Teaching Japanese Re-Thanking Through the Performed Culture Approach

Abstract

Native speakers of Japanese often thank others for what they have previously done for them when they see benefactors again. This phenomenon is called re-thanking or saido no kansha (再度の感 謝). This seemingly innocuous expression of gratitude is not easy for Japanese language learners to perform. To explicate what is involved in re-thanking in Japanese, I will examine how rethanking is performed by native speakers of Japanese, how it poses a challenge for Japanese learners, and how re-thanking is not about merely using certain expressions of gratitude but about redressing "the debt-credit equilibrium." I will then discuss how re-thanking can be taught through the Performed Culture Approach (PCA), which aims to foster learners' skills to participate in the flow of social life through compilations of memories and stories