N4 トピック
L7: Do Me a Favor
Do Me a Favor
In this Topic, we’re going to learn how to use directional giving and receiving words with verbs (あげる, くれる, and もらう) in combination with the て-form. We will also learn about なさい, which is used to give commands. In the Details section we will remind ourselves of how the directionality and logic of giving and receiving words work in Japanese, including the idea of in and out-groups.
このトピックに出てくる文法
てあげる
To do something for someone, As a favor for
When joining the conjunction particle て, with the る-Verb あげる (to give), it implies that someone is doing something for the benefit of someone else. Literally, this expression means 'to give/bestow the action of (A) upon (B)', but translates more naturally as 'to do (A) for (B)', or 'to do (A) as a favor for (B)'.
The receiver of the てあげる action will be marked with に, while the doer will be marked with が (if mentioned).
Caution
Unfortunately, てあげる can sound quite patronizing in modern Japanese, and should be avoided in situations where someone may take offence to having something done for them (for example, doing something for someone of higher status). This is primarily due to やる (a casual variation of 'to give') being phased out.
Fun Fact
Originally, やる was used when referring to giving water to plants, or feeding animals. However, some people started using あげる for these purposes as well, believing that it sounded 'nicer'. Historically, this actually achieved the opposite result, and some people began to think that あげる was insulting, as it was being used for plants/animals.
These days, てやる is almost never used, unless you have a very close relationship with someone and are using it jokingly.
てくれる
To do something for someone (usually you)
The verb 呉れる in Japanese, is very similar to 与える (to bestow). The primary difference is that 呉れる (primarily written in hiragana) means to 'bestow to the speaker' (or someone in the speaker's inner circle).
In this way, てくれる is the opposite of てあげる, which conveys that someone (usually the speaker) gives (an action) to another person that is outside of their inner circle. てくれる is commonly translated as 'would you do (A) for me', as a question, or 'someone did (A) for me', as a statement.
When asking for a favor, てくれる can be shortened to てくれ. However, this is very casual, and should not be used with strangers (or anyone that you do not know well). As an English equivalent, てくれ sounds similar to phrases like 'would ya do (A)', or 'could ya do (A)?'
Fun Fact
てくれる is one of the most casual ways to ask for a favor, with てもらう being slightly more polite. ていただく (the humble speech variation of てくれる) is even more polite than either of these!
てもらう
To get someone to do, To have someone do
Being slightly more direct than てくれる, てもらう removes the meaning of 'to bestow' (to the speaker), and focuses on the meaning of 'to receive' (from the giver). With てもらう, に will mark the person that 'did something' for the subject, while が (or は) will highlight the receiver themselves.
In English, this grammar structure is regularly translated as 'to have (someone) do (A) for you', or 'to get (someone) to do (A) for you'. Literally, it means 'to receive the action of (A)'.
てもらう is also regularly used when receiving a service from someone, as てくれる would imply that the action was a favor.
なさい
Command to do
なさい is the imperative form of なさる, an honorific language verb which specifically highlights and respects the actions of another person (never the speaker).
Despite being respectful, the fact that this is a 'command' means that it would never be used toward a superior. Due to this, なさい is most frequently used toward peers, or people of lower status, like children.
To use なさい, simply connect it to the ます stem of any verb.
なさい may be shortened further to な, which becomes an even more casual form that is used most frequently toward peers.
Caution
Be careful not to get confused between な (the particle), and な (the shortened form of なさい). These can seem very similar, but な (meaning don't) will always be used with the dictionary form of a verb, while な (meaning please do) will always be used with the ます stem of a verb.
詳細
When we initially learned about あげる, くれる, and もらう in N5, we learned about how their direction and use is determined by in and out-groups. Let’s revisit this again, now that we know more Japanese!
Are You In or Are You Out?
The basic concept of in and out-groups is simple. An in-group (内) is anyone close to the speaker, and an out-group (外) is anyone not close to the speaker. This distance could be physical, psychological or temporal. Who is in your in and out-group is contextual. For example, at work when speaking to a client, the company you work for will be your in-group, but when speaking to a close friend and complaining about your boss,the boundary of your in-group shrinks just to you and your friend. In all cases, the most fundamental in-group is the speaker themselves, on their own, with everyone else in the out-group.
In N5 we learned that あげる is used when giving something to someone in your out-group, くれる is used when someone in your out-group gives something to someone in your in-group, and もらう is used when someone in your in-group receives something. This same logic still applies when using the て-form with these words. Let’s look at a couple of examples.
In Topics directly coming up we will learn more about Japanese polite, respectful and humble language. The concepts of in and out-groups and directionality will be very important for understanding those future Topics.
Could You Do Me a Favor?
Because these words keep track of ‘favors’, they are incredibly common in daily Japanese. In fact, in many cases it will sound unnatural or cold if we don’t use them. This can be initially hard to grasp as they will often translate invisibly into English. In Japanese, gratitude is baked into the grammar itself.
As these patterns are so vital for showing empathy and social awareness, we will be applying them in more advanced ways in upcoming Topics! This will include more complex scenarios using humble language.