I honestly have never looked at a human person and gone "Wow, she's just like a cat." Or "He reminds me of a puppy!" But I see this all the time in manga. Maybe all these manga characters have more imagination than me...

really? ive been called a puppy half my life lol

Yeah, its typically an energy and personality thing.

I honestly have never [interacted with] a human person and gone "Wow, she's just like a cat." Or "He reminds me of a puppy!" But I see this all the time in manga. Maybe all these manga characters have more imagination than me...

Perhaps it's a cultural thing. Personally, I've never heard anyone compare a person with pets in my life.

I honestly have never looked at a human person and gone "Wow, she's just like a cat." Or "He reminds me of a puppy!" But I see this all the time in manga. Maybe all these manga characters have more imagination than me...

really? ive been called a puppy half my life lol

Yeah, its typically an energy and personality thing.

I honestly have never [interacted with] a human person and gone "Wow, she's just like a cat." Or "He reminds me of a puppy!" But I see this all the time in manga. Maybe all these manga characters have more imagination than me...

Perhaps it's a cultural thing. Personally, I've never heard anyone compare a person with pets in my life.

In the UK, comparisons to animals are usually negative - saying a girl is a dog would be... not nice. So it's probably a cultural thing.

Perhaps it's a cultural thing.

Japan is indeed passionate about it. More recently, they mapped personality types - especially that of your partner - to animals (a cat person, a dog-like boyfriend, etc.), and before that there was categorizing facial features specifically (e.g. dog-faced). Telling somebody they're like a certain animal can also just mean they're cute.

Worldwide, you can compare somebody's behaviour to that of some animal (mad as a hornet, a dog in the manger. lazy as a bear, eat or look like a pig), be given a pet name after a shared trait or vague resemblance (puppy, tiger, chipmunk, conejito, chaton, Mausebär), offend by calling somebody an animal that has negative traits associated with it (in English you can even verb animals: chicken, rat, leech, ape, bug...), and notice similarities between pets and their owners.

last edited at Mar 24, 2024 7:54PM

Now that the secret is out she has no excuse to not wear her full gear when they hang out together. They will feel the full force of her awesomeness!

I honestly have never [interacted with] a human person and gone "Wow, she's just like a cat." Or "He reminds me of a puppy!" But I see this all the time in manga. Maybe all these manga characters have more imagination than me...

Perhaps it's a cultural thing. Personally, I've never heard anyone compare a person with pets in my life.

In the UK, comparisons to animals are usually negative - saying a girl is a dog would be... not nice. So it's probably a cultural thing.

Well, you wouldn't call her "a dog", that would imply an insult about her looks, same in the US. Comparing her to a puppy, OTOH, or drawing comparisons with specific breeds, is less "looks like a dog" and more of a cute personality thing.

last edited at Mar 24, 2024 11:08PM

Nobody cares, Narita.
Nobody cares.
No one.

Now that the secret is out she has no excuse to not wear her full gear when they hang out together. They will feel the full force of her awesomeness!

Yes please! I had a feeling these two would be fine with her piercings and tattoo when they found out. Now Mitsuki just needs the courage to show them her full 'casual mode'.

And Mitsuki looks particularly nice in this chapter. Like the top right on page 3. Her hair looks longer, her glasses are off, and the sharp shoulders and slim fit of her shirt all combine into a really good look for her.

For reference, Akita dogs are known for being loving and loyal to their family and close friends while being aloof with strangers. That's probably the meaning that Aya was going for

last edited at Mar 25, 2024 6:25AM

Oh no, now everyone knows Mitsuki is in the Yakuza!

Perhaps it's a cultural thing.

Japan is indeed passionate about it. More recently, they mapped personality types - especially that of your partner - to animals (a cat person, a dog-like boyfriend, etc.), and before that there was categorizing facial features specifically (e.g. dog-faced). Telling somebody they're like a certain animal can also just mean they're cute.

Worldwide, you can compare somebody's behaviour to that of some animal (mad as a hornet, a dog in the manger. lazy as a bear, eat or look like a pig), be given a pet name after a shared trait or vague resemblance (puppy, tiger, chipmunk, conejito, chaton, Mausebär), offend by calling somebody an animal that has negative traits associated with it (in English you can even verb animals: chicken, rat, leech, ape, bug...), and notice similarities between pets and their owners.

The dog-faced thing is unintentionally hilarious to me, just because of the fact that a term that would probably be complimentary in Japan would almost certainly be considered fighting words within the context of the English-speaking world. Language is fun like that.

Also, it does seem like animal comparisons in English are usually more particular. It’s not “you’re just like a dog,” but something like, “you’re as loyal as a dog.” We note the feature we want to highlight first to avoid accidentally making any unflattering remarks.

Perhaps it's a cultural thing.

Japan is indeed passionate about it. More recently, they mapped personality types - especially that of your partner - to animals (a cat person, a dog-like boyfriend, etc.), and before that there was categorizing facial features specifically (e.g. dog-faced). Telling somebody they're like a certain animal can also just mean they're cute.

Worldwide, you can compare somebody's behaviour to that of some animal (mad as a hornet, a dog in the manger. lazy as a bear, eat or look like a pig), be given a pet name after a shared trait or vague resemblance (puppy, tiger, chipmunk, conejito, chaton, Mausebär), offend by calling somebody an animal that has negative traits associated with it (in English you can even verb animals: chicken, rat, leech, ape, bug...), and notice similarities between pets and their owners.

I think it's a bit much to claim that it happens "worldwide", unless you've actually studied on this?

The reason I specifically used "pet" rather than "animal" in my comment was because in my country I've only heard of people being compared to animals in a derogatory way (pig, chicken etc.), as you and others mentioned. If I heard someone talking about dog or cat energy I'd think they've probably been influenced by US (or Japanese) media.

Also, it does seem like animal comparisons in English are usually more particular. It’s not “you’re just like a dog,” but something like, “you’re as loyal as a dog.” We note the feature we want to highlight first to avoid accidentally making any unflattering remarks.

To me "you're as loyal as a dog" also seems insulting lol. It would sound to me like they're calling me a blindly obedient. I'm not sure if it's personal or cultural in this case, but, for the record, most of my family agreed.

last edited at Mar 25, 2024 9:39AM

Now that the secret is out she has no excuse to not wear her full gear when they hang out together. They will feel the full force of her awesomeness!

Do you want a harem route? Because that's how you get a harem route...

Also, it does seem like animal comparisons in English are usually more particular. It’s not “you’re just like a dog,” but something like, “you’re as loyal as a dog.” We note the feature we want to highlight first to avoid accidentally making any unflattering remarks.

To me "you're as loyal as a dog" also seems insulting lol. It would sound to me like they're calling me a blindly obedient. I'm not sure if it's personal or cultural in this case, but, for the record, most of my family agreed.

Well, maybe not that one precisely. I was just trying to keep with the dog theme and made something up, but there are more common expressions. “As sly as a fox,” “as wise as an owl” (and yes, I know they're actually really dumb, but it’s an old expression), that sort of thing. The point is that English speakers tend to note the trait being complimented, rather than just referring to someone as being that particular animal.

The reason I specifically used "pet" rather than "animal" in my comment was because in my country I've only heard of people being compared to animals in a derogatory way (pig, chicken etc.), as you and others mentioned. If I heard someone talking about dog or cat energy I'd think they've probably been influenced by US (or Japanese) media.

I'd say it's at least been nothing strange over here, I was compared to a fox quite often as a child, and this a long time before we ever got much US or Japanese media here.

I honestly have never [interacted with] a human person and gone "Wow, she's just like a cat." Or "He reminds me of a puppy!" But I see this all the time in manga. Maybe all these manga characters have more imagination than me...

Why does your own statement have editorial brackets?

Now that the secret is out she has no excuse to not wear her full gear when they hang out together. They will feel the full force of her awesomeness!

Do you want a harem route? Because that's how you get a harem route...

If we have at least a harem chapter leading to a jealous Aya claiming her territory then it will all be worth it

I honestly have never [interacted with] a human person and gone "Wow, she's just like a cat." Or "He reminds me of a puppy!" But I see this all the time in manga. Maybe all these manga characters have more imagination than me...

Why does your own statement have editorial brackets?

They have a hired editor for their comments. A good idea in the internet in general.

This manga always delivers. I was kinda not into the school trip arc and had things to do in real life so it was hard to get back into reading it. But now everything is more or less settled comfortably. I'm caught up!

And she even has new friends. :) XD Even more wholesome. Hahahahaha,

I honestly have never [interacted with] a human person and gone "Wow, she's just like a cat." Or "He reminds me of a puppy!" But I see this all the time in manga. Maybe all these manga characters have more imagination than me...

Why does your own statement have editorial brackets?

Because it wasn't my own statement. I modified what a previous commenter said.

Sorry for the wall of text.
To not digress too much - Arita's remark is good as it's one more person who wouldn't mind Mitsuki opening up about her interests (and the author won't get comments pointing out that he's in the know).

--- animal talk below ---

I think it's a bit much to claim that it happens "worldwide", unless you've actually studied on this?

It was a generalization that in contrast to Japan other places may not emphasize animal-ness to the point shown in the previous paragraph, but comparisons to animals can still be found in other forms (not necessarily in the moe-kawaii flavor, not necessarily the types I listed equally represented - though I do think they're basic enough to have at least token presence everywhere - and not necessarily in the same manner for each country/region).

The first paragraph gives examples how loaded with meaning/traits certain animals are in Japan (it's then logical they'd find their way into everyday interactions as shorthands for said traits, and from there some may take them a bit more literally; trying to imagine a specific breed as a subcategory of unique traits might be out there too as an expansion of the original concept, but it may also be imported dog breed stereotypes mixed in). The second paragraph, which you could view as supplementary and not as a direct continuation of the answer, is what kinds of animal-calling you can find elsewhere instead (with specific examples being all idiomatic). I suspect we may not be in disagreement here?

And to clarify just in case - I also didn't mean getting accompanying vivid imagery of animals when looking at people (it's a visual trope specific to the medium, for chances of it happening to real people we'd have to ask neuroscience - or maybe psychology).

It's not a real expertise, just me putting together stuff starting with cultures I'm familiar with, what I've read on adjacent topics in the past (I have an interest in linguistics, if it amounts to anything) and checking for animal-related language in about two dozen languages from different parts of the world. If you live in a place where animals exist, and your language allows for similes/epithets, then it's inevitable somebody would combine the two together at some point, whatever the purpose of that may be. If there's a dominant culture or religion present that has a say on specific or even on all animals (praising or vilifying them, seeing them as equal to or strictly lower than humans, etc.), then that'd affect their use for that purpose accordingly.

I've encountered some studies on specific topics like why a branch of insults would be animal-related (it, possibly obviously, often boils down to the intent to dehumanize the recipient), but I don't recall anything thoroughly global in its scope. Nevertheless, I believe there should be some language evolution research out there on the use of comparisons to things our ancestors were familiar with in communication, and a different study on the prevalence of animals in symbolism, that would argue for those two being universal.

The reason I specifically used "pet" rather than "animal" in my comment was because in my country I've only heard of people being compared to animals in a derogatory way (pig, chicken etc.), as you and others mentioned. If I heard someone talking about dog or cat energy I'd think they've probably been influenced by US (or Japanese) media.

I did miss this implication, sorry for that.

I wasn't considering such a distinction because while some animals may be commonly taken as pets, they aren't universally pettable (just for dogs you have some breeds that are known to be cute or friendly, some that an average person considers scary/intimidating/more dangerous, wild or stray dogs that many would be wary of, some cultures that don't think of dogs fondly, in several languages a whelp and a puppy are a single word that also shares the former's meaning of an insolent child, "pet material" range differs from person to person, and so on), animals that aren't domesticated or suited for being pets, and the discussion started with why it's common to liken people to animals in manga (with dogs/puppies and cats being given as examples, and they're the most common, but comparisons to other animals happen too and you can also find ones that aren't flattering or cute among them, like somebody being seen as a barking/growling guard dog or students thinking a well-built teacher resembles a gorilla).

To me "you're as loyal as a dog" also seems insulting lol. It would sound to me like they're calling me a blindly obedient. I'm not sure if it's personal or cultural in this case, but, for the record, most of my family agreed.

It'd be "(as) faithful as a dog", I think, but I'm unsure if it's an independently-evolved English phrase or an import from one of the other languages that share it.
Loyalty/faithfulness (to a person, a cause, or a belief) in the sense of being particularly devoted and reliable and trustworthy, which is viewed as positive because nobody wants a backstabbing friend/relative/partner/underling that can't counted on. It could be used for a person loyal to something you perceive as wrong (where you're not calling them stupid for not noticing they're in the wrong, but acknowledge a virtue they profess), and for the negative type of loyalty you'd use "blindly loyal" or "blind faith". I haven't myself encountered it being said directly to the person it's meant to describe (I'd expect it to be about somebody being talked about but not talked to, e.g. "oh, there's no way Max would cheat on Alex with that sexy/hunky co-worker he's with on a week-long business trip, he's as faithful as a dog").

Specific expressions like this one are idiomatic and take time to form (their spread relies on cultural exchange with neighboring lands, culture pushing in case of territories of former empires and big, old religions, and groups of migrating people used to their own idioms spreading them as calques), so they may not work as well when directly translated or taken out of their native habitat (but you can probably find the concepts behind them expressed differently in your language/culture - in this case it could be reliability based on another critter, a sturdy object, a historic/mythological/religious figure famous for it, or maybe a predictable natural phenomenon).
Sorry if you already know it and the explanation was unnecessary.

this is funny considering just a few days ago my friends were discussing what kind of animals we were and I didn't understand any of it

Is she about to make a love song?! AAAAAAAAAAH

Very nice. ^_^

When's the wedding? (The customers are all invited.)

Pleaaase make ouuuut XD jk