Quote:
Originally Posted by epostl
Thanks masaegu for letting me know the question wasn't clear. I'll try to describe my image, and then the verbal double meaning I'm looking for.
Broadly, the piece deals with the clash of globalized vs indigenous culture. The image is of a part woman, part sea creature, in an angelic pose, being plucked up by a pair of chopsticks (presumably by a giant hand, out of frame). Behind her and around her are patterns and markings from coastal African tribes, containing references to tribal maritime culture and history.
The word or phrase I'm looking for here would be incorporated as a very commercial-looking title, as if advertising a product (i.e. "Delicacy"). Its function will be to connect the ideas of food / flavor / taste / consumption with the notion of something rare, fragile, and exhaustible.
So I guess my question breaks into two parts, the first being: is there a Japanese word for "delicacy" or "delicate" that carries the same double meaning as the English word?-- that is, a word or phrase that can be used to describe both a choice food, and a condition of fragility or scarcity / costliness.
Secondarily, if no such equivalent exists, perhaps there is a phrase or word that speaks more generally to the relationship between fragility / exhaustibility, and desirability / flavor?
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Thanks for the detailed explanation.
To the best of my knowledge (and I am a native Japanese-speaker), a Japanese word that could be used like "delicate/delicacy" in English for your particular purpose would not exist. If one existed, I can assure you that it would be a word that over 99% of us would not know existed.
The best alternative word that I could think of would be
繊細, which is pronounced "sensai". This word means "delicate", "delicacy", "slender", "slenderness", etc. and its implication borders on "fragile". And it is used to describe the rather light taste of an eel as you said.
Japanese tend to like things that are 繊細 in general.