The Trouble with Translation 1

Many people, especially beginners, start learning a new language by translating to their first language. This isn't always a bad idea for total beginners, but it often produces mistakes and misunderstandings, so I don't generally recommend it.

For example, take 「安い」 and "cheap". What do you think of when you see the character 「安」? Well, the same character is used in words like 「安心」and「安定」, which makes me think it, in addition to meaning "low-priced", it also means "peaceful" or "comfortable". Well, the English word "cheap" doesn't have those connotations. When I hear the word "cheap", I think "low-quality", "cheating", and "cutting corners". Not exactly positive, is it?

For these reasons, professional salespeople try to avoid using "cheap" to describe their own products, and shoppers who just got a great deal on a Louis Vuitton would probably not describe it as "cheap". They might say it was "a good deal" or, yes, "reasonable".