぬれ) is the verb “to get wet,” and “つつ” is a classical particle indicating continuous action, similar to “while.”

Overall: “While getting wet by the dews of September.”

君待つわれそ (きみまつわれそ)

    君 (きみ)

“You” or “my beloved.”

    待つ (まつ)

“To wait.”

    われ (我)

“I” or “me.”

    そ

An emphatic particle often used in classical Japanese to add emphasis to the statement.

Overall: “I am the one waiting for you.”

Full Translation and Interpretation

The poem can be translated as:

“Do not ask who I am as the twilight falls; getting wet in the September dew, I am the one waiting for you.”

Interpretation

This is a deeply evocative and emotional poem. It captures the atmosphere of twilight, a time of ambiguity and mystery, and contrasts it with the speaker’s firm resolve and longing. The speaker asks not to be questioned about their identity or presence, as they are simply there, waiting patiently and perhaps with some melancholy, for the person they love, despite the discomfort of the cold, dewy evening in September.

The use of classical language and imagery, such as the dews of September and the twilight, adds a layer of poetic beauty and timelessness to the emotions being expressed.

4 Likes
#16

It appears to be from the 万葉集. Here is an article where a native discusses it in relation to the film and also gives a translation into modern Japanese with an explanation.

For those who want the short version: 誰そ彼？ can be understood as meaning 君の名は？(What’s your name? Or, Who are you?) and the the poem is about the (romantic) link between two people and the liminality of identity between those who are “linked”.

Personal note: I had no idea that 黄昏・黄昏時 came from 誰そ彼/that etymology so that’s pretty interesting to find out. It’s been a while since I read it but pretty sure 黄昏 is the codename for the dad in Spy Family so…do what you will with that information 笑

3 Likes
#17

That was a really beautiful article, thanks for sharing that. My favorite part was

平たくいえば、それが結ばれるということだ。人と人とが結ばれる最初の言葉こそ、「君の名は？」なのだ。

と同時に、人は、自分とはどういう人間なのかと常に問い続ける動物でもある。人は問い続けることでしか、自分自身のことがわからない動物なのである。

Sounds like a theme Hideo Kojima would also work into his stories.

EDIT: speak of the devil haha.

3 Likes
#18

I’m plugging along slowly, about halfway through the first reading section. As expected, I need to read each sentence multiple times and look up a lot of words (adding many to my vocab reviews, of course), but so far I think I’ve been able to follow the gist of what’s happening.

1 Like
#19

That’s a pretty accurate description in my opinion. Generally, BGM refers to background music, but the author uses it to paint a picture of Mitsuha’s mood. As the book is a novelization of the movie, the descriptions match the movie’s background music.

[…] 頭の中で、壮大なストリングスのＢＧＭ […]

[…] ギターソロなんかに、私の脳内ＢＧＭ […]

1 Like
#20

The intermediate audience probably knows this already, but anyway I want to riff on this a little bit, in case it’s useful to anyone who suffers from occasional excessive zeal :smiley: To avoid growing an SRS backlog of vocab that takes more days to go through than to read the book I mined from, I sometimes limit how many new words I enter to the number of new words I see in SRS each day for whatever deck I’m growing. I still look up things I don’t understand. This helps avoid–you know, hypothetically–still seeing “new” vocab from Super Cub in SRS while reading Your Name. It’s too easy for me to grow large decks when using tools like Yomitan. A neat benefit is that you’ll still acquire common words as you read more, so this helps to slowly wean from SRS for when the day comes to part ways.

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