マンガにおける日本語とマレー語の一人称代名詞の使い分け Proper Use of Japanese and Malay First-Person Pronouns in Manga

Abstract

There are many types of personal pronouns depending on the language, and the nuances vary. It is, therefore, important to clarify the proper use of first-person pronouns especially those that refer to the speaker. This study is focusing on Japanese and Malay first-person pronouns that appeared in Japanese manga. Manga published in Japan and its Malay version are analyzed as material. The purpose is to see how the first-person pronouns in Japanese and Malay are expressed in the manga scene and how they are used clearly to differentiate their usage. As a result, in Japanese manga, there is a tendency to use them according to the gender and age of the speaker but such a feature was not seen in Malay. From the manga scene in both languages, it was shown that the first person switched according to the hierarchical relationship. The factors of position, degree of intimacy, and context are common in using different first-person pronouns in both languages. However, in Japanese, the speaker's gender and age are used differently and is the biggest difference from Malay. Based on Kinsui's Theory of Role (2003), the analysis has proven that the role of emphasizing the character's image is seen especially in the first-person pronouns in Japanese. However, the role of first-person pronouns was not seen in Malay. This may due to the possibility of different emphasis on the linguistic expression of the character set in both mangas. Each of the first-person pronouns is used differently in real life. It is necessary to select an appropriate personal expression depending on the person and context when communicating. Although this study is only focused on the usage of first-person pronouns, it is necessary and useful that the second-person and third-person pronouns are discussed in the next research.