And then they start humping your leg. It's Hard Gay

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Hmm I dont know what that has anything to do with learning the reading of 正 but I dont think Hard Gay is it.

To remember the reading せい we use “Hard Gay,” because he likes to say “SEI SEI SEI!” Of course, if you don’t know who this Japanese comedian is, you should check him out (literally or figuratively, whatever you want to do is your own business). Just google him, you’ll see. As you’re correcting these test answers, someone grabs your pencil and throws your desk to the side. And then they start humping your leg. It’s Hard Gay (せい). He tells you that the test you are grading is the shogun’s (しょう)! You can’t give the shogun a bad grade, he’ll have you executed!

I dont know what it is but it just sounds distasteful especially when i’m trying to learn Kanji so I can understand Rosetta Stone Courses. I will prepare myself for the “Lighten up and take a joke” crowd but still.

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There’s no joke, it’s just the stage name of a Japanese performer.

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Still it just sounds out of place.

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WK uses things that are different and memorable. Hard Gay is a different and memorable performer and also part of Japanese culture, it seems like a perfect fit tbh.

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WK is full of mnemonics that are meant to be strange, simply because they are easier to recall than plain mnemonics.

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So its more so just inside jokes that I cant understand. Alright thank you for clearing this up.

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This is a “documentary” about the guy from the BBC.

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If a celebrity known by millions is an inside joke, I guess.

Koichi as a mnemonic is the closest thing to an inside joke, maybe.

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I agree that it is kind of strange and uncomfortable. Especially

At the same time though, I think everyone is right. That strangeness and uncomfortableness can actually become a tool for memorizing. I almost never forget a sei reading for a kanji with a sei reading because of this so…I guess my point is, it works, and it works well. If I have to be a little uncomfortable and think something is a bit strange while imagining it to memorize kanji well, that does not seem like too big a price to me.

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Once again i’m here to learn the language for academic purposes not jokes of Japanese Comedians.

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You mean I spent more than $100 and hundreds of hours to learn about Hard Gay through WK when I could have just youtubed him?

That was the whole reason I came to WK!

Now all I have is the ability to read several thousand kanji.

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Kind of hard to Youtube him when it’s blocked :sweat_smile: (Its blocked I cannot watch it at school)
(Which I currently am at its not as simple as clicking watch youtube in player)

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Click the “youtube” button on the player. Or just the “watch on youtube” link right in the middle.

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I think the point you are missing here and might want to reconsider before moving on with WK is, jokes and mnemonics like this are going to keep coming up.

This website isn’t a textbook, and it has a sense of humor. The Hard Gay mnemonics are going to keep coming up throughout the levels, along with many other weird, and cultural mnemonics. If you have no interest in that, there are other websites and ways to learn kanji that might be better suited to your tastes and thats okay!

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You can also Wikipedia him instead.

(I had never heard of him until this thread; that mnemonic makes more sense now… )

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I’m still waiting on Hard Gay x Mrs. Chou fan-fiction.

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I mean, like, that’s cool and all, but whether it’s for “academic purposes,” life in a foreign country, or simply a hobby, isn’t an effective mnemonic an effective mnemonic?

I actually think Hard Gay is a problematic comedy act, and he’s been called out many times as such, but damn if he isn’t an effective mnemonic. Many of WK’s mnemonics push the boundaries of good taste, but you won’t forget them for it.

Also, regardless of your feelings on his act or the mnemonic, do Google one of his skits/pranks at least once to help the mnemonic stick if you keep up with Wanikani.

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I’m not a fan of using Hard Gay as a mnemonic, so I have just come up with a different mnemonic for せい (and ぜい), because no other information is dependent on remembering Hard Gay. Yes, WK has a handful of problematic nuggets, but that doesn’t diminish its value as an educational tool.

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Im pretty sure you will never forget the reading of that word and that was the goal.

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Now I definitely wont due to the replies in this thread hahaha

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