野田：「あの奥さん、のべつ幕なしに文句を言うのね」
佐々木：「ご主人 本当に可哀そうね」
Nobetsu-makunashi
Noda: Ano okusan nobetsu-makunashi ni monku wo iu no ne.
Sasaki: Goshujin hontoo ni kawai soo ne.
Noda: That woman certainly complains all the time.
Sasaki: It must be hard on her husband.
* * *
As our mountain railway car climbed up toward the Jungfraujoch Pass, all eyes were drawn to the windows and the Swiss Alps rising up outside with their seemingly permanent coverings of snow. The sight - it was just like in all those calendars and posters-had everyone excited and busilyx taking pictures. A middle-aged American couple across the aisle from us, however, were different. No matter what the husband said or did his overweight wife nobetsu-makunashi ni monku wo iu no da (always found something to complain about). Indeed, as she sat slouched down in her seat, it seemed that even the most beautiful of sights would be unable to please her.
Her husband, who appeared to be the sort that normally gets on well with others, looked resigned everytime she let out with one of her bribes. In such breathtaking surroundings, how could they act this way and why were they even together? What on earth happens back in their home in New York?
"Nobetsu" is used when something one wants to stop or be stopped continues on repeatedly. Ano hito wa nobetsu tabako wo sutteiru (That person smokes habitually). For emphasis, however, "makunashi" is usually added: Shujin wa nobetsu-makunashi ni tabako wo sutteiru node kare no kenko ga shinpai desu (Since my husband is a chain smoker I'm worried about his health). Maku refers to the curtain found on performing stages and "Moo maku ni shimashoo" ("It's time for the curtain") can be paraphrased as "Moo owari ni shimashoo" ("It's time to finish") If maku thus has the meanings of "intermission" and "the end," maku+nashi means "no intermissions" and "no end." Also note that the combination of nobetsu and makunashi is usually used in a negative sense as in this example about the Japanese train station: Hoomu de wa nobetsu-makunashi ni anaunsu ga aru (There is an endless flow of announcements on the platform). Indeed, since I'm normally unaware of just how many announcements there are in Japan, the quiet stations of Europe are a
real eye-opener. Without a bell or an announcement to let one know when the train is leaving the station, the train has been moving for some time before one even realizes it.
I think I understand better now why visitors to Japan often criticize all those incessant sounds (nobetsu-makunashi ni kikoete kuru oto) that drone on and on.