木村教授：1クラスに300人もいるんですよ。
加藤故城：これで本当の教育が出来るんでしょうか
木村教授：首をひねりたくなりますね。
Kubi wo Hineru
Kimura kyooju: Hito feurasu ni 300-nin mo iru'n desu yo.
Kato kyooju: Kore de hontoo no kyooiku ga dekiru'n deshoo ka.
Kimura kyooju: Kubi wo hineritakunarimasu ne.
Prof. Kimura: You know there are as many as 300 students in my class.
Prof. Kato: Do you think it's possible to educate people properly under such conditions?
Prof. Kimura: One does get to wanting to think hard and long about it.
* * *
In Japan's 95 national universities, the kyooyoobu (faculty of general studies) is responsible for teaching students in their first two years and classes of over 200 students are not unusual. It is both difficult to take attendance in these classes and unlikely that a student's name will be remembered unless they make a strong impression on the teacher. In this regard I think Professor Kato's remarks above are on target.
Kubi wo hineru refers to having doubts and/or feelings of disagreement or disapproval. Indeed, when we say something like "Ee, konna hazu de wa nakatta" ("What? It wasn't supposed to turn out this way")-we also often incline our head sideways (the literal meaning of kubi wo hineru), while beginning to think long and hard about the particular situation.
Because my university is a bit off the beaten track many students and teachers drive to the campus; a reasonable situation except that insufficient parking means one must get to the campus early to be assured a space. On rainy days, of course, the situation is at its worst. I arrived at 8:30 one day last week and, for the life of me, just couldn't find a space; I finally parked in a chusha kinshi zone. When I returned to the spot in the evening, as luck would have it, the car was gone. "But didn't I park it here?" I racked my brains (kubi wo hinetta) for an answer. Finally, after looking all over, I spotted the car far from its original spot. A large note on the windshield read, "Please do not park in the No Parking Zone." As you can imagine, I'm still puzzling over (watashi wa imada ni kubi wo hineritsuzuketeiru) who and how someone moved a car whose doors were locked!
Two more examples: "Naze ano hito ga erabareta'n deshoo. Minna kubi wo hinetteimasu yo" ("But why was that person chosen? You know everyone's racking their brains for an answer") and its opposite, i.e., when an expected winner is chosen: "It's only natural that they were chosen""Kubi wo hineru hito wa daremo inai desho" ( "No one is puzzling over the situation, right? "). These situations are, of course, commonplace in politics, business and
education.
I'm writing this column as I listen to a lecture and though I don't think it's particularly interesting, there are indeed times when everyone suddenly breaks out in laughter. So now I'm puzzling over what it is that makes this lecture interesting (kono kooen no doko ga omoshiroi no ka to kubi wo hinetteiru). In fact, of course, the lecture is interesting and I'd know that if I paid closer attention.