哀れ

• 読み: あわれ
• ローマ字: aware
• 漢字の分解: 哀 (ai/awa) — grief, sorrow, pity
• 発音: /a.wa.ɾe/

意味

Pity; pathos; wretchedness. A feeling of compassion or sorrow for something pitiable.

A noun and na-adjective expressing deep compassion mixed with sorrow. Central to Japanese aesthetics through the concept of もののあわれ (the pathos of things), a sensitivity to the transience and beauty of the world. Can describe both the emotion felt and the pitiable state of someone. Often used as 哀れな (pitiful, wretched).

例文

1. 捨てられた犬を見て哀れに思った。
2. 哀れな姿を見ていられなかった。
3. 彼の話を聞いて哀れを感じた。

使い方ガイド

場面: literature, emotions, aesthetics

トーン: melancholic

起源と歴史

From Old Japanese あはれ, an exclamation of deep emotion. The concept of もののあはれ was central to Heian literature and was formalised by Motoori Norinaga in the 18th century as a core Japanese aesthetic.

文化的背景

時代: Ancient

世代: All ages

社会的背景: Universal