Do you know the story "The Naked King"? Let's enjoy reading stories in Japanese.
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4 more months to go in 2022, and this year will be over in a blink of an eye. Were you able to achieve your Japanese goals for this year? I would like to introduce one story this time so that you can enjoy studying Japanese toward your learning goals. Today's story is "The Naked King". I would appreciate it if you could help me with your study.
Think before you read.
Have you ever read "The Naked King"? If not, imagine what it would be like. Also, after reading, think about what this story wants to tell us.
"Naked King"
A long time ago, there was a king in a certain place.
Then two weavers came and said,
“We can weave very beautiful fabrics, and clothes made from them can only be seen by smart people.”
"That's interesting."
The king paid them a lot of money and asked them to make clothes for them.
However, these two people were big bullies. They put the money they received into their wallets and pretended to be weaving on a bare loom.
The king said to his servants.
"Let me see how the clothes are made."
When the servant goes to the weaving workshop, they are working an empty loom.
"How is it? It must be beautiful."
The servant rubbed his eyes, but could see nothing.
The servant, who thought that he would be considered a fool if he said that he could not see anything, said,
"What beautiful fabrics."
Then he returned to the king and reported.
The king became more and more excited and wanted to put on the dress as soon as possible.
"It's ready."
The clothes that the two of them brought did not look like a king after all.
But the King also didn't want to be seen as a fool, so he said,
"It's really beautiful. I really like it."
said the two liars.
"It really suits you."
The king made a procession through the town to show the townspeople his new clothes.
But no one can see the king's clothes.
Then a child looked at the king and said,
"The King is wearing nothing. He's naked!"
Those who heard it also said
"Naked King!"
I laughed. The king finally realized that he had been deceived.
Even so, I walked naked while puffing out my chest.
How was it.
It's a famous story, so I think many people know it.
This is quite famous in Japan, and I read it many times when I was a child.
When I was a child, I only thought that this king was an idiot, but when I read it as an adult, I began to feel that it was not someone else's problem. Certainly, there are people who tend to act tough and pretend to know what they are doing, even if others think of them well.
Just as there is a saying that listening is a temporary shame and not listening is a lifelong shame, this story means that it is more embarrassing than being thought of as stupid or foolish.
And after all, children are always honest. Even in this story, no one said anything until the child said, "The naked king!" Children's innocence and honesty are sometimes cruel, but it's important to have a child's pure eyes no matter how old you are.
Also, in Japanese, there is a word "naked king" derived from this story. This refers to a person who is blind to the truth because he is in a high position and refuses to listen to the criticism and opposition of those around him. You can use it like, "He doesn't listen to other people's opinions at all. He's like a naked king." It's a word that has a negative connotation.
Today, I introduced a story called "The Naked King".
How was it? I hope you enjoyed the story. Even if you already know the story, reading it in Japanese will give you a different kind of fun. There is such an expression! Was there anything that you learned? I would be very happy if there was such a discovery among all of you.
If you experience a lesson at Koharu Japanese Language Office, you will be able to discover a surprising level of Japanese and feel that you have improved yourself.
In addition, Koharu Japanese Language Office is open all year round and accepts lesson reservations every day. We offer a 30-minute free trial lesson for the first time, so please feel free to apply.
We look forward to helping you learn Japanese.
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