Re: Moi, le Kou (was: verbs = nouns?)

From: "Yoon Ha Lee"

> Quick dumb question: what are the distinctions between -kun, -chan,
> and -dono?  We (a few anime-watching friends and I) had the hypothesis
> that -kun was for younger guys and -chan was for younger gals, both
somewhat
> affectionate, and were just flummoxed on -dono (it's used in Rurouni
> Kenshin, usually when addressing Kaoru).  But your example throws that
> hypothesis down the drain, so now I'm just plain confused.
Among the nursery school and kindergarten set, -kun is for boys, -chan is
for girls. In that context, they are obviously used as diminutives. I
think -kun is normally used toward male friends and elders to whom one wants
to be deferent and yet imply familiarity. -chan, technically,  is a
diminutive form of -san and so can be used with anybody one want to foster a
familiar, cutesy-wutesy feel, regardless of sex. (Niichan: Brother Dear,
lovers [à la baby talk] would probably use it across the gender gap) Since
there's a cultural premium on unmarried women being twee, there is greater
use among females. I got stuck with -chan, 'cause -kun is a little too butch
for my personality, and the running joke was that my demeanor reminded
people of the British upper class ("Gee, you don't have the air of an
American." "Thank you??"). Since maids would address the young master of an
upper class household with -chan, in an auntie-clueless bachelor
relationship, that's what I got. I didn't hear -dono used a lot while in
Japan. My dictionary says it's a bit more polite than the generic -san
or -sama.

> YHL, who figures she's not a boku, but gets lot when it comes to atashi,
> watashi, ore, and who knows what other variants
No, you're not a boku. Boku is guys. Ore is too butch to be believed -- I
couldn't use that with a straight face unless I was mimicking a yakuza or
something. Boku can fit into that latter-day Prince Andrew persona I
described above.

Kou