Boku - How I say “Me” about Myself
Japanese is really such a fascinating language to me. I’ve been studying it since last summer (i.e. when I stopped blogging so much). But one of the things that I’ve been grappling with the language is how exactly to I refer to myself in the first person. The textbook version of “I” is watashi (私) which you will very often hear noobies use when they’re just starting off with the language. But if you take the time to listen to what’s being said in normal conversation, you will very rarely hear the word.
The fact is that watashi is only used by females and males in a very formal situation. You’ll find girls using the contraction atashi (あたし) quite often. But when it comes to men in normal conversation, you have a choice of two different words. They are boku (ぼく) and ore (オレ). So if you’re a male, when exactly is it appropriate to use either one of the three choices given to you? That is a question that I have asked every single one of my Japanese teachers, and none of them could give me a clear and consistent answer. So after a lot of observations (with anime, of course 
) on what certain characters use in certain situation, I have come up with what I choice to use when I talk about myself. I chose to use boku, and it’s a word I’ve actually grown to love in the past couple of months. Let me tell you why.
First of all, I feel the word tends to have a certain level of prestige and class attached to it. It’s like telling the world that you are male, and proud of it. When I look at the kanji, 僕, I see a certain hint of royalty to it, like a man with a crown and other jewelry. But at the same time, this also gives off a hint of snootiness and egotism. When the title character of 絶対少年 (Absolute Boy) meets the local boys for the first time, they begin mocking his choice of the word. They tease him by calling him, “Mr. boku.” The boy is not ashamed of this, and carries on ignoring the insult.
But boku also denotes a sense of youth and innocence. Ichimaru-sensei, the husband in the series おくさまは女子高生 (My Wife is a High School Girl), is 25, a High School teacher, and married to one of his students. That kind of character would often be considered a sex fiend, and the authors do their best to make his character as innocent and lovable as possible. He’s very soft spoken, and uses “boku” when he talks to his young wife. This give the viewer the impression that even if he’s 8 years older then his wife, he’s still on the same level with her. He talks as if he was a high school boy himself.
But the most powerful example, and the one that really got me thinking about this word, is Shuji from 最終兵器彼女 (She, the Ultimate Weapon). As he narrates the story, he uses boku quite freely. Yet when he speaks out-loud to any of the characters, he uses ore to give a more cool and nonchalant attitude about things. That is.. until he lets this slip out to his adorable girlfriend Chise:
Chise: “This is all your fault!”
Shuji: “Why?”
Chise: “I didn’t want to go out with you anyway. I just to try it out and not be so scared about it. And Akemi already knew that I liked you, so she told me to go for it. And then you gave me the okay about it! You were the one that said yes!”
Shuji: “Most guys would say yes.”
Chise: “Why?”
Shuji: “When a cute girl asks you out, how could I (boku) not-?”
[Chise looks startled]
Shuji: “Ah, I (boku) mean that I didn’t even want to do this until you asked me first!”
Chise: “You said it again..”
Shuji: “What did I say?!?”
Chise: “‘Boku’…”
[Shuji turns red, Chise giggles]
Shuji: “Uh, it’s nothing. It’s something I said a lot as a kid, okay?”
Chise: [laughing] “Sorry, but Shuji-chan is soooo cute!”
Shuji: [angry] “Moron! You’re the cute one!”
But Chise’s teasing did a good point, and this is the real reason why I chose to use this word:
Boku is cute! (^_^)
Wether it be a little boy trying to sound older, or a young man trying to sound younger, boku brings about it a sense of boyish cuteness that’s hard to do with any other word. In かしまし ～ガール・ミーツ・ガール～ (Kashimashi ~Girl Meets Girl~), the male protagonist is a very sensitive and feminine boy. His use of the word showed the audience that he was nice and gentle, unlike most other boys of his age. But after he is transformed into a girl, he still uses boku to refer to himself, and he uses it quite often. But now it has a new meaning to it, mainly that he’s trying to establish that he is still a boy inside the female body.
But the secret behind it is a little bit of fan-service that may not be widely used, but still packs quite a punch. You see, no matter how cute it is to have a boy say, “boku,” it simply cannot match how adorable it is to have a girl use it! This character absolutely melts my heart every time she uses the word, and it has a similar affect inside the anime as well. In a recent episode, the characters go out to the beach. A couple of guys, unaware of her transformation, begin hitting on her. She becomes very shy and timid, and slips out a “boku” when she speaks. “Ah,” says of the boys, “She said, ‘boku’! That just makes her all the more cuter!” And it’s true, very true.
So that is the reason why I use the word myself. While at 21 I might be considered a little too old for it, it’s definitely not unheard of for a man my age to use it. I feel that it is a statement of my personal character. While a six foot tall, blonde-hair American might be a little intimidating to the average Japanese person, I want to convey to them that I am very kind and gentle in my nature. Can you believe that one word can tell someone so much about your personality?
So for all you other guys out there who study the language, what are your thoughts on this topic? What word do you use? And to the ladies, what do you think the word tells you about the guy who uses it?
