Skip to main content

French in Japan: Signs

Image
By
As promised, here's more French in Japan!  This post  showcases two of the many signs I've seen in this country featuring French as the prominent, and often only, language of choice.  Never mind that most people in this country don't speak one word of French; it's still all over the signs.  I wonder if they don't understand what the signs mean at all, or if there's a basic cultural understanding of the parts that show up in these signs. 
The first sign here is the easier of the two, by far.  It's for a beauty salon, which is evident with the word "beauty" if you couldn't tell by "pur" (pure).  "Norika" is the name of the person who owns the salon.  "C'est vous pour être le plus jolie" literally means something like "it is you for to be the most beautiful."  I think what they want to get across is that it is up to you to be the most beautiful you can be, and if you desire to be the most beautiful you can be, the choice is clear: go to this salon.  
     

Next, we have a sign for a lingerie store.  The store is enticingly named "Fran," because everyone thinks of sexy underthings when hearing the name "Fran."  Amiright?  This sign takes an ambling approach to consumers rather than the direct, one-sentence sign of Norika Beauty.  I'm probably going to get a lot of this wrong, so if you know French please tell me by commenting!  Also, I'd love to know what people would actually say in France, rather than what the Japanese have translated from their own awkward, inanely polite phrases.  Here goes:

On dit, seulement ceux qui ont la motivation, peut obtenir une chance.
It is said, only those who have the motivation, can obtain a chance.

 C'est la meme maniere que l'amour.  (Note: they forgot the accents on "même" and manière.")
It is the same manner that love.

 Si vous croyez toujours la grande rencontre avec un garcon, dont l'histoire de Cendrillon de Pretty Woman surpasser n'est pas un reve.  (Note: forgotten accents on "garçon" and "rêve.")
If you believe always the big meeting with a boy, whose history of Cinderella Pretty Woman surpass is not a dream.  (I love the random English in this sentence.)

Pourqoui est-ce que vous ne preparez pas pour l'amour avec lingerie jolie et sexy?
Why is it that you don't prepare for love with pretty and sexy lingerie?

Et obtenons-le!!  
And get it!!  (Is what they're trying to say, anyway.)
Labels:

Comments

  1. AbigailMarch 8, 2011 at 11:04 PM

    My friend who speaks French said of the first sign: "C’est a vous pour etre la plus jolie,” is still a little weird but better than the original. Better still "C’est a vous – a vous voir (or “rendre”) plus jolie" – perhaps too direct, but at least it means something.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Gamagori Fireworks Festival

By
Takeshima, at low tide. Every year, on the last day of July, a big fireworks festival is held in Gamagori, Japan.  Fireworks are very big in Japan, with each major city priding itself on its particular display, and swearing up and down to anyone who will listen that their fireworks are the best in the nation.  Gifu's displays were canceled this year because of the earthquake, so we took the opportunity to travel a little more than an hour by express train to Gamagori.  It's a cute little town, not far from Okazaki, with a famous island that is entirely shrine space (seen in the picture to the right). It was a wonderful, if long, day.  Four of us set out from Gifu and picked two more friends up on the way to the island.  We arrived early, perhaps too early, but we did miss the worst of the afternoon sun as we wandered around the island.  Even though I was very diligent about my SPF 50 sunblock, I still managed to get burned on both shoulders before the morning was over.  I
1 comment
Read more

Combatting Casual Bigotry and Racism in Ourselves and in the World

By
This post will deal with contentious issues of the way race is perceived  and how that perception directly impacts the treatment of various ethnic groups, specifically as I have experienced it in Japan.  Please understand that the following is my way of looking at such topics, and I understand it is not the way of everyone.  My education is comprised primarily of evolutionary biology, behavior studies, and neurobiology, so I am in no way able to look through a sociological or anthropological lens.  If you are qualified (like one of my sisters), please feel free to comment for the benefit of everyone reading this blog. First, I think it's necessary to state that I believe bigotry and racism exist everywhere, in everyone, to greater or lesser degrees.  According to The American Heritage Dictionary online at answers.com, a bigot is someone "who is strongly partial to one's own group, religion, race, or politics and is intolerant of those who differ," and racism is &quo
3 comments
Read more

To Live in the Moment Without Fear

By
To Live in the Moment Without Fear  is a work by Yuko Shinoda from Gifu, Japan.  Danced by six women, the dance investigates what it means to be a part of a community threatened by a disaster that takes a life.  Premiered June 5th 2011 in Nagoya, Japan, the dance features a strong movement aesthetic that draws from traditional Japanese dance as well as contemporary styles and contact improvisation.  Shinoda's use of space and timing, as her dancers flow in-and-out of solos, duets, trios, and unison, creates a sense that the dancers are unified and alone at the same time.  In the end, Shinoda's view of life is clear: we must tend to the fallen, but we must never surrender ourselves to fear while we are still alive.
3 comments
Read more