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Help with long-passage reading question

Andromedashun

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3 Jan 2012
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(This thread is split off from the following thread.)
Help with reading comprehension | Japan Forum

Why the answer is 3?
I think I got the idea of what it is. The writer contributed the books to the library and the respond to his contribution is too long, so he think they don't like it.

しかも賞味期限が切れたら、同じ本の在庫を抱えるのはスペースの無駄だから、抽選で来館者にあげてしまうという
How do you translate this sentence? My attempt:
Moreover after I lost my interest for it, since holding the stock of the same book is a waste of space, I said I'll give them all to the librarian in the lottery. (?)
 

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I think I got the idea of what it is. The writer contributed the books to the library and the respond to his contribution is too long, so he think they don't like it.
Totally wrong.

しかも賞味期限が切れたら、同じ本の在庫を抱えるのはスペースの無駄だから、抽選で来館者にあげてしまうという
How do you translate this sentence? My attempt:
Moreover after I lost my interest for it, since holding the stock of the same book is a waste of space, I said I'll give them all to the librarian in the lottery. (?)
賞味期限 doesn't refer to my (= the writer's) interest.
来館者 doesn't mean librarian.
The subject is not "I".
 
So the subject of いう is the persons working at the library? I didn't see they mention the subject anywhere. 来館者 = visitors?
Can you give me some hints?
 
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It's not said by a specific person, but more likely "they say" or "I heard". See the flow of the story. The writer talking about that the library bought almost 10 copies of the same book, and the sentence follows it. You need to interpret that the topic is not changed from this fact.
 
I don't really get it...
Answer 3 is: The service of the library doesn't buy many bestsellers.
It seems the later sentences after when he hear that news doesn't point out that answer. The writer only says the service of the library isn't ideal.(?)
 
That's not what the answer says, I'm afraid :emoji_slight_smile:. It's not 図書館のサービスは何冊も購入しない (which doesn't make sense semantically either) - it's 図書館のサービスは[何冊も購入すること]ではない. Try translating the answer again, and then try to find how this opinion is expressed in the text.
 
The 話題 is not about the fact that the library is buying bestsellers, but about the bestsellers themselves. "The bestsellers that everyone is talking about"

Since you seem to have trouble parsing sentences and determining the scope of modifiers like this 話題の, I'd suggest you take some time to sit down and really concentrate on breaking each sentence down into its individual units. For example:

([こづかいが 慢性的に足りなかった] 学生時代)、ぼくは 最寄りの図書館みっつを 同時に利用し、週に 十二冊の本を 借りだしていた。
Once you've placed these markers, you should be able to ask questions about each verb.
There are two independent clauses here, ...利用し and ...借りだしていた.

First I
利用し:
Who did the using? ぼく
What did I use? 最寄りの図書館みっつ
Is there more information about how I used them (i.e. an adverb)? 同時に
When did I use them? 学生時代
Is there more information about this timeframe (i.e. a subordinate clause)? こづかいが慢性的に足りなかった
What was lacking at the time? こづかい
In what way was it lacking? 慢性的に​

and specifically, I
借りだしていた:
What was I borrowing? 十二冊の本
How often? 週に​
 
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Can you show us your (rough) translation of each sentence for your practice, like you did for the conversations in the game previously? Judging from your questions, you don't seem to get the meaning correctly (for instance about リクエストがある、予約待ちが長くなりすぎる。確かにいい分はあるだろう。).
 
Can you show us your (rough) translation of each sentence for your practice, like you did for the conversations in the game previously? Judging from your questions, you don't seem to get the meaning correctly (for instance about リクエストがある、予約待ちが長くなりすぎる。確かにいい分はあるだろう。).
Here (I won't type Japanese, only English, sorry):
When I was a student that my pocket money were chronic not enough, I used at the same time the 3 nearest libraries and borrowed 20 books in a week. You can't imagine how much those books I read at that time is useful for my work now. My grateful for the libraries is deepen even by now.
Even so, I was utterly surprised when I knew the libraries bought the number of bestseller. They even bought nearly 10 copies of just the bestseller that everyone was talking about by one library. Moreover, they say that when the use-by date is over, since holding the stock of the same book is a waste of space, they completely gave it to visitors by lottery.
There is request. The waiting list becomes too long. There will be certainly complainings. But, that is the ideal service of the libraries that maintain by the tax of everyone?
What does the writer want to say the most in this paragraph?
1. They must fix the current condition that the waiting list of the library is too long.
2. He deeply grateful towards the ideal service of the library that he used since he was a student.
3. He is sure the service of the library isn't the matter that buy lots of bestseller.
4. Giving lots of book at the library to visitors by lottery is good service.
 
another typo
できるだけ遠く

飲んだ牛乳を目から出して、できるだけ速くへ飛ばす。
Andromedashun, Apr 3, 2014
Help with reading comprehension | Japan Forum

I'm pretty sure it's a typo/misreading of くへ飛ばす.
Toritoribe, Apr 3, 2014
Help with reading comprehension | Page 2 | Japan Forum

I moved our posts. I think this is a good example why making a new thread is preferred than necroposting in a thread which is not used for many years even if the new post is related to the thread (regarding "reading comprehension" in this case).
 
borrowed 20 books in a week
十二冊, not 二十冊

You can't imagine how much those books I read at that time is useful for my work now.
This would be a tiny thing, but he is saying that he himself can't imagine it.

Moreover, they say that when the use-by date is over, since holding the stock of the same book is a waste of space, they completely gave it to visitors by lottery.
~てしまう is not "to do things completely" but expressing regret or it shouldn't be done here.

There is request. The waiting list becomes too long. There will be certainly complainings.
So, what do the first two sentences express? Who is complaining?
 
Alright. I'll change the question. Who does request and what is the content of the request? Why the waiting list becomes too long?
 
Of course the content is 'the waiting list becomes too long'. The waiting list becomes too long because of too many people register for lottery. (?)
 
The answer is no and no. Think about what the current topic is, i.e., what the writer is talking about in the first place. It's not 抽選, of course.

Hint: he was surprised to know that the library bought nearly 10 copies of the same best seller book.
Hint2: The key is whose いい分 (objection/complaint/explanation) he is talking about.
 
The answer is no and no. Think about what the current topic is, i.e., what the writer is talking about in the first place. It's not 抽選, of course.

Hint: he was surprised to know that the library bought nearly 10 copies of the same best seller book.
Hint2: The key is whose いい分 (objection/complaint/explanation) he is talking about.
Again, いい分 might refers to じゅっさつ近くも買い込み、抽選で来館者にあげる but I've no idea what is the subject
 
Completely missed the fact that I was responding to a 3-year old post. Sorry about that.
Oh, no, you don't need to apologize, Majestic-san. I should have moved the initial post in the first place.:emoji_bow:

Again, いい分 might refers to じゅっさつ近くも買い込み、抽選で来館者にあげる but I've no idea what is the subject
Think about why the library bought the same books so many. It's not to give them to visitors, of course (the reason of giving is "a waste of space", as clearly stated).
 
If I may be so bold, I'd like to join in this discussion with a question of my own.
Is the author's use of "賞味期限" in this passage standard, natural, expected, and immediately and clearly understood, or is it a "creative" (figurative) use of the term, unique to the author's voice?
I can understand what is meant when I read it, but I would not have expected that expression to be used in this situation.
Thanks.
 
Is the author's use of "賞味期限" in this passage standard, natural, expected, and immediately and clearly understood, or is it a "creative" (figurative) use of the term, unique to the author's voice?
It can't be said standard, but this expression is sometimes used as a kind of metaphor, not unique only to this writer. It's completely understandable, of course.
examples from a corpus
麻生内閣の不支持率が50.6%に。発足から2ヶ月で既に賞味期限切れ。
先が読めない賞味期限切れの脳みそで考えているからそうなるんだよ
長期在庫の「賞味期限切れ」タイヤをつかまされないようにするためにも、最新モデルを装着されることをおすすめします。
たとえば女優などを見ていると、賞味期限の長い女優もいれば、賞味期限のあっというまにすぎてしまう女優もいる。その点、俳人の賞味期限は長い…
終わりの予感はするけれど別れたくない!そんな賞味期限ギリギリの恋に悩む読者に、YOU&ピエール瀧が修復方法を提案。
ただし、悪女の場合は賞味期限も短いし、真剣に人生のパートナーとしては考えませんけど
資格にも旬や賞味期限というものがあるのだ。
それでも採血後72時間を経過したら、もう使えなくなる。血液の「賞味期限」は、やっぱりこんなに短いのだ。
いまのような流れの速い時代には、工業製品にも「実質的な賞味期限」のようなものがあるのかもしれないね。
恋の賞味期限は、自分の感覚で決めるもの。
ビジネスモデルには賞味期限が存在することに留意すべきであろう。
この一句、人間にも賞味期限があるというところが面白い。
今は情報がどんどん更新されていく時代ですから、独りで握りしめていても、情報が腐るだけです。情報の賞味期限は限られています。
スワンボートに惹かれるのは、それがもう魅力の賞味期限をとっくに過ぎて、押し付ける感じがなくなっているからなのだ。
 
Here's another hint.
Both リクエストがある and 予約待ちが長くなりすぎる are the contents of いい分, i.e., the opinion of the library side. リクエスト refers to the visitors' requests and 予約 is the visitors' reservations. The writer explains why the library have to buy best seller books so many from the viewpoint of the library. (Now it's clear what the "request" is and what the visitors are waiting for, right?)
 
Not enough for me to understand.
The writer explains why the library have to buy best seller books so many from the viewpoint of the library.
Why?
The waiting list becomes too long is because too many people register while the number of books is lacking?
 
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