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Japanese: The Spoken Language (Part 1) | 
 enlarge | Author: Eleanor Harz Jorden
Publisher: Yale University Press
Category: Book
List Price: $36.00
Buy Used: $12.95
You Save: $23.05 (64%)
Rating:  60 reviews
Sales Rank: 152416
Media: Paperback
Pages: 371
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.5
Dimensions (in): 9.9 x 7 x 0.9
ISBN: 0300038348
Dewey Decimal Number: 495.683421
EAN: 9780300038347
ASIN: 0300038348
Publication Date: September 10, 1987
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: Superb, crisp, clean, unread, & unmarked PART ONE paperback with light shelfwear to the covers - GREAT!
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Product Description
This supplement to Japanese: The Spoken Language, Part 1 (Yale University Press, 1987), hereafter JSL, Part 1, has been prepared for those who find the Structural Patterns in the textbook difficult to master in their present form. Here they have been transformed into a question-and-answer format, with most exchanges covering a single point. This format is also useful for review or for studying the Structural Patterns together with a fellow student.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 55 more reviews...
 Some very good points, some very bad points December 16, 2008
POmenern (United States)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
'Japanese: The Spoken Language' is an introductory textbook, intended for a college course, but equally useful in self-study (for dedicated students), that teaches the spoken language only. No kana is included in this book. Each lesson consists of a short dialogue, followed by translation of said dialogue, a vocabulary list mostly derived from that dialogue, extensive notes about grammar and sentence structure, drills, and review questions.
Grammar is explained to such extent in this book as to make you into a Japanese grammarian bit by bit, and I believe this is the book's strong suit. Some people will inevitably hate this, but personally I really like it. Extensive notes exist in this textbook about how the subtle meaning of a sentence can change by changing the word order, or by use of an alternative particle, and just how each different word choice or particle placement can affect the meaning of the sentence. When a new usage is introduced, rest assured that you will learn everything about it.
The biggest problem is the use of a non-phonetic, non-standard spelling convention. Romanization is supposed to be a phonetic representation of Japanese words for ease of learning for westerners. The author uses a nonstandard spelling convention that she believes makes it easier for students to conjugate verbs for various reasons, unfortunately, learning a word wrong for the first time is hugely inefficient to the learning process. Kana is not being taught, so this really ought to be phonetic. It isn't. And while it's possible to train yourself to see "chi" where "ti" is written, "shi" where "si" is written, and ditto with about a dozen other examples, if you're using other learning materials, such as an English-Japanese dictionary, chances are that JSL will be the only one using the screwy spelling, thus offering lots of opportunities for confusion as you switch between them.
The vocabulary in this text is rather lacking. Sometimes the context in which the words are presented is too limited as well, such as a 10 second exchange between two coworkers where one gives an envelope to the other one, the other one asks what it is and is then told that its an envelope. Some very basic vocabulary, such as "I like...," I want...," "where," and "bad" are introduced embarrassingly late in the book, whilst some strange, much less useful vocabulary choices, such as "to make/construct" and "become upset" are introduced right in lesson 1. I found the vocabulary to be fine to teach the grammar lessons, but I had to supplement it with words looked up in a dictionary in order to get a better handle on the language. I also eventually just got a couple other textbooks, including Ultimate Japanese (Basic-Intermediate) which, as one example, has much better vocabulary.
The extensive notes on grammar really do make this book a good buy, but if you want to learn to speak the language, you need other textbooks. And if you're using other textbooks, chances are you'll forget to see ji where zi is written and all the other screwed up spelling conventions and accidentally learn a word or two wrong when you come back to JSL, which is always a headache. Another thing is that this textbook completely lacks cultural notes, which I find odd for a language text.
The CD-ROM, while not included with the purchase of this book, is a required addition. Unfortunately, it could also use some revision. For one, the pronunciation of the actors is often not very clear, and they don't always enunciate clearly like the voice actors on a true audiobook like Pimsleur's Japanese I (which, by the way I would highly recommend rather than this). Secondly, the CD-ROM learning aid is just inconvenient to use. I'd much rather be able to listen to the core conversations and drills on a CD player in a car, or a portable walkman than have to sit in front of my computer and click through countless menus to hear a 5-15 second conversation.
Honestly, it's a good set of lessons in this textbook. It just needs a little love in its next revision so it doesn't just teach grammar, but also teaches vocabulary more people can use, and so that it has a more user-friendly audio component.
 Useful Book October 1, 2008
Jesse Bassich
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This book is incredibly helpful in learning japanese. However, the reader must be aware that it is written for an english speaking audience. As such, some words aren't written as you would spell them.
 Excellent for its intended use September 23, 2008
R. Horton (Chicago, IL)
1 out of 3 found this review helpful
Having no prior background, I used this text through two years at Cornell University, where Jorden-sensei is an emeritus. Our courses carried double the credit hours of a normal lecture course, we met six times per week and averaged ten to fifteen hours beyond that of personal work in the language lab. Our class enjoyed/endured the vigorous ministrations of two head lecturers (one anglo, one japanese) and half a dozen expert native speakers. The first semester's initial enrollment of 120 hopefuls saw a 50% washout rate and was down under 60 students before Thanksgiving.
Needless to say, this text is designed for a VERY intense environment. In such a setting, it is a masterpiece. If you're on your own or are just looking for a phrase book to take on your next trip, this is not the book for you.
I strongly disagree with other reviewers' criticism of Jorden's romanization. The title makes it clear: You are learning the SPOKEN language. (JWL is a separate text) The chief aim is fluency, accent and pronounciation, things our teachers pursued with vigor and (boasting a little) qualities in my own speaking that dazzled people when I finally got over there. Jumping straight into kana and, God forbid, kanji would have distracted from this push.
Jorden's unique system of romanization is excellent in that it is conceived to ease the later transition to kana. She uses an exact representation of the Japanese letters, rather than a phonetic transliteration. i.e. The topic marker is rendered as "ha", even though is is pronounced "wa". is rendered as the slightly obtuse "sya" and not "sha". Again, this is trouble for the casual student, but essential for someone committed to going all the way.
Excellent book if used right. August 4, 2008
Omar Fernandez (Puerto Rico)
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
I've found this book to be extremely helpful to learn the spoken part of the Japanese language, but only because I've been using it as a textbook in college. The book provides good explanations and everything in the book is taught in a very logical order, but you do need to use it with the supplemental audio tapes in order to really learn. Another important thing is that you should be trying to learn the written part of Japanese using other resources (such as the "Japanese, The Written Language" book) since this book is all printed in romanization and doesn't use any Japanese characters.
The layout of each unit is the same. Each book of the series has 12 Lessons, and each lesson is divided in two parts that include core conversations, vocabulary breakdowns, and practice drills. To really master each lesson you need to memorize the 'core conversations', which are short conversations that can easily occur between two people in Japan. After the core conversations in each part there is a breakdown of all the new vocabulary used (assuming you've learned all the vocabulary from all the previous lessons, including book 1) and the translations to English. The books then includes drills for you to practice answering and speaking Japanese out loud. The audio tapes are very important for this part. At the end of each lesson, there's an eavesdropping section, a utilization section, and a check-up section. These are the three sections you'll use to determine if you really mastered the lesson.
In eavesdropping you'll listen to conversations in Japanese and answer a few questions about what was said. In the utilization section you'll be asked to say certain things in Japanese given a specific circumstance. The check-up section is the one that helps you see if you've really learned the material in-depth and can talk about the Japanese language in general, and not just do the drills.
This book series is the one being used as textbooks for the Japanese classes at MIT, and usually lessons are taught at a rate of one part per week (i.e. one full lesson in two weeks) and, to ensure students are learning, the classes are very interactive and students speak only Japanese in three out of 4 weekly classes.
If you're studying Japanese on you're own I suggest you only use this book in a similar way, making yourself practice constantly and memorize the core conversations and vocabulary. It's the only way you'll really learn things the right way. And definitely buy a kana/kanji book so you can also learn the Japanese writing system while learning to speak it. The vocabulary you learn in each book might be a bit limited, but after serious studying with these books for a few years you should be able to understand fairly well. MIT students with 4 semesters of Japanese classes (which use the first two books of this series) are able to work internships in Japan and spend an entire summer there interacting mostly in Japanese.
Good in class, bad for self study February 13, 2008
Franzeska Dickson
3 out of 6 found this review helpful
There are a lot of good reviews here and a lot of bad ones, but mainly there are a lot that are far too long to be helpful. If you're discovering JSL for the first time, here is the real story:
PEOPLE WHO SHOULD USE JSL: Linguists, smart people, adults, people in intensive language programs with good teachers
PEOPLE WHO SHOULD AVOID JSL: 13 year-olds, stupid people, anyone doing self-study, non-native speakers of English (unless you are very nerdy)
GOOD POINTS ABOUT JSL: good grammar explanations, pronunciation guides, written in formal academic English
BAD POINTS ABOUT JSL: limited vocabulary, no writing component, written in formal academic English
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