見ている / 話しにくい / 恥ずかしいこと / いいライバル / そのほう

[eeky]

Hello,


1. この席を見ていてくれませんか。

Translation given: "Can you save this seat for me?"

So in this case 見ている means "save" or "look after", right?


2. 話しにくいことだけど、先生には私からうまく話してお きます。

I am unsure here about the subjects of the verbs, the use of に, から and おきます, and the overall sense. At first I wondered if it meant "I (usually) find it hard to talk, but I can talk to my teacher without difficulty", but I do not have great confidence that this is correct.


3. あなただからこそ、そんな恥ずかしいことでも相談する のです。

My translation: "Purely because it's you, I'm discussing / able to discuss (even) this embarrassing thing (with you)."

Is this OK? Is there much of a sense of "able to discuss" even though できる or similar is not actually used?


4. 彼女は私にとって本当にいいライバルだった。彼女がい たからこそ、私にここまで頑張ることができたのだ。

My translation: "She has/had a strong rivalry with me. Because it's her, I've been so far able to persevere (i.e. presumably persevere in some competitive endeavour against her)."

Is this interpretation correct?

Also, I'm not sure if "has" or "had" is appropriate. I don't really understand why the first sentence uses だった (past) when the second sentence refers to ここまで.


5. 暑いからこそ、熱いものを飲むのです。そのほうが後で 涼しくなります。

My translation: "Because it's hot (weather), (you should) drink something hot. That way you'll feel cool afterwards."

I don't really understand the grammar of the second sentence. Is そのほう the subject of 涼しくなります? How does that work? I would have thought the person ("you" or "one") should be the subject.

 

[Toritoribe]

1)
Yes.

2)
It's a hard topic to talk about, but I talk it to my teacher effectively.

話しておく means "to talk it for a purpose previously".

3)
相談する more emphasizes the speaker's will than 相談できる.

4)
The first sentence just means "She was a really good rival for me".

彼女がいたからこそ is more likely "Because of her existance/Because she was there".

ライバルだった and 彼女がいた shows that she is not a rival now. She might not be in the competitive environment, might be retired, or could be dead.

ここまで頑張ることができた is the perfect tense, as you translated correctly.

5)
It's a comparative construction.
そのほうが（そうしないより、あなたが）後で涼しくな ります.

 

[eeky]

Thanks Toritoribe.

Regarding (2), what is the purpose of から?

Also, would it ever be possible (in a different context) for 話しにくいことだ to refer to general fact of difficulty of speaking (as I thought), or does こと always mean a topic or subject here?

 

[Toritoribe]

Regarding (2), what is the purpose of から?

から indicates the doer of a type of verbs. This から has a nuance of starting point/origination as same as the common usage of から.
e.g.
先手を打って、こちらから先に攻撃を仕掛けた。（＝こちらが先に攻撃を仕掛けた）
謝礼は私から渡しておいた。（＝私が渡しておいた）
この荷物は妹から送ってきたものだ。（＝妹が送ってきた）

Also, would it ever be possible (in a different context) for 話しにくいことだ to refer to general fact of difficulty of speaking (as I thought), or does こと always mean a topic or subject here?

Yes, it's possible.
e.g.
話しにくいことが彼の欠点だ。
この種の話題の欠点は、公の場所では話しにくいことだ。