レッスン １

Question 1

一

Answer 1

one

• In Chinese characters, the number one is laid on its side, unlike the Roman numeral I which stands upright. As you would expect, it is written from left to right.
• As a primitive element, the key-word meaning is discarded, and the single horizontal stroke takes on the meaning of floor or ceiling, depending on its position: if it stands above another primitive, it means ceiling; if below, floor.

Question 2

二

Answer 2

two

• Like the Roman numeral II, which reduplicates the numeral I, the kanji for two is a simple reduplication of the horizontal stroke that means one. The order of writing goes from above to below, with the first stroke slightly shorter.

Question 3

三

Answer 3

three

• “And like the Roman numeral III, which triples the numeral I, the kanji for three simply triples the single horizontal stroke. In writing it, think of “1 + 2 = 3” (一 + 二 = 三) in order to keep the middle stroke shorter.”

Question 4

四

Answer 4

four

• “This character is composed of two primitive elements, mouth and human legs, both of which we will meet in the coming lessons. Assuming that you already knew how to write this kanji, we will pass over the “story” connected with it until later. Note how the second stroke is written left-to-right and then top-to-bottom. This is consistent with what we have already seen in the first three numbers and leads us to a general principle that will be helpful when we come to more complicated kanji later on: write north-to-south, west-to-east, northwest-to-southeast.”

Question 5

五

Answer 5

five

• As with four, we shall postpone learning the primitive elements that make up this character. Note how the general principle we just learned in the preceding frame applies to the writing of the character for five.

Question 6

六

Answer 6

six

• The primitives here are top hat and animal legs. Once again, we glide over them until later.

Question 7

七

Answer 7

seven

• “Note that the first stroke “cuts” through the second. This distinguishes seven from the character for spoon (Frame 476), in which the horizontal stroke stops short.”
• As a primitive, this form takes on the meaning of diced, i.e., “cut” into little pieces, consistent both with the way the character is written and with its association with the kanji for cut to be learned in a later lesson (Frame 89).”

Question 8

八

Answer 8

eight

• “Just as the Arabic numeral “8” is composed of a small circle followed by a larger one, so the kanji for eight is composed of a short line followed by a longer line, slanting towards it but not touching it. And just as the “lazy 8” is the mathematical symbol for “infinity,” so the expanse opened up below these two strokes is associated by the Japanese with the sense of an infinite expanse or something “all-encompassing.”

Question 9

九

Answer 9

nine

• If you take care to remember the stroke order of this kanji, you will not have trouble later keeping it distinct from the kanji for power (Frame 922).
• As a primitive, we shall use this kanji to mean baseball team or simply baseball. The meaning, of course, is derived from the nine players who make up a team.

Question 10

十

Answer 10

ten

• Turn this character 45 degrees either way and you have the x used for the Roman numeral ten
• As a primitive, this character sometimes keeps its meaning of ten and sometimes signifies needle, this latter derived from the kanji for needle (Frame 292). Since the primitive is used in the kanji itself, there is no need to worry about confusing the two. In fact, we shall be following this procedure regularly.

Question 11

口

Answer 11

mouth

• Like several of the first characters we shall learn, the kanji for mouth is a clear pictograph. Since there are no circular shapes in the kanji, the square must be used to depict the circle.
• As a primitive, this form also means mouth. Any of the range of possible images that the word suggests - an opening or entrance to a cave, a river, a bottle, or even the largest hole in your head - can be used for the primitive meaning.

Question 12

日

Answer 12

day

• “This kanji is intended to be a pictograph of the sun. Recalling what we said in the previous frame about round forms, it is easy to detect the circle and the big smile that characterize our simplest drawings of the sun - like those yellow badges with the words, “Have a nice day!”
• Used as a primitive element, this kanji keeps its key-word sense of old, but care should be taken to make that abstract notion as graphic as possible.

Question 13

月

Answer 13

month

• “This character is actually a picture of the moon, with the two horizontal lines representing the left eye and mouth of the mythical “man in the moon.” (Actually, the Japanese see a hare in the moon, but it is a little farfetched to find one in the kanji.) And one month, of course, is one cycle of the moon.”
• As a primitive element, this character can take on the sense of moon, flesh, or part of the body. The reasons for the latter two meanings will be explained in a later chapter.

Question 14

田

Answer 14

rice field

• Another pictograph, this kanji looks like a bird’s-eye view of a rice field divided into four plots. Be careful when writing this character to get the order of the strokes correct. You will find that it follows perfectly the principle stated in frame 4.
• When used as a primitive element, the meaning of rice field is most common, but now and again it will take the meaning of brains from the fact that it looks a bit like that tangle of gray matter nestled under our skulls.

Question 15

目

Answer 15

eye

• Here again, if we round out the corners of this kanji and curve the middle strokes upwards and downwards respectively, we get something resembling an eye.
• As a primitive, the kanji keeps its sense of eye, or more specifically, an eyeball. When placed in the surroundings of a complex kanji, the primitive will sometimes be turned on its side.