In the last lesson, we looked at an assortment of internet banner ads.

There was so much interesting language in them that I didn't get a chance to go through. So...

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Miscellaneous Assortment of Japanese _(._.)_

First we have...

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Rad Word: 前向き（まえむき）

Yesterday, this word got translated to "positive" when we had:

退職は、前向きにしよう。
たいしょく　は、　まえむき　に　しよう。
Let's make quitting (work) into something positive.
Literally: "leaving a work position + は, + forward-looking + に + let's make."

Thinking about this word, I was reminded of a problem I have in Japanese:

I don't know how to say "optimistic."

I mean, I know a few ways to say this, but my main problem is choosing which one of them is appropriate for various situations.

楽天的
らくてんてき
optimistic

楽観的
らっかんてき
optimistic; hopeful

前向き
まえむき
forward-looking; positive

ポジティブ
positive

Are all of these words interchangeable? Well... yeah... I guess. But even interchangeable words have different nuances. Let's take a look...

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Consider the following situation:

You just suddenly lost your job, and your significant other left you to be with the manager of the local KFC. You're alone, broke, and you have virtually no marketable skills. Here are some things you'd say...

If you're 楽天的...

You:
大変だけど、まあ何とかなるさ。
たいへん　だ　けど、　まあ　なんとかなる　さ。
It's rough, but... well, things'll work out.
Literally: "tough/difficult + is + but, + well + be able to manage somehow or another + さ."
Note: You should definitely memorize なんとかなる for saying, "I'll manage" or "Things'll work out." Super useful phrase!

Your Friend:
お前はいつも楽天的だね。
おまえ　は　いつも　らくてんてき　だ　ね。
You're always so optimistic.
Literally: "you + は + always + optimistic + are + ね."
Note: お前 is very casual and masculine-sounding, and it's rude if not used with VERY close friends. Usually you'd be better off just saying NAME+さん instead.

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If you're 楽観的...

This conversation will be exactly the same. This is because 楽天的（らくてんてき） and 楽観的（らっかんてき）have pretty much the same meaning...

You:
大変だけど、まあ何とかなるさ。
たいへん　だ　けど、　まあ　なんとかなる　さ。
It's rough, but... well, things'll work out.
Literally: "tough/difficult + is + but, + well + be able to manage somehow or another + さ."

Your Friend:
お前はいつも楽観的だね。
おまえ　は　いつも　らっかんてき　だ　ね。
You're always so optimistic.
Literally: "you + は + always + optimistic + are + ね."

But what about...

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If you're 前向き...

While 楽天的 and 楽観的 have a nuance of staying positive even when there is no apparent reason to do so (i.e. a nuance of "optimism"), the nuance of 前向き（まえむき）is that you will not let this hardship overcome your forward-looking spirit. In other words, you will "stay optimistic/positive." The conversation might go like this...

You:
大変だけど頑張る。
たいへん　だ　けど　がんばる。
It's rough, but I won't let it get me down.
Literally: "tough/difficult + is + but, + will do my best."

Your Friend:
お前はいつも前向きだね。
おまえ　は　いつも　まえむき　だ　ね。
You're always so positive/optimistic.
Literally: "you + は + always + foward-looking/positive/optimistic + are + ね."

Now, this answer would still be appropriate if "You" had used the previous example of なんとかなる, I just changed it to give a bit more flavor to the nuance.

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If you're ポジティブ...

While with 前向き you are figuratively "looking forward" to a promising future, with "positive" you are simply taking a negative situation and looking at it in a positive way. So...

You:
大変だけどいい経験になったよ。
たいへん　だ　けど　いい　けいけん　に　なった　よ。
It's rough, but I've learned a lot from the experience.
Literally: "tough/difficult + is + but, + good + experience + became + よ"

Your Friend:
お前はいつもポジティブだね。
おまえ　は　いつも　ポジティブ　だ　ね。
You're always so positive.
Literally: "you + は + always + positive+ are + ね."

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Understanding These Using Kanji:

When you say that something is 楽（らく）, you're saying that it's the opposite of 大変（たいへん // tough; hard）. In other words, it's "easy." Sometimes this word also gets translated to "comfortable." And in casual language sometimes people say 楽ちん（らくちん）, which has the nuance that something is really "easy for you," be it a situation or a task.

To believe that the "Heavens" （天）, are "easy on you"（楽）, is to be "optimistic"（楽天的）. We have no evidence that things will be OK, but we just believe they will be.

By the way, ～的（～てき） is just a suffix that turns nouns into adjectives. So 楽天（らくてん // optimism）→ 楽天的（らくてんてき // optimistic）.

Similar to 楽天的 is taking a "viewpoint" （観）where things are "easy on you"（楽）, which makes you "optimistic"（楽観的）.

That's a bit different than a person who has a "before; ahead"（前）"orientation"（向き）, because that is a person who is "forward-looking" （前向き）, a person who is positive about the future.

That was my interpretation, at least (with lots of help from Rei.)

That's all for today, yo. Happy studying! Be sure to stay "optimistic" about your studies.