Monday, October 22, 2007

源氏物語

今週のMajor East Asian Textsのクラスの宿題は源氏物語です。源氏物語はとても長い本で、先生は端折ったバージョンを宿題にした。源氏物語はとてもおもしろいですよ。そして、まあまあ難しいです。The characters do not have any names (apparently, members of the court during the Heian period did not address each other by given names, but rather by rank or station), so it's very hard to keep track of who's who--especially because all the characters are having affairs with each other.源氏物語をよんだら、平安時代に生きればすげえおもしろいと思う。

Thursday, October 18, 2007

私のルームメート

私のルームメートはコールマンさんです。コールマンさんのせんもんは音楽です。コールマンはいつもヒップホップの音楽を聞きます。コールマンと私はとてもきれいですから、私たちの部屋もとてもきれいですよ。

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

Good Podcast

I've never made a podcast before, and I'm not very familiar with how they are used. But it seems like it's just a way to present sound and video programs to an audience on the internet.

I actually have a nice video camera (Canon GL2) that I could use to make video podcasts. I think it would be interesting to go to an area of NYC with a large Japanese population and interview them, using whatever Japanese we know. Or perhaps, if this can't be done, then we could interview Japanese students at Columbia. Questions might include: why did you choose to come to New York City for university; do you plan to live in America after you graduate; what are some cultural problems you've had here; have you made many American friends. Since we are only beginners in Japanese and our pronunciation/grammar is bound to be full of errors, I think we should make sure to keep the podcasts somewhat humorous. If they are intended for Japanese university students who are curious about life at an American university, then perhaps we could film some uniquely American/New York City scenes that would surprise a Japanese who hasn't been to America.

Wednesday, October 3, 2007

Self-Introduction

はじめまして。わたしはフランクリンです。アメリカのニュージャージーからきました。コロンビアだいがくのにねんせいです。19さいです。どうぞよろしく。