Cultural Discussion - Color

note: this lesson edited to add in more follow-up questions on 4/18/07

Cultural Discussion - Color

What is your favorite color?

How does this color make you feel?

Do any colors make you feel especially sad/happy/calm/tired?

Do you choose this color when you buy the following things:

• clothing
• shoes
• jewelry
• bags
  
• bedding/pillows
  
• curtains
• carpet
• pencils/pens
• car/bicycle/motorbike

What colors do you think are best for each of the items above?

Talking About Color:

Here are 12 common colors. Name each one.


Many Japanese people make a mistake when they talk about color. They often say the name of the color plus the word "color". For example, they might say, "my shirt is blue color" but this is not correct. We do not say "red color" or "white color". We just say the color's name.

X I like orange color.
O I like orange.

Practice talking about color by making sentences about color combinations. For example:

• red + yellow = ?

Red plus yellow makes orange.

• red + blue = ?
• blue + yellow = ?
• white + black = ?
• white + red = ?
• brown + white = ?

How do each of the colors above make you feel?

Are there any colors which you feel are better for women or men? If so, why are these colors better for each of them?

Can men wear any color of clothing to their offices? If not, why not?

Can women wear any color of clothing to their offices? If not, why not?

Color Connections:

When you hear each of these words, what color do you think of?

Please make a sentence and say, "I think of (color) when I hear (word)." For example, I think of blue when I hear the word "water".

• sky
• tree
• flag
• snow
• banana
• eye
• death
• sun
• beer
• boys
• girls
• hair
• robot
• refrigerator
  

Color and Culture:

• What colors are important in Japanese culture?
• What are the colors of the Japanese flag?
• Do you know the colors of any other country's flags? If so, which ones and what colors are they?
• Are there any colors that have a special meaning in Japan?

Color and Holidays:

• Are some colors part of Japanese holidays?
• How are white and pink used in Japanese culture? Why are these colors special ones?
• There are colors connected to certain holidays in the west. Do you know the colors connected to these holidays?
• Christmas
• Halloween
• Valentine's Day

FYI - The "Meaning" of Some Colors in Western Culture:

Purple is connected with royalty.
White is connected with purity and innocence.
Black is connected with death.
Green is connected with nature and freshness.
Gold is connected with wealth.
Yellow is connected with happiness.
Blue is connected to being a boy and coldness.
Pink is connected to being a girl.
Red is connected with heat and love.

The meaning of color is culture-specific. For example, black is the color of death in the west but white is worn when someone dies in Korea.

This material is (c) The Home Sensei