Tadashi Takahashi

Cognitive linguistics, pragmatics, and contrastive linguistics

A comparative study of Japanese and English
A study of English modal verbs and modalities and a comparative study with Japanese

It can be divided mainly into the following two points:

1. I have been conducting research on modal verbs from the perspectives of cognitive linguistics, pragmatics, and grammaticalization. I have shown that it is possible to explain why modal verbs such as "will," "can," and "may" have the forms, meanings, and usages they have today through the process of grammaticalization. Meanings and usages are the result of the cognitive processes of English speakers and their use in real situations over many years, and I have endeavored to clarify the relationship between cognitive processes, linguistic usage, and the meanings and usages of modal verbs.
2. A comparative study of Japanese and English will be conducted from the standpoint of cognitive linguistics. The idea of cognitive linguistics that human cognition is reflected in language provides an important perspective for elucidating the differences between English and Japanese. For example, the difference between countable and uncountable nouns in English does not exist in Japanese. How do ways of looking at things differ between Japanese and English? It is said that the distinction between tenses is not as clear in Japanese as it is in English. How does the Japanese perceive time? Behind the differences in colloquial expressions between English and Japanese lie the differences in how Japanese and English speakers perceive interpersonal relationships and their views of humanity. Furthermore, from the perspective of cultural psychology, comparative research is endlessly interesting, such as how the psychology of people with Japanese and English cultures is reflected in linguistic expressions.

Combining modal verb research with a Japanese-English comparative study, my current research topic is to compare Japanese literary works and their English translations to verify the differences in modality between English and Japanese. In translations of Japanese literary works by American translators, what Japanese words correspond to the parts where modal verbs appear? For example, there are only a few cases where the parts translated as "must," which expresses the meaning of obligation, correspond to the Japanese words "must do" and "do it." These Japanese words are considered to express the meaning of "must." In other words, the parts translated as "must" actually correspond to various Japanese words. Behind this, it is clear that there is a difference in modality between Japanese, which is a language of context-dependence and subjectivity, and English, which focuses on objective understanding. To date, I have also investigated the correspondence between Japanese and English for "have to" and "can," and published the differences with English. In the future, I would like to further investigate the differences in modality between Japanese and English and clarify the cognitive and psychological factors that create the differences between the two languages. Ultimately, I hope that such comparative research will lead to intercultural understanding between English speakers and Japanese.

One of the characteristics of human beings is their ability to use language. This valuable ability, shared by all human beings, has given rise to a wide variety of languages and formed the basis of human diversity. Ironically, however, it is unfortunate that this ability also impedes understanding between people who speak different languages. The purpose of comparative linguistic research should be to contribute to the understanding of people who speak different languages and to eliminate the various frictions and conflicts that arise as a result of language differences.