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美術を専攻したい / で / 狸の様なコスプレ/ から

eeky

先輩
8 Jun 2010
2,431
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Hi,

1. A student has written to her guidance counsellor about studying art in Japan. This is the counsellor's reply.

メールを読みました。色々考えているようですね。私は高校 三年生の進路指導をしていますが、みんな、そろそろ受 験勉強に忙しくしていますよ。たいていクラスに一人か 二人、大学で美術を専攻したい、という生徒がいます。

I translate this is as "I read your email. It seems you've given quite a lot of thought to this [= studying art]. I'm giving guidance to year 3 high school students, and everyone is busy studying for their entrance exams. Probably in your[?] class there are one or two pupils who say they want to major in art."

a) Is this essentially correct? I feel somehow I am missing the point, but I can't quite put my finger on why.

b) Does クラス refer to the recipient's class?

c) Does そろそろ mean "slowly; quietly; steadily" or does it mean "before long; any time now", meaning that the exams are imminent? How do you tell?


2. 男の子はラーメンの様な髪の毛で、なるとの服を着ています。

What is the purpose of で? Is this another case of the copula used in (as it appears to English speakers) a kind of loose way?


3.
友: あ、秋葉原駅前でコスプレのイベントをしていま す。あっちに行って見ましょう。
ベン: あれ?前にこのアニメコンに来た事があります よ。
キアラ: あ、友さんは人間と同じ様に、大きくなって います。狸の様なコスプレですね。

This is a story that involves time-travelling and fantasy. 友さん is a talking 狸.

I get:

Tomo: "Ah, there's a 'cosplay' event outside Akihabara station. Let's go over and have a look."
Ben: "Eh? I've/We've been to this anime convention before."
Kiara: "Ah, Tomo-san has grown as big as a human. It's a tanuki-themed 'cosplay'."

As well as other things that may be wrong:

a) As far as can be said from this excerpt, is the second line a reference to time-travelling (revisiting times already experienced)?

b) In the last part, is the general idea that someone is dressed up as a 狸, and キアラ is joking that it's 友 grown bigger?


4.
ベン: でも、今お腹がペコペコだから、いただきまし ょう。
キアラ: あら、ベンはまるで友さんみたいですね。「 類は友を呼ぶ」と言うから。

My translation:

Ben: I'm starving. Let's start.
Kiara: Hey, you're exactly like Tomo. They say 'birds of a feather flock together'.

(Tomo is renowned for always being hungry.)

At the end of the second line, what is the purpose of から? Sorry if I have asked similar questions before...
 
1) a)
Yes, except クラス, そろそろ and たいてい "There are mostly one or two pupils".

b)
It's class in the writer's high school. There are one or two pupils per class.

c)
そろそろ modifies 忙しくしている. Now the time/season starts that everyone is busy ~.
そろそろ means "slowly/quietly/steadily" only when used with action verbs like そろそろ(と)歩く/動く.

2)
Yes.

3) a)
Probably yes.

b)
It might be so. I can't understand what the third line means until reading your interpretation about it.

4)
reason/cause
 
Thanks Toritoribe

4) reason/cause was my first thought, but I don't understand how 「 類は友を呼ぶ」と言う is a reason for / cause of ベンはまるで友さんみたいです. Can you see why it is?

(I understand the connection: they are similar in that they both like to eat. I just don't see why it's a cause-and-effect relationship.)
 
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