Remembering the Kanji I: A Complete Course on How Not to Forget the Meaning and Writing of Japanese Characters Vol. 1 4th Edition (Japanese Edition) [Paperback]

James W. Heisig (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 516 pages
• Publisher: Japan Publications Trading Company; 4 edition (August 2001)
• Language: Japanese
• ISBN-10: 4889960759
• ISBN-13: 978-4889960754
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (68 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #929,578 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

James W. Heisig is professor and permanent research fellow at the Nanzan Institute for Religion and Culture in Nagoya, Japan.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

148 of 153 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Will give back what you're willing to put in, January 13, 2005

By 

P. Fisher (USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Remembering the Kanji I: A Complete Course on How Not to Forget the Meaning and Writing of Japanese Characters Vol. 1 4th Edition (Japanese Edition) (Paperback)

I'm 18 years old, and I've graduated slightly earlier due to homeschooling. This evening I finished this book, the first in a series of three books designed to make me literate in the 2,000+ symbols used everyday in Japanese society. After seeing the results of the first book, I truly feel that I am on my way to Japanese literacy.

If you've read one of the many reviews, you probably understand that this book doesn't teach you a single pronunciation of a Japanese character, but rather you tag an English keyword on to all of the Japanese symbols treated in this book, leaving the pronunciation for later.

Why do this? If you aren't noticing quick results in your Japanese abilities, what's the point in learning it? It's true that every single word I've learned will be of no immediate benefit to me if I try to pick up a Japanese newspaper, article, etc. and try to read it. Many have the misconception that in order to "master" the Japanese written language, one must study and "master" the characters individually, and over a period of time, accumulate lots of characters in one's lexicon, therefore allowing the student to read lots of stuff (Makes sense, right?). But our minds don't think like that. (Assuming everybody reading this review is a native to a Roman character based alphabet, or something pretty close to this) We are not used to recognizing little squiggly lines, let alone understanding a concept and multiple pronunciations simply by looking at them. Yet each and every Japanese textbook you'll find on the market supports the idea of mastering each character individually, a method that might seem to be the ONLY method to bring immediate benefits, but requires lots of work and constant drilling of a character. This method is deemed (By the author) to be ineffective and a waste of time.

So what does this book do for our situation? Rather than assuming that we can make the connection between a jumble of lines and the meaning of a character (Which every text book somehow assumes we can do), the kanji are broken down into smaller fragments, and each are tagged with a word that represents an idea, concept, thing, etc., that we are familiar with, such as a hill, the sun, or a baseball bat. Adding these various building blocks together, you form new concepts, and in turn, new characters. True, most these "building blocks" probably don't have a relationship whatsoever with any sort of root meaning, but this isn't the point. The point is to take something you aren't familiar with (Lots of lines), and to make them familiar to you (An image, a picture in your mind). Using these familiar images, you guide yourself from the tagged English word to the Kanji (Or the other way around). No, you will not be able to pronounce any of them when you're finished with this book. But you will be able to identify and tell the difference between even the smallest of nuances. You will look at kanji in a completely different way.

I can't speak for others, but progressing through this course to it's completion was perhaps one of the toughest tests of self-discipline and concentration that I've done in my life. You don't simply "hop along for the ride" to understanding kanji. You will tread through this sea of characters until you've used up every bit of strength your imagination can muster. The only people I've talked to in real life (Not via e-mail) that have attempted this course have either not yet completed it, or have given up with it altogether. This isn't a "learn Japanese kanji in 4 minutes a day" sort-of course. This is a massive undertaking, and must be treated as such, lest the student fizzle out, like so many seem to have done. This is not a book for someone that wants to "get their feet wet" in the sea of kanji. Rather, it is for the serious student, one that is willing to make a commitment (And a big one, at that) towards literacy in Japanese. If this isn't your goal, then I suggest you find another book.

Before you stands a course that requires great stamina, determination and willpower to accomplish. The benefits might not sound like much, but by the time you've finished this course, you'll be on a new plateau of kanji understanding, one that can lead you to literacy. If you "Google" the words "James Heisig Kanji," you'll be able to find a "demo" of the first couple hundred kanji covered in the book. Give it a try. And depending on how much you're willing to work at it, you've either found for yourself a precious gem or another useless rock.

73 of 74 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fastest way to learn all 2000, September 24, 2005

By 

Leo Smith (Ft Worth, TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Remembering the Kanji I: A Complete Course on How Not to Forget the Meaning and Writing of Japanese Characters Vol. 1 4th Edition (Japanese Edition) (Paperback)

PROS
· The method Heisig uses, creating and memorizing a cute little story involving the parts of a Kanji, is probably the most efficient out there. Pictographs and rote learning are the other two methods I'm aware of. These will work, but will take much longer. I know of no other book on the market that uses Heisig's method.
· This book, plus vol. 2, is organized for learning all 2000+ basic Kanji as quickly as possible. Other books have you "master" characters in smaller numbers. There are many short cuts that can be made when all 2000+ are handled at once, so if it's your goal to learn all of them, Heisig is more efficient.
For the above reasons, I highly recommend using this book for learning the Kanji, and give Heisig five stars. But the book is far from perfect. I hope the following information will not dissuade you from buying Heisig, but help you use the book.

CONS
· Typos and mistakes are a part of all language books, for some reason. I'm sure I've missed some, but here are a few. Some descriptions contain wrong keywords for primitives (981,1321,1418,1714,1836,1840). Sometimes Heisig creates a new keyword for a kanji when it is used as a primitive, but doesn't tell us (1271,1573,1720). Kanji 1480 has the right description, but is drawn wrong. Kanji 1733 uses primitive "rice" instead of the expected "grains of rice". Kanji 1999 contains a new primitive, but it is called out as if it has already been established. There are two kanji with the keyword "storehouse" (589,850). In the description of kanji 58 he states that "olden times" is not used as a primitive in any other kanji, but it is in 910.
· Heisig may have finished learning the material in this book in 4 to 6 weeks. If he did, I'm guessing he is at the very top as far as memory goes. That would require 8 to 10 hours per day. Even if one has the schedule to study kanji full time, the point of diminishing returns for most is probably closer to 2 or 3 hours per day. For the average person, finishing this book in 6 months would be ambitious, and one year more likely. FYI - I'm an average learner, and it took me 300 hours in 30 weeks.
· There are some warning phrases throughout the book that you are better off just ignoring. Examples are "don't confuse kanji A with kanji B", "I know I said never to do this in a story, but..."
· Using "big" words for key words. Sometimes this is merited to distinguish kanji with like meanings, but other times I felt like I was getting unnecessary practice with my English dictionary.

TIPS
· Use adult themes in your stories.
· If the price seems too high, try some auction sites.
· My study program. This is what I did in my 300 hours.
On a macro-scale (30 weeks, approximately 10 hrs/week)
Weeks 1-5: learn 1-500
Week 6: review 1-500
Weeks 7-11: learn 501-1000
Weeks 12-13: review 1-1000
Weeks 14-18: learn 1001-1500
Weeks 19-21: review 1-1500
Weeks 22-26: learn 1501-2042
Weeks 27-30: review 1-2042
On a weekly scale
Learn weeks: learn 20 per day, Monday thru Friday, review all 100 Saturday
Review weeks: review 100 per day, Monday thru Friday, repeat toughest sets on weekend
On a daily scale
Learn days:
(a) During breakfast, read the day's 20, making up stories (or just reading the stories if you're still in part 1 or 2) for each per the author's instructions. Don't move on to the next Kanji unless you feel the story is going to stick.
(b) Without taking a break, go back to the first kanji, hide everything except for the key words, and create your 20 flashcards per the author's instructions. I recommend a fine black felt tipped pen on blue 3 by 5 index cards, available at office depot. This should be the first time you draw these 20 Kanji. You should be able to draw them without peaking. If you miss 2 or 3, don't be too hard on yourself. If you miss a lot, maybe read what the author says about improving your stories.
(c) Still without taking a break, take your stack of flashcards, keyword up, and restack them so that they are in the order you learned them. Beginning with the first one, "imaginary finger paint" the characters on a flat surface, repeating the story, out loud if possible. You should be able to draw them without peaking. If you miss 2 or 3, don't be too hard on yourself. If you miss a lot, maybe read what the author says about improving your stories.
(d) About supper time, take the 20 flash cards, shuffle and mix them up, making a neat pile, keyword up. Repeat the finger painting.
(e) Repeat step (d) for cards 1-20 at breakfast time of day 2, after you have done steps (a) thru (c) for kanji 21-40.
(f) Repeat step (d) for cards 1-20 at supper time of day 2 day, after you have done step (d) for kanji 21-40.
(g) Retire cards 1-20 until Saturday. You have learned them, written them 1 time, and reviewed them 4 times.
Review days:
(a) Shuffle the 100 kanji to review. Make a neat pile, keyword up. Draw the kanji on notebook paper, repeating the story as you draw (draw them small enough to fit all 100 kanji on one side of one sheet). Try to make the overall size consistent and the area close to square. After you write one, turn the card over to confirm it's correct. If it's correct, put the card on the "correct" stack, keyword up. If it's incorrect, review your story until you think it will stick next time. Then put it on the "incorrect" stack, keyword up.
(b) If you're having trouble remembering one, don't torture yourself for more than a minute. If you still can't think of it, turn it over and review your story until you think it will stick next time. Then put it on the "incorrect" stack, keyword up.
(c) When you have gone through the whole stack, count the number you missed. Keep a record of your misses in a table so that you can pinpoint your trouble sets of 100.
(d) Take the "incorrect" stack, and repeat (a) and (b).
(e) Repeat (d) until you have no more cards.
Notes
The first time I had a review week, I had three sets that I missed more than 50. One was about 70 misses out of 100. After all those hours I'd put in, I was totally discouraged. But I reviewed again on Saturday, and missed in the 20's. That was with no additional studying, just another review. Because I have an easily bruised ego, I've devised a way to avoid terrible initial scores. The night before reviewing, I read the 100 kanji in the book, going over the stories if I'd forgotten. This usually takes me about 45 minutes, and I haven't missed more than 25 the following day after doing this.

GOOD STUDYING!!!

282 of 319 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "When Westerners Want to Get Serious about Literacy", February 11, 2004

By 

Lani 'Lorenzo' Wiig (Portland, OR, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Remembering the Kanji I: A Complete Course on How Not to Forget the Meaning and Writing of Japanese Characters Vol. 1 4th Edition (Japanese Edition) (Paperback)

I am a European-American who holds an M.A. from a Japanese national university (Hiroshima University) and a Professional Diploma in Foreign Language Education (Japanese) from the University of Hawaii - Manoa. I have lived for some 11 years in Japan as an adult and have taught Japanese at the secondary level in Hawaii and Oregon. Between 2001 and 2003, I assisted Mary Sisk Noguchi, author of the "Kanji Clinic" column in THE JAPAN TIMES, edit, rewrite and check facts in her columns. (The columns may be viewed at www.kanjiclinic.com.) I mention these credentials in order to give potential consumers of Jim Heisig's REMEMBERING THE KANJI, Volume I (aka 'RTK1'), a more informed basis for their impending purchase.

Amazon's customer reviews for RTK1 cover a broad spectrum ranging from near-total rejection to devoted acceptance. This is NOT a book that seems to attract many 3-star reviews. As you, the potential consumer of RTK1, debate whether to buy the book or not, I hope my little review will help push you over the edge into the "buy" mentality.

I have given this remarkable book a 5-star rating. RTK1 helps level the "kanji playing field." (Incidentally, you can easily discover if this is "THE KANJI BOOK FOR YOU" by going to google.com and inputting "heisig remembering kanji." Dr. Heisig has convenietly made available his well-reasoned, indeed, history-making introduction as well as downloadable stories for the first 250-or-so kanji that he teaches in his system. If you are 'turned on' by his introduction and his first 100 or so stories, then RTK1 is a good tool for you. You will need the book to build a strong memory foundation for the remaining 1750-or-so kanji used in standard written Japanese.)

Good luck. This book gives a solid foundation to serious students of written Japanese, and I dare say Chinese, too.

Oh, yes, almost forgot. The book is also available in French and Spanish.