木村「この間出版されたA教授の本、実は書いたのは助手のBさんだそうですね」
佐藤「ええ、もうそのことは公然の秘密ですよ」
Koozen no Himitsu
Kimura: Kono aida shuppan sareta A kyooju no hon, jitsu wa kaita no wa joshu no B san da soo desu ne.
Sato: Ee, moo sono koto wa koozen no himitsu desu yo.
Kimura: You know the book Professor A recently published? It turns out that his assistant, B wrote it.
Sato: But everyone knows all that; it's an open secret.
Whereas a "secret" is something one doesn't want a lot of people to know about, an "open secret" (koozen no himitsu) is a "secret" which has, for better or worse, become common (or almost common) knowledge i.e., it may be the case that Professor A above thinks the facts surrounding his book are still being kept a secret.
Isn't it interesting and true that the more someone tries to keep a secret from us the more we want that bit of information to be ours as well? And that if we really want to turn something into gossip (kozen no himitsu), we are certain of success if we bracket the information with, "Kore wa himitsu desu yo. Zettai ni dare ni mo iwanai de kudasai" ("This is a secret. Please make sure you don't tell another soul").
Referring to this week's conversation, who do you think started the rumor? Was it Assistant B, a sympathetic friend of B's, or maybe someone who doesn't like Professor A? In any case, the news got passed along to me, and I've never even met or heard of either! Sore wa moo koozen no himitsu ni natte shimatta (The news finally ended up becoming an open secret). Unfortunately, since this sort of practice (employing a ghost writer) is actually quite common, it is likely that no one will even check with Professor A to find out whether the rumor is true or not. If it turns out he did write the book himself, the rumor will have severely damaged his reputation. What if Professor A is actually aware of the rumor? Then what? Have you ever been in a similar situation?
At the western edge of Yamaguchi Prefecture lies the American military base at Iwakuni and though I've yet to go there myself, before coming to Yamaguchi I'd been told that "that nuclear weapons are located there is a matter of common knowledge" (kichi no naka ni kaku ga aru no wa koozen no himitsu da). I've asked many people about the base since coming to Yamaguchi and everyone agrees that there is an open secret about there being nuclear weapons there. The Japanese government, of course, is keeping quiet about the matter. "Koozen no himitsu? Sonna hanashi kiita koto arimasen ne" ("An open secret? Common knowledge?
I'm afraid we've never been informed about such matters").
I think there are various koozen no himitsu around you. Whenyou move into a new circle of people, for example, there is always someone who proudly fills you
in on all the group's well-known "secrets." If it's a new club someone is apt to say, "The thing about this club is that the president is about to change. Since a guy who can really take charge of things will come back from America next month, the present president will only be able to throw his weight around until then." Or if it's a new company, "You'd be wise to steer clear of Mr. 0. He recently lost a lot of money on the stock market and had to sell his house. He'll soon be after you to lend him some money if you're not careful." "Doko no sekai nimo koozen no himitsu to iu mono ga aru'n desu ne" ("It seems open secrets exist no matter what part of society you're in").