|
| madness in the metropolis |
|
<< Previous: Monson snowboard design contest June 25, 2001This meeting effectuates trans-company communications, I believeCombine Japlish with corporate buzzword jargon, and you get the following - this is a genuine excerpt from a memo I received last week: Thanks to the entire busy member the meeting was successfully brought off for the first inning. We could confirm this meeting effectuates trans-company communications, I believe. Would you, therefore, please utilize this meeting effectively to harmonize mutual works. Now, I'm not taking the piss here - whoever wrote it deserves praise rather than scorn, if only for managing to get the word "effectuate" into everyday prose. What I love about this memo is that expressing these kinds of sentiments in such a formal setting is absolutely routine, nay, essential, in a Japanese office atmosphere. The original Japanese text, which I also have a copy of, doesn't seem mawkish or odd in any way - this is just how things are done; it's all about oiling the delicate wheels of office interaction and making sure that everybody is "on the same page". Put it in English, though, and it's complete dross. I'm sure the same thing happens in offices all around the world - just with less wild, over-the-top prose, and a damn sight less effectuating.
Right - I'm off effectively to harmonize my mutual works, and I suggest you do the same. Posted by chris at June 25, 2001 05:28 PM | Permalink |
 Categories
|
Home Away Nihon:go Disperse peacefully Flash design by Flickr
Hosted by Powered by |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||