What does 世間(せけん) mean? The world?
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The "世間(せけん)" in Japanese does not refer to a specific place or person, but refers to the society in which you live, that is, a space where you have a certain relationship and live together with people outside your family. To put it simply, "世間(せけん)" is someone outside of the family, which is "外の人たち (外人)".
For example: Japanese people would say "世間に颜向けできない (no face to see people)" and "世間に笑われる (make people laugh)" if they cause something to happen. At this time, "people" refer to family members and outsiders people.
In the news about politics and society, there are often expressions such as "世間の声 (the voice of the world)" and "世間が許さない (the world will not agree)". At this time, the term "world" refers to all Japanese citizens. Or the whole Japanese society.
【Example】:
1、そんな行動は、家族は認めても、世間が許さないだろう。
This kind of action, even if the family agrees, the society will not tolerate it
2、大学生にもなって、そんな世間知らずなことを言うと笑われる。
Since you are a college student, say such a naive thing will be laughed at by others.
"世間知らず" is used to criticize those who do not understand the habits and conventions in society and interpersonal relations. Usually, the habits and conventions in society and in interpersonal relationships are learned through parents at home. If a person does not understand these, he will be criticized for "しつけが悪い".
In other words, the word "世間" in Japanese must be accompanied by thinking about "家 (うち)" or family and internal affairs. It can even be said that there is an antagonistic relationship between "世間" and home. Because Japanese people care about their relationship with others when doing things, there are many sayings that use "世間".
- 渡る世間に鬼はなし
- 世間の風は冷たい
- 世間に顔向けできない
It can be seen from these proverbs that Japanese people are very concerned about how others view their family and themselves.
In the following usages including the words "home" and "親（父母）", the consciousness of "family relative to society" and "home in the eyes of society" is deeply rooted.
- 家名（かめい）に傷がつく：Discredit the family.
- 親の顔に泥（どろ）を塗る：Discredit the parents.
In the minds of modern Japanese people, people are not as strongly aware of "家" as before, but it can still be said that there are still two consciousnesses of "世間" and "家" in Japanese behavior and thinking.
Extra content:
In modern Japanese, "人間 (にんげん)" has almost the same meaning as the word "人". But the original meaning of the word is not so. The original pronunciation of "人间" is "じんかん", which means "between people" and "the world where people live". In modern Chinese, "人间" means "society" and "secular", and does not refer to "person" itself.
So, why does "人間" have the same meaning as "人" in Japanese?
The philosopher and Tetsuro Tsuji pointed out: People can only be recognized as "people" in society, that is, in specific interpersonal relationships. Therefore, the word "人間" has two layers of "society" and "people". The meaning item expresses the essence of mankind most clearly.
What he meant was that man is both an independent individual and a social existence. The Japanese "人間" expresses this aspect of "human" living in the relationship between humans.
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