 |
|
|
オレ
ore
Tenshinhan speaks in a masculine speech pattern. In particular, the personal pronoun ore (oh-reh,) which is written in katakana (as seen at the left) denotes is a rougher style of speaking. In most shônen manga, ore is generally what the guys use when talking about themselves (unless you’re Goku; in which case you use ora.) Tenshinhan also adorns the ends of his sentences with zo (ぞ) and ze (ぜ,) both of which are a kind of verbal exclamation point.
|
|
|
わたし
watashi
When addressing Tsurusennin and Tao Pai Pai, his martial arts masters, Tenshinhan switches to the formal, gender neutral, personal pronoun watashi (usually written in its kanji form as 私) and uses the -masu/-masen form of verbs, which is the polite form.
As stated above, anata (あなた) is the most polite word for “you,” and Tenshinhan does use anata on the occasions where he is speaking to one of his mentors.
|
|
|
おまえ
omae
This is a very informal, oftentimes impolite, way of saying “you.” It’s used by guys in a lot of manga, and Tenshinhan is no exception. ^^;; He addresses everyone in this way.
Note: I believe it’s generally less polite to use any direct form of “you” (this includes omae, kimi, and anata.) It is more proper to speak in the third person. For instance, one would say, “The technique Ten-san has taught me is really handy,” rather than, “The technique you taught me is really handy.”
|
|
|
|
|
|
n/a
no suffix
In Japan, people address one another by their last names (followed by a suffix,) unless they are close with the person (in which case they might still use a suffix, or not at all.) This presents a bit of a difference in DB, as most of the characters don’t have last names! So, addressing Tenshinhan by his full name is probably considered “polite” or the typical way to address him.
|
|
|
さん
-san
“Ten-san” is used by Chaozu, exclusively. The contraction of Tenshinhan’s name is a demonstration of their closeness, and Chaozu adding -san to Tenshinhan’s name shows his respect. The suffix -san is usually translated into English as Ms. or Mr. I like to think that when Chaozu uses it, it becomes a term of endearment, or a way one might address a family member in Japan.
This, however, is strictly supposition...
|
|
◦ Visit the Voice section for information about Tenshinhan’s Japanese voice actor, Hirotaka Suzuoki.
|
|
