lesson 5 - Squid Game

Today we are going to practice storytelling.

Whether it’s an event, a dream, a lie, a joke or a movie, telling a story is something that we do every day in our communication.
We need to practice and we’re going to do it with jan Tepo and jan Itan. Together, we’re going to discuss a television series you’re bound to have heard of.

In this lesson, we will:

  1. make sure to understand what is important. (KUTE LI SONA)
  2. look at the tools of storytelling. (NASIN TOKI)
  3. look how to interact and give feedback. (TOKI E PILIN)
  4. practice reusing all this in our own sentences. (PALI SONA)

All answers (or suggested answers) are at the end of the page.

0 OPEN SONA

Before listening to the first excerpt, I suggest you imagine how you might begin a story… This is an important task because it is about setting the scene, creating the context that makes the story understandable. It’s also an opportunity to get your audience’s attention.

Try to translate the following catchphrases into Toki Pona:

  1. once upon a time…
  2. one day…
  3. A long time ago…
  4. The story takes place in a small village…
  5. The film is about a man who needs money.
  6. It’s the story of a family living in the North Pole…

Well, let’s take this opportunity to translate some movie titles into Toki Pona, shall we? Please, help me find better translations !

INLI TOKI PONA
Appocalypse Now pakala moli suli pi tenpo ni
Parasite jan sama jaki lili
The Godfather mama lawa pi kulupu ike
Taxi Driver jan pi tomo tawa esun
Planet of Apes mun pi soweli jan
A clockwork Orange insa powe pi kili jelo loje
2001: A space Odyssey tawa suli pi tenpo kama lon kon sewi suli
Gone with the Wind tawa lon kon tawa
Lord of the Ring jan lawa pi sike lupa kiwen
The Shining wawa nasa
Star Wars mun pi utala mute
Some Like It Hot lon wawa li pona tawa mi
Fight clubs utala kulupu
Alien monsuta pi mun ante
Back to the Future kama sin lon tenpo kama

Now, answer these questions without even thinking in English!

  1. pona la, sitelen tawa pi nanpa wan li seme tawa sina?
  2. ni li tan seme?
  3. ona li tan ma seme?
  4. ona li toki e seme?
  5. sitelen tawa ike pi mute mute tawa sina li seme ?

FIRST PART

Without further ado, let’s listen to today’s the first excerpt.

Kalama sin #4 80% speed 

        

        		

        

            

        

        		









NIMI
INLI





sitelen tawa
a movie or something alike




kala ko
sand fish –> squid




jan pi mani ala
someone who doesn’t have money





1 KUTE LI SONA
Listen and try to answer these questions:


    

  1. What is the name of the movie?
    2. 

  2. What is this movie mostly about?
    3. 

  3. What are the two kinds of people involved?
    4. 

  4. Which is the sentence that jan Tepo didn’t quite understand?
    5. 

  5. In this sentence, which word is the problem?
    6. 

  6. How do you understand it?
    7. 



2 TOKI E PILIN
Did you catch how jan Tepo asks: what does it mean? ?
And how does he say: Ok, I get it! ?


Easy right? Now, let’s go further: Try to translate these sentences for yourself. Then, put the suggested answers in the right order.


    

  1. I didn’t understand.
    2. 

  2. I didn’t understand everything.
    3. 

  3. I didn’t understand anything.
    4. 

  4. Can you repeat it?
    5. 

  5. Can you repeat the beginning?
    6. 

  6. Can you repeat from the beginning?
    7. 

  7. Can you say it in English, please?
    8. 

  8. Can you speak slowly?
    9. 

  9. It is very clear.
    10. 

  10. Sorry, I’m slow to understand!
    11. 



(-) mi pilin ike tan ni: sona mi li wile tenpo suli.
(-) mi sona ala.
(-) sina ken ala ken toki e ni lon toki Inli?
(-) mi sona ala e ale.
(-) sina ken ala ken toki e ni kepeken tenpo suli?
(-) toki sina la, mi sona pona e ale.
(-) sina ken ala ken toki e open pi toki ni lon tenpo sin?
(-) sina ken ala ken toki e ni lon tenpo sin?
(-) mi sona e ale ala.
(-) sina ken ala ken toki e ale lon tenpo sin?


SECOND PART
3 KUTE LI SONA




Kalama sin #4
80% speed






        

            

        

        		

        

            

        

        		









NIMI
INLI





kama jo
to obtain




nasin ante ken
an other possible way




jan pi mani ala
someone who doesn’t have money




… li lon
… exists (there is)




jan wan
one person




jan ante
the others




pana / weka
to give / to take away





Listen as many time as necessary and choose the most accurate abstract.


    

  1. People who don’t have money have only one way to get it. They have to play a sick game organized by rich and evil people.
    2. 

  2. People who don’t have money have several way to get it. One of them is to play a sick game organized by rich and evil people.
    3. 

  3. People who don’t have money have only one way to get it. They have to play an evil game against a group of rich people.
    4. 



4 NASIN TOKI




Interesting formulations :






jan li lon li jo ala e mani
There were people who were penniless.




tan wile ni la,…
because of this need,…




(…) ona li kepeken nasin ni tan ni:
He did it this way for the following reason:…




nasin pi mute lili li lon
There was no other solution




ona la, mani mute en wile ike li lon
Not only he had money but also addictions.





Let’s try to use them in another context:


    

  1. There were children who weren’t going to school.
    2. 

  2. Hunger drove him to eat his cat.
    3. 

  3. I decided not to go for the following reason:
    4. 

  4. I am sorry but I had no other choice.
    5. 

  5. I had not only free time but also a lot of money.
    6. 



THIRD PART
6 KUTE LI SONA
Here is what I suggest for this excerpt:


    

  1. familiarize yourself with the vocabulary. It is very simple and the definitions are to be taken in the context of the podcast.
    2. 

  2. Listen to the excerpt twice.
    3. 

  3. Do exercise #5 while listening again.
    4. 

  4. Translate in your language the first paragraphe. Then translate it back to toki pona.
    5. 

  5. Applause yourself. It’s well deserved.
    6. 



..






Kalama sin #4
80% speed






        

            

        

        		

        

            

        

        		









NIMI
INLI





pana
to give, to submit




jan lili
kids, children




kulupu ike
the mafia (or any group of bad people)




pakala lili
to make a small mistake




wawa
extreme, too much




tan seme?
Why?




wile mute
to have a great need of…




nasa
weird, strange, unusual





5 TOKI E PILIN
Several interactions are to be studied here. Try to find out what they correspond to.

jI: (…) nasin tawa ni la, ona li pana e musi tu tawa jan mute pi mani ala, e musi lili e musi suli tawa ona. musi suli ni pi kulupu ike li sama musi pi jan lili. taso jan pi musi ni li musi la, ona li pakala lili la, ona li kama moli a!!
jT: moli! a! (1)
jI: lon, a a! (2)
jT: ni li wawa. (3)
jI: ni li musi wawa tan ni: (4) sina pakala la, sina moli.
jT: pakala lili la sina moli ale. (5) ni li… ni li wawa mute li ike wawa. (6)
jI: lon, lon. ona li ike.
jT: ni la jan li wile musi ni tan seme? (7)
jI: a a, tan ni: ona li wile mute e mani. sina sona e ni. (8)
jT: wile mani mi li lili la mi wile ala moli tan musi… (9)
jI: lon. taso, ona li ken ala pali e ijo ante. ona o pali e ni. (10)
jT: a. nasin ante ala la ona li ken kama e mani anu seme? (11) ni li nasa.
jI: nasa mute.


Communication Strategies :


• Attempting to reformulate the problem : 
  
    5
  
• Marking a step in the reasoning : 
  
    8
  
• Showing surprise : 
  
    1
  
• Highlighting a paradox : 
  
    7
  
• Exposing the paradox : 
  
    4
  
• Unraveling the paradox : 
  
    10
  
• Transposition of the problem : 
  
    9
  
• Giving a strong opinion : 
  
    6
  
• Giving a provisional opinion pending further explanation : 
  
    3
  
• Rephrasing to indicate understanding : 
  
    11
  
• Giving a simple confirmation : 
  
    2
  




These strategies are particularly important in a conversation in toki pona. Since the language is, by nature, not very precise, it is necessary to chip away at small stepping stones to make sure that the understanding is good between the two speakers.




7 NASIN TOKI
How would you translate this ? -->  jan pi musi ni


    

  1. the participants of this game.
    2. 

  2. these players
    3. 





FOURTH PART
8 KUTE LI SONA
Here is what I suggest for this excerpt:


    

  1. Have a look at the vocabulary.
    2. 

  2. Listen to the excerpt once, full speed.
    3. 

  3. Do exercise #8 and #9.
    4. 

  4. Finally, try the #10.
    ..
    5. 







Kalama sin #4
80% speed






        

            

        

        		

        

            

        

        		









NIMI KULUPU
INLI





awen toki
go on speaking




jan kama ale
all the participants (who came)




lon tenpo musi
during the game




tan pi nimi ni
the origin (tan) of this word




lon tenpo mute
since a long time




ni li ante wan
there is one difference




kulupu e jan mute
to gather a lot of people




kepeken nasin ni
in this way




lon poka mi
with me




mi anpa la,
if I lose





Be careful, anpa has a double meaning according to its function in the sentence (verb or preposition). It can mean both to defeat and to be defeated. How about that?


Ex:


    

  1. mi anpa e jan utala. –> I defeated the warrior.
    2. 

  2. mi anpa la,  –> if I lose [literally : I am underneath]
    3. 



8 PALI SONA
Here are some sentences inspired by this excerpt, but the context has been slightly modified. Without looking at your notes, can you translate them?


    

  1. They gather all the students together.
    2. 

  2. All unsold books are here.
    3. 

  3. The origin of my headache is unknown.
    4. 

  4. Here is how I did it.
    5. 

  5. During the concert, I slept well.
    6. 

  6. Now I’m just going to keep on sleeping.
    7. 

  7. I’ve known her for a long time.
    8. 

  8. The game of the 7 differences.
    9. 



9 PALI SONA
Up, down, right, left, under, over, in front, in back, on the side… there is an infinite number of ways to express all this in toki pona.
Here are some of them:






lon
MA (location)
INLI





lon
sewi
up





noka
down / under





anpa
down / under





poka lawa
right / north





poka pilin
left





sewi
over





sinpin
front





monsi
back





poka
side





The preposition lon is used to indicate a place or a position. It is placed directly and without a particle at the end of a sentence (preferably but not necessarily).


    

  1. pipi suli li lon sewi mi.
    2. 

  2. ilo lawa pi sitelen tawa li lon noka supa.
    3. 

  3. jan nasa li lon anpa pi supa lape sina.
    4. 

  4. jan li sitelen lon toki Alapi tan poka lawa tawa poka pilin.
    5. 

  5. tenpo ni la jan nasa li lon sewi pi supa lape sina.
    6. 

  6. mi jo e ma kasi lon sinpin pi tomo mi.
    7. 

  7. tomo telo li lon monsi pi supa noka.
    8. 

  8. o kama lon poka mi.
    9. 



Now, can you guess what are these sentences about ?


10 ANTE TOKI PI TENPO SAMA
Listen again to the 4 excerpts in slow speed and **. Don’t be discouraged, it’s difficult for everyone. The important thing today is not to succeed but to give our brain a hard time!





Well, I think we’ve done enough for today. I hope you’ve learned a couple of things and that the exercises have been helpful. Now, you can continue to listen to this podcast’s episode and do your best to figure everything out!








ANSWERS



Keep in mind that these suggested answers are only as good as yours!


0 OPEN SONA
    

  1. tenpo pini wan la, …
    2. 

  2. tenpo suno wan la, …
    3. 

  3. tenpo suli pini la, …
    4. 

  4. toki ni li lon ma tomo lili lili…
    5. 

  5. sitelen tawa li toki e jan pi wile mani.
    6. 

  6. ni li toki pi kulupu mama lon ma lete…
    7. 



1 KUTE LI SONA
    

  1. “musi pi kala ko”
    2. 

  2. sitelen tawa ni li toki e mani.
    3. 

  3.  “jan pi mani ala en jan ante.”
    4. 

  4. jan ante li wile wawa e mani tan ona.
    5. 

  5.  nimi ni li “wawa”
    6. 

  6. jan ante li wile pana e mani tan jan pi mani ala kepeken utala.
    7. 



2 TOKI E PILIN
ni li toki e seme?
mi kama sona.


    

  1.  mi sona ala.
    2. 

  2.  mi sona e ale ala.
    3. 

  3.  mi sona ala e ale.
    4. 

  4.  sina ken ala ken toki e ni lon tenpo sin?
    5. 

  5.  sina ken ala ken toki e open pi toki ni lon tenpo sin?
    6. 

  6.  sina ken ala ken toki e ale lon tenpo sin?
    7. 

  7.  sina ken ala ken toki e ni lon toki Inli?
    8. 

  8.  sina ken ala ken toki e ni kepeken tenpo suli?
    9. 

  9.  toki sina la, mi sona pona e ale.
    10. 

  10.  mi pilin ike tan ni: sona mi li wile tenpo suli.
    11. 



3 KUTE LI SONA
    

  1. People who don’t have money have only one way to get it. They have to play a sick game organized by rich and evil people.
    2. 



4 NASIN TOKI
    

  1. jan lili li lon li ken ala tawa tomo sona.
    2. 

  2. tan wile moku la, ona li moku e soweli suwi ona.
    3. 

  3. mi anu e ni: mi tawa ala tan ni:
    4. 

  4. mi pakala. taso, nasin pi mute lili li lon.
    5. 

  5. mi la, tenpo pi pali ala en mani mute li lon.
    6. 



7 NASIN TOKI
Answer : 1
The pi split the subject in two parts : people and this game.
If I was to say these players, I would probably go with : jan musi ni


8 PALI SONA
    

  1. ona li kulupu e jan pi kama sona ale.
    2. 

  2. lipu pi esun ala lon tenpo pini li lon ni.
    3. 

  3. mi sona ala e tan pi pilin ike lon insa lawa mi.
    4. 

  4. mi pali e ona kepeken nasin ni.
    5. 

  5. lon tenpo pi kalama musi la, mi lape pona.
    6. 

  6. mi awen lape lon tenpo ni a.
    7. 

  7. mi sona e ona lon tenpo suli.
    8. 

  8. musi pi ante luka tu.
    9. 



9 PALI SONA
    

  1. There is a big bug above me.
    2. 

  2. The remote control is under the table.
    3. 

  3. There is a strange person under your bed.
    4. 

  4. Arabic is written from right to left.
    5. 

  5. Now the strange person is on your bed.
    6. 

  6. I have a garden in front of the house.
    7. 

  7. The toilet is behind the stairs.
    8. 

  8. Come on, walk with me!
    9.