This sound effect is the Japanese sound for light glimmering off the surface of an object. Think of it as an audio reference to light rays hitting the human eye.

In other words, it is a human sound that represents the glimmer and glitter of light.

The waxed, bald head of a man may be said to ピカピカ (pika pika) in the light.

A waxed Ferrari ピカピカ (pika pika)’s in the sun.

A gold-colored Mobile Suit may ピカピカ (pika pika) and bring attention to itself.  Clearly, a pilot of such a machine must have a great deal of confidence.

A bright flash of electricity, such as that emitted by a yellow rodent in a video game or anime, may be said to ピカピカ (pika pika) because of the light dazzles the eyes.

Thus, we may read ピカピカ (pika pika) as “dazzle, dazzle” or “glimmer, glimmer” or “sparkle, sparkle” and so forth. Regardless of the English we use to represent the sound, it is the same category of sound in actual Japanese.

Incidentally, “Pikachu” is a combination of two sound effects. The first is “pika pika.” The second is “chuu chuu,” representing the squeaky sound made by mice and other small rodents.

As long as you are conscious of sound effects, basic grammar, whole words instead of just kanji, and the role of loan words and colloquialisms used by even young children, you’re good to go. From this point onward, it’s all about practice, but notably, the right kind of practice.

Some easy tips:

Read something you enjoy. You’re never going to be committed to finding unfamiliar kanji and looking up unfamiliar terms, and putting them together in real, coherent sentences, if you are not emotionally committed to what you are reading.

Understand the genre. If you’re reading a sappy romance, expect to encounter a lot of subtle terms about love, emotions, and general feelings. Treat “love” as a core concept, not just a character, and it’ll make things easier.

Know your limits. You can’t possibly know everything in advance. No one does. Know when to take a break and come back to something later. Speaking about that…

Re-read as you make more progress. Some of the greatest joy I have ever obtained comes from reading something a couple of years later and understanding far more of it. This is so that you can feel your progress in your own heart.

Better to learn a small thing completely, than a large thing half-way. If you can understand one small, but complete sentence, you will feel as if you are making progress. More importantly, you will be making progress. Finally…

Connect what you learn to your own thoughts. You won’t retain nearly as much if you aren’t thinking actively. If you remember a particular phrase because of a particular manga situation, all the better. You have likely formed a long-term memory.

In addition to all of this, Japanese is truly reinforced by using it!! I cannot stress this enough. This is something I have learned the hard way. The best way to turn what you learn from reading manga into active, living Japanese is to find a friendly environment to use it, to receive positive, constructive criticism and reinforcement, and to get a greater feel for the language through using it.

Of course, this is something I emphasize in my own Japanese tutoring at Learn Out Live.  I seek to extend to others the knowledge I have gained from hard personal experience and a great deal of experimentation. I did not have enough help when I was learning. I hope I have done my small part to help you.

This concludes “How To Read Manga Better.”

Article first published as How To Read Manga Better, Part 5 on Technorati.

Having said that, little stuff becomes big problems.

A) Katakana Loan Words

Let’s take サンキュー .

This reads as “sankyuu,” but is actually a Japanese phonetic representation of “Thank you.” However, that is not exactly how it is used.

Japanese does not have a loan word for “thanks” (the less formal version). Because “sankyuu” is a loan word to begin with, it is automatically felt to be less formal than Japanese words for thanks, such as 有難う (arigatou, kanji version). Thus, regardless of the sounds, サンキュ- is used like “”thanks” in informal situations, or situations the speaker is treating as informal.

This is something every Japanese first grader is exposed to from manga, anime, and little kids trying to sound cool by using a little bit of English. It also finds its way into Japanese role-playing games. “Sankyuu” is treated like an honorary part of the Japanese language – but this only applies to the katakana, サンキュー.

A completely different, kanji-based “三級” (sankyuu) exists and refers to “third-rate.”

B)  Colloquialisms

Let’s take やった！(Yatta!)

This is a word of celebration. It is technically the past tense of a very flexible, informal verb, やる (yaru), for “To Do.” This comes off as, “I did it!” but is also used the way teenagers will exclaim, “Yesss!” and so forth. This is not the Japanese はい (hai), but an affirmation of success and victory.

This, too, is known by every Japanese schoolchild. You will find reading any manga featuring young boys very difficult to understand if you do not know, or are unable to find out, what this word means. Though I have just told you what this word means, there will be others.

So What Do I Do About It?

The key is having human resources. As a professional tutor, I have a policy of answering individual questions for free. I don’t expect anyone to pay me good money if I can’t demonstrate a little knowledge and help real people with real problems.

Now, totally besides that, there’s no replacement for knowing people who know Japanese, or who have read much more manga than you have. Real-world or Internet contacts alike can be of great assistance, and ideally, are readily available for answering little questions in a way that results in big help for you.

The little things add up to big progress in reading manga better.

Article first published as How To Read Manga Better, Part 4 on Technorati.

Part 3: Vocabulary

Vocabulary means words.

Here’s the problem.

Neko is a word; it means “cat.” Isu is a word; it means “chair.”

猫 is a character that likewise means “cat.” The Japanese mapped their native word for cat – neko – and assigned it to the character. Simple.

椅子 is composed of two Chinese characters (i.e. kanji). The first character represents “chair.” The second character represents “child.” Together, these characters form the word, isu, meaning chair.

椅, by itself, is not a word.

By itself, 子 would be a word; it would be read as こ (ko), the native Japanese word for child. 椅, however, is never a word in Japanese unless it is paired with 子.

Therefore, to read manga properly, you must learn words, not just kanji.

Many books and courses simply do not emphasize this, so quite a few learners will find themselves unprepared for the problem. Even first grade Japanese students learn that 犬 means dog (inu), and 子 means child, so that 子犬 means “koinu,” or puppy.

These are compound words that are formed with more than one kanji.

Your vocabulary must be measured by words, and not by individual kanji alone. This is the only way you will be able to read a manga effectively.

How To Master Basic Kanji

Manga are great for practicing your skills, if you can read out loud, or “out loud in your head,” what you are reading. In the end, though, kanji are best reinforced by using them.

If I speak as if I wrote the book on mastering basic kanji, that’s because I did. This first volume is free; the Issuu version (using flash) looks extra spiffy.

Now, I emphasize two things for learning kanji: visual power (big black kanji against wood backgrounds) and strong explanations giving you the context of the character.

After all, learning the characters is a major step towards learning the words.

Once you have learned them, however, they are only half-mastered and remain “floating” in your head. Flashcard systems can help, but ultimately, you need to use kanji to form your own simple sentences.

Reading manga can help you understand how simple sentences work, helping you form your own. Or, you can learn more Japanese to help you read manga better. The two feed on each other; it’s a symbiotic relationship.

Article first published as How To Read Manga Better, Part 3 on Technorati.

Part 2: Get The Hang Of Grammar

A) Verbs

Verbs are not something you can escape when reading Japanese manga. You must gain a good feel for them if you are to avoid getting lost.

Let’s use a simple example using my stepmother’s precious little cat, Chiquitita, displayed above. (As the name implies, that’s my stepmother’s “little girl.”) Besides native Japanese verbs that have conjugations of their own, adding する (suru) as a suffix at the end of another word turns that word into a verb.

Example: 猫は椅子をバリバする。 (Neko wa isu o baribari suru.)

Neko = Cat

Isu = Chair

Bari bari = Sound Effect, “Rip, Rip”

So, in case kids at home are wondering… yes, I just turned a Japanese verbal sound effect into a verb. You can do that in Japanese.

On its own, suru would be the Japanese verb “To Do.”

Here, we use it as a suffix that turns “bari bari” into a verb.

バリバリする (bari bari suru) = Verb; To “Rip, Rip”

Rip, rip is a category of sound and can be applied to a number of different contexts. Here, “The cat scratches up the chair.”

Now, する (suru) is the “dictionary form” or “plain form” of the verb. (Think: plain vanilla)

バリバリします (bari bari shimasu) is the “polite form” of the verb, and makes Chiquitita’s scratching up the old chair sound more dignified.

バリバリした (bari bari shita) is the “plain past” form of the verb. So, Chiquitita scratched up the chair, in the past tense.

バリバリしました (bari bari shimashita) is the “polite past” form of the verb, making the fact the chair was scratched up sound more dignified.

「猫は椅子をバリバリしました。」 “The cat scratched the chair up. ” (Here, I have split the preposition for English purposes.)

B) Particles

Let’s take a closer look at the padding, shall we?

は = Always pronounced “wa” when used as a particle.

を = Always pronounced “o” when used as a particle.

In particles, wa is a topic indicator.

For its part, o is a direct object indicator.

Thus: Cat (<- topic) chair (<-direct object) rip, rip (verb, past tense).

Cat wa chair o bari bari shimashita.

The cat (topic) scratched up (verb) the chair (direct object of “scratched up”).

Without being able to understand this simple sentence structure, knowing what “cat” and “chair” mean as individual words will still leave you confused about what relationship the words have to each other. Knowing sentence structure is important even when reading manga “for little kids.” It is something every reader should make an effort to absorb.

Article first published as How To Read Manga Better, Part 2 on Technorati.

This is one of the broadest Japanese sound effects. There are four main situations in which it is used:

1. When eating something like potato chips
2. When something is being scratched
3. When something is being ripped
4. When electricity crackles through the air

In spite of the disparate uses, I would offer that the reading should be rip, rip.

Here’s why.

When you eat potato chips, your teeth are ripping the chips apart; they are too brittle to resist even the incisors and canines.

When something is being scratched, a fraction of the surface is being ripped off.

When you rip something, it makes this discordant noise.

When electricity rips through the air, it crackles.

In all cases, バリバリ (baribari) describes a ripping sound while an object is being ripped (that is, is stripped of its cohesion).

In a somewhat more figurative sense, バリバリ (baribari) can be used to represent letting rip with an electric guitar while rocking and rolling.

This isn’t English, with one word having ten meanings. One verbal sound effect only corresponds to one sound. That sound may be used in four or five different circumstances, but it is still one sound – or category of sound, if you will. Combining such a sound effect with images in a manga provides all the context a reader needs to “get it.”

Other Japanese tutors have long promoted the idea of reading manga (漫画、まんが、kanji: Caricature + Sketch = comics), the word Japanese use for their comics, and that Americans use for Japanese comics, specifically. While this advice has merit to it, I used to translate manga professionally. There are a few little secrets you should know.

This is Part 1 of detailed advice for how to read manga better.

Part 1: Learn Onomatopoeia

Onomatopoeia is a long, overly complicated word for sound effects. Specifically, sound effects that are represented through the written word, though they can be verbalized as well. “Pow!” “Smack!” and “Bang!” are all onomatopoeia. In a Japanese context, I like to call them verbal sound effects.

Why verbal? Because there’s no reason you can’t speak them as well, and many Japanese do as shortcuts, metaphors, and so forth.

Japanese sound effects, being “sounds” and not words by themselves, are written phonetically using katakana.

Put bluntly, reading Japanese comics without understanding the sound effects is only grasping a fraction of the experience.

A further inducement is the fact that some publishers of translated comics do not translate sound effects, either because they would have to jam pack the panel margins with fine print explanations or because they would have to use Photoshop to actually remove the printed sound effects from the Japanese artwork. However, seeing the original characters and having no idea what they mean is a bit stale.

Let me put this differently.

Even though manga are technically printed in black and white, sound effects add color to the experience. This is figurative color, but it is very important nonetheless.

Through the skillful use of sound effects, a woman discovering a dead body in a murder mystery can be “heard” walking. The “creak” of the door is audible. The sudden gasp that precedes the scream builds tension in the scene. These are things that make a scene more vivid.

The author is able to do this without the need for a single second of sound recording thanks to verbal sound effects offering a bridge between the author and the reader. Sound effects connect the two together as artist and fan, with the artist relishing in the understanding that the fan gains, and the fan rejoicing in better understanding the true passion of the artist.

So, if you want to truly enjoy manga, you should really, really want to learn verbal sound effects.

Article first published as How To Read Manga Better, Part 1 on Technorati.