Saturday, January 27, 2018

Did Kanna Really Say Cuckold in Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon?

NSFW : this article may contain words or images you'd rather not have your boss see.
In Kobayashi-san Chi no Maidragon there was scene where Kanna literally says netorare (written as NTR in the manga). Some subtitles have turned their eyes away, putting something completely unrelated in place, others left it untranslated, while some translated the phrase as "cuckold."

Kanna saying "cuckold" or "netorare" in the manga and anime Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon

Now, the watchers who were paying attention probably found this translation a bit odd. After all, everything indicates Kanna showed up because she thought Kobayashi took Tohru away from her. So, if anything, Kanna is in the role of "cuckold" here, not Kobayashi. Why'd she call Kobayashi a "cuckold" when Kobayashi got the girl (Tohru)?

To understand this, let's go back to the origin of netorare: it comes from the verb netoru 寝取る. If you're a guy, and there's this other guy, and you take his girl, you can say you netoru'd the girl (the girl, not the guy). In passive voice, the girl is netorareru'd by you. And the act of netorareru'ing is the noun netorare.

So when Kanna says netorare, she isn't calling Kobayashi a "cuckold," if anything, Kanna is calling Kobayashi a "homewrecker," a woman who sleeps with another woman's husband, consequently wrecking their marriage.

More literally, Tohru would be saying "homewrecking," but only if the word netori was used. Since it was netorare, the passive version of netori, what she was saying was more like  "cheating."

Of course, this doesn't make a whole lot of sense in English, but basically she was just implying the act took place, the same way you'd scream "it's robbery!" or "it's a murder!" instead of saying "it's a robber!" or "it's a murderer!"

To have a better idea, a comparison of phrases:
  • Tooru ga Kobayashi ni yuukai sareta トールが小林に誘拐された
    Tohru was kidnapped by Kobayashi.
  • Tooru ga Kobayashi ni netorareta トールが小林に寝取られた
    Tohru was "taken" by Kobayashi.
    (Tohru "cheated with"Kobayashi.)
  • Tooru no yuukai トールの誘拐
    Tohru's kidnapping. The kidnapping of Tohru.
  • Tooru no netorare トールの寝取られ
    Tohru's "taking." The "taking" of Tohru.
    Tohru's "cheating." The "cheating" of Tohru.
About Some Intellectual Property

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