When Japanese people give a gift or a present, they often say "tsumaranai monodesuga"
The literal meaning of this term is that this gift is worthless but I give it to you anyway.
Is it really worthless? Actually it is not.
You might wonder why they tell a lie when they give a gift.
This is one of the indirect expressions in Japanese.
The true meaning is likely the following.
"I am afraid that you won't like it, but I dare to give it to you since I can't find any other way to express my gratitude"
This is a very useful expression.
If you think the gift is sucks, it's okay because they say the same thing.
On the contrary, the gift is nice, you will be happy.
This gesture may protect both the giver and receiver from any embarrassment, and considers everyone's feelings.
However, Japanese people sometimes become too polite in this situation.
No comments:
Post a Comment