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わたしのゆめ


How about death...



[Caspar David Friedrich (1774-1840): Klosterfriedhof im Schnee / A Monastery's Graveyard in the Snow]

As you might know, I spend much of my (rather scarce) free time thinking about stories I want to write. For the last weeks and months I am researching about a children's story I want to do after my Graduation (a small synopsis can be found here).

Now yesterday, after working on my thesis, I was thinking about how to introduce not only a concept of "dream" but also of "death". This is a difficult chapter, though. Supposed that the audience would be 8-18 years old, how can "death" be shown in a way that it is neither too horrifying nor too harmless? Not too lightly but not too heavily? Germans (probably not only them) tend to ignore death nowadays, to desperately put it out of my mind... during my social year I worked in the station for dying patients at an Old people's home... I have often seen how people, already dying, tried to ignore this completely. Nobody wants to die, of course, and me neither; but I think death, as something which will happen to all of us, is something which should not be stigmatized or banned from books for (older) children...



But perhaps I am thinking too much about it... as Roald Dahl (a british author of Childrens Books) once said:
"I always have to turn down my books - for the parents."

In a way, children have a very healthy sense of life... it is important for us grown-ups not to destroy this sense. In some ways we should all become like children...

Ok, this is not the solution for my problem... have to think more about it...

Take care and have a wonderful week! Matane!
# by Koryu-chan | 2005-02-27 20:29


Meitantei Conan II: Covers...

Well, while I was lloking for pictures on the internet yesterday, I found out something interesting: The same Comic, here "Meitantei Conan" can have so many designs!

I give you an example. Here is the original Japanese:



Please mark the photo of the London Parliament building at Westminster, the brick structure on the background and the "cloth"-structure in the name "KONAN". The first translation into an European language was in French:



Here the photo and the Brick structure were removed in favour of a plain background (which changes its colour with every volume); the drawing of Conan was subsequently enlarged and a new Logo was created. In order to recreate the Cloth structure of the original Japanese, a "Tweed" structure was used, which, by chance, envokes the picture of Sherlock Holmes who in all movies wear similar cloth.
Now, here is the German edition, which I own:



Even though the German edition is translated from the Japanese and not from the French or English (which is unfortunately quite usual), as you can see, the cover of the French edition was used as a model and then re-changed to resemble more to the Japanese Edition. Thus the Brick stucture is entirely different, less regular; the Background picture is for unknown reasons a different one, too, the Conan-Drawing bigger. The Cloth structure in the name was retained (of course it is now in Romaji, else most Germans wouldn't understand), but a different pattern was used (by the way, the colour of this cloth structure is different with each volume, but probably this is the same case in Japan, too).

I think all in all the German edition tries to look more serious, to emphasize what Germans connect with a detective story.... by the way, as far as I could check it, the German covers and the Japanese covers all feature these differences. Especially the different photographic backgrounds are quite interesting. I wonder why they couldn't just use the Japanese cover?

Here is the English Edition, which is the only one not featuring the name Conan (for fear of being mistaken with "Conan the Barbarian"?):


Again, the only features close to the Original is the drawing and a tendency to a Brown background. Apart from this, everything is changed. Especially the light spot on the left side give this design a more childlike, easier apperearance - the opposite to the German attempt, I think.




The Italian Edition:



is also the most simple made (this is nothing unusual; Italians publish a huge number of comic translations at a very cheap price, so they save on paper, printing quality, translation and not the least design). The Background here is plain brown, the Lettering is clearly done by a quick Computer Fix...

Finally, the Danish Edition:



Here, the only Edition without brown background. I wonder why...

Isn't it strange how Design varies? I now think if you could compare many covers from many translations, you could find out something about the mentality of readers...

OH, I am too late... gotta go! See you later!
# by Koryu-chan | 2005-02-24 18:41


Meitantei Conan

Today I was a bit earlier at home than usual, though I had to return to university after that. So, which is rare, I watched the cartoon "Meitantei Conan" (in German: Detektiv Conan) in TV. It brought me to some thinking.

Generally, while I quite like Detective Stories and would like to read some Detective Manga/Comic, it is very hard to find some. In Germany, comics are something only for small kids (or, rather, boys, there are almost no girls reading comics) up to, say, 12-15 and else for Weirdos. As a result, if there are Detective Comics here, they are usually simple, for children. Of Japanese comics available here, there are only three Detective Manga: One, "City Hunter", is older and more for Grown Ups, but not very good.



I don't like it because the cases are too simple as mainly, the story is about the Lecherousness of the Detective. The Second one was "Kindaichi Shonen", appeared in one of the just four (now three) Manga Anthologies which appear monthly.



I was quite fond of it (in fact this series was, together with "Chobits", the only reason for me to buy this anthology), but last June the anthology was discontinued and with it the Manga (it thus ended in the middle of a case, by the way, so I am not sure I will ever know who the murder was).
This leaves the third one, Gosho Aoyamas "Meitantei Conan." It is the only japanese Detective story available in Germany as cartoon and comic. I suppose this is because Germans think Conan is a cute children's story, as the fantastic Element is quite high (The main Character, Shinichi Kudoh, is a teenagre, but he was shrunk to a child by a mysterious Cabal of Black Men. To find them, he has acquired a new Identity, Conan Edogawa and, supported by lots of gadgets, he solves the cases of his new "stepfather", a hapless detective) and the Main Characters are almost all children (Conan and his band of supporters).



Now, of course I read mainly the Comic. I think it is better drawn and leaves more space for imagination than the cartoon.



But I usually think so. The source (a book or comic) is always better than a dramatisation. This doesn't mean I don't like watching a movie or cartoon, but I very much feel that the readable original is better.

Ok... I think I screwed this all up... what was my point? Hm... I better go sleeping... Oyasumi!
# by Koryu-chan | 2005-02-24 06:25


Mold!



Sometimes I really hate winter, like today. Today I had to work but also the Gas meter reader came to control all our heaters. In order to make this possible, I had to remove a shelf in my room only to discover - MOLD! A thick green layer of mold all over my wall! So, until just now, I was scrubbing and shrubbing and cleaning my wall. Obviously, the wet winter has brought the mold to bloom to such extent... well, after using water, soap, vinegar and toilet cleaner, I hope the mold will be gone...

I want to get Spring soon... well, I didn't think a picture of mold would be nice, so instead I give you a photo I found in the internet. This is a ricefield in Hue, Vietnam. Sometimes I want to see Vietnam and the old palace at Hue (or whatever the American bombings left of it). Also, the field is green as mold, but much more pleasant...
# by Koryu-chan | 2005-02-23 05:25


Off to work!

Off to work!_c0044025_18425915.gif


Hello friends,

it seems I have little time today...

Just wanted to tell you that today I finally got the permission to see an artifact I need for my thesis. I am so happy!

Even though there is incredibly much work in front of me, I slowly see light at the end of the tunnel!

Gotta go now. Matane!
# by Koryu-chan | 2005-02-21 18:44

    

詩・人生・歴史・漫画についての思考を英語で書いています。
by koryu-chan
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