If I Learnt Japanese, Would That Put an End to Scanlations?
In the ever on-going debate on the issue of scanlation, I have seen that those who are against the practise claim “why don't people just learn to read Japanese? If they learn how to read it, then they won't need scanlations and will be able to read even more manga”. There are two problems with this statement, especially if they believe that will solve the problem all together.
First of all, not everyone can learn another language. People learn in different ways and while there are more and more ways to learn languages such as websites, computer programs, language textbooks, and even community language classes, these opportunities aren't open to everyone. Also, the time required to learn an additional language is enormous and not everyone has that amount of time to spend, either in a classroom or on their own. Comic books, no matter what country they originate in or their language, are written primarily for native speakers. A person can't simply read a book or attend a beginning level class and at the end, be able to read and understand a comic book. The fluency level required to understand such a text would likely require someone to have an intermediate or even advanced level, depending on the text. That kind of language level requires time and not everyone has that amount of time free to devote to such as task, and given that a language can have several different dialects (which I'll touch upon later), the task becomes even that much larger. Not to mention, there are some who truly best learn a language in its native environment/setting so unless they're in an area where that language is spoken widely, these types of language learners are unable to learn how to read manga.
Something that language classes, textbooks, and DVDs often don't cover or even mention is slang and different dialects of the language. Both of these can appear in any manga, and be used by just a single character (to establish that he/she is from a different region) or can be used through out the entire manga itself. Standard Japanese (the language which is commonly used and taught to foreigners) is based off the Tokyo dialect system. A commonly used dialect in manga, anime, Japanese dramas, and Japanese movies to show that a character is from another region is to have them speak Osaka-ben (Osaka dialect). In the case of using a different dialect by all the characters in the story can be used to establish the story in another region and/or used to market the story to a specific audience. While having one's characters use Standard Japanese will make it more consumable, it is safe to assume that not all manga is written in Standard, that it can written in one of the other dialects found in Japan. By learning standard Japanese only to being able to read manga, you're closing the doors to other manga which are written in the different dialects. Slang is another issue as its roots have been wider with Westernization and the spread of the Internet. Sometimes slang is a result of a pop culture reference, a local/regional reference, the culture of a particular region or group, or even can come from a word in another all together. This is hardly taught to foreign speakers. Curse words are also another language item which isn't taught, as its seen to be “improper” to do so by traditional thought.
Even with a linguist understanding of the language, this alone does NOT guarantee an understanding of manga, which brings me to my second point: understanding comics requires both linguist and cultural knowledge. As these types of media are produced to be consumed by native speakers, they posses cultural cues, which would go unnoticed by a person from that cultural. This can be done in the verbal communication between the characters, which is in turn read by the reader, and in the visuals cues, which are drawn in by the artist and read by the reader. While some manga are set in modern times, the cultural background presented in the text would most likely root in modern traditions. However, some manga are rooted in Japan's past, and this would require the reader to be aware of the past cultural background, which can be a daunting task in itself given how lengthy Japan's history is. And even in modern set manga, the author can make links to Japan's cultural past that would be common knowledge that is learned either through the education system (K-12 or post secondary level), through being told about it from those who experienced it, or even experiencing it themselves. While learning a language often causes a person to gain some cultural and historical understanding, it is not always enough to be able to be able to read and understand a manga.
Perhaps a better approach using this approach would be the creation of Japanese language “classes” (either formal classes or ones organized informally, meet in person or online) geared towards learning the language *through* a particular manga. The students would be required to have previous language knowledge (how this knowledge is obtained is up to them), and through the group setting could learn to read and understand the manga, both in the text and in the artwork. That way, one person isn't required to know everything and can learn what's needed to understand the text. This is not without its problems. In a formal setting, someone would have to find a text that they have some knowledge in and put research into the book to make sure they have the appropriate knowledge and understanding for any areas they're not familiar with. Also they must find a method to teach this knowledge to the students. Even for a formal setting, one would have to find someone who has an interest and knowledge in that area, which not every community will have. Plus what would the cost be for the potential instructor for such a class? The students to take such a class? What about time? How long would it take to organize a class like this? How long would the class run for? While the informal setting wouldn't have the pressure placed on the shoulders of the individual, the pressure would instead be spread out amongst the group. Someone would have to find the required information, then teach it to the other groups. And again, the issues of cost and time return.
The issue of scanlation is a large one and won't be solved by just one way, but casually saying people should just learn Japanese and they wouldn't need scanlations is seriously flawed and even ignorant.
First of all, not everyone can learn another language. People learn in different ways and while there are more and more ways to learn languages such as websites, computer programs, language textbooks, and even community language classes, these opportunities aren't open to everyone. Also, the time required to learn an additional language is enormous and not everyone has that amount of time to spend, either in a classroom or on their own. Comic books, no matter what country they originate in or their language, are written primarily for native speakers. A person can't simply read a book or attend a beginning level class and at the end, be able to read and understand a comic book. The fluency level required to understand such a text would likely require someone to have an intermediate or even advanced level, depending on the text. That kind of language level requires time and not everyone has that amount of time free to devote to such as task, and given that a language can have several different dialects (which I'll touch upon later), the task becomes even that much larger. Not to mention, there are some who truly best learn a language in its native environment/setting so unless they're in an area where that language is spoken widely, these types of language learners are unable to learn how to read manga.
Something that language classes, textbooks, and DVDs often don't cover or even mention is slang and different dialects of the language. Both of these can appear in any manga, and be used by just a single character (to establish that he/she is from a different region) or can be used through out the entire manga itself. Standard Japanese (the language which is commonly used and taught to foreigners) is based off the Tokyo dialect system. A commonly used dialect in manga, anime, Japanese dramas, and Japanese movies to show that a character is from another region is to have them speak Osaka-ben (Osaka dialect). In the case of using a different dialect by all the characters in the story can be used to establish the story in another region and/or used to market the story to a specific audience. While having one's characters use Standard Japanese will make it more consumable, it is safe to assume that not all manga is written in Standard, that it can written in one of the other dialects found in Japan. By learning standard Japanese only to being able to read manga, you're closing the doors to other manga which are written in the different dialects. Slang is another issue as its roots have been wider with Westernization and the spread of the Internet. Sometimes slang is a result of a pop culture reference, a local/regional reference, the culture of a particular region or group, or even can come from a word in another all together. This is hardly taught to foreign speakers. Curse words are also another language item which isn't taught, as its seen to be “improper” to do so by traditional thought.
Even with a linguist understanding of the language, this alone does NOT guarantee an understanding of manga, which brings me to my second point: understanding comics requires both linguist and cultural knowledge. As these types of media are produced to be consumed by native speakers, they posses cultural cues, which would go unnoticed by a person from that cultural. This can be done in the verbal communication between the characters, which is in turn read by the reader, and in the visuals cues, which are drawn in by the artist and read by the reader. While some manga are set in modern times, the cultural background presented in the text would most likely root in modern traditions. However, some manga are rooted in Japan's past, and this would require the reader to be aware of the past cultural background, which can be a daunting task in itself given how lengthy Japan's history is. And even in modern set manga, the author can make links to Japan's cultural past that would be common knowledge that is learned either through the education system (K-12 or post secondary level), through being told about it from those who experienced it, or even experiencing it themselves. While learning a language often causes a person to gain some cultural and historical understanding, it is not always enough to be able to be able to read and understand a manga.
Perhaps a better approach using this approach would be the creation of Japanese language “classes” (either formal classes or ones organized informally, meet in person or online) geared towards learning the language *through* a particular manga. The students would be required to have previous language knowledge (how this knowledge is obtained is up to them), and through the group setting could learn to read and understand the manga, both in the text and in the artwork. That way, one person isn't required to know everything and can learn what's needed to understand the text. This is not without its problems. In a formal setting, someone would have to find a text that they have some knowledge in and put research into the book to make sure they have the appropriate knowledge and understanding for any areas they're not familiar with. Also they must find a method to teach this knowledge to the students. Even for a formal setting, one would have to find someone who has an interest and knowledge in that area, which not every community will have. Plus what would the cost be for the potential instructor for such a class? The students to take such a class? What about time? How long would it take to organize a class like this? How long would the class run for? While the informal setting wouldn't have the pressure placed on the shoulders of the individual, the pressure would instead be spread out amongst the group. Someone would have to find the required information, then teach it to the other groups. And again, the issues of cost and time return.
The issue of scanlation is a large one and won't be solved by just one way, but casually saying people should just learn Japanese and they wouldn't need scanlations is seriously flawed and even ignorant.