The assignment is to ask native speakers about the difference between "Seeing is believing" and "To see is to believe" and write an essay that make Japanese high school students undersatnd it.

If you are a native speaker, would you give me your opinion? I'd like to continue my field work on this topic and make this essay a great deal better.


Learn from Proverbs

How many English proverbs do you know? I'm sure you've come across "Seeing is believing" in your grammar book. It is often used as an example sentence for the use of the gerund and explained that it's interchangeable with "To see is to believe." The meaning is that you will only believe that something happens or exists when you actually see it. We in Japan have a similar one, "百聞は一見に如かず."

However, through asking native speakers about the difference between them, I found out a subtle difference. One of them just responded, "Same!" On the other hand, the others, who have a keen sense of language, at first looked puzzled about how to answer my question. I understand them. As for native speakers, the difference is natural, so they had never thought deeply about it until I asked them about it. Have you ever given deep thought to the difference in use between the Japanese particles は and が as in the sentences 私はしました and 私がしました? You can say 私がしたら，貴方も同じようにしてください, but you cannot say 私はしたら，貴方も同じようにしてください. The latter is ungrammatical while the former is good Japanese. Can you explain these differences so clearly that non-Japanese learners of Japanese can understand them?

Can you guess the difference? According to their explanations, "Seeing is believing" is casual and they use it as an idiom without thinking deeply. On the contrary, "To see is to believe" is formal. In addition, it's intensive and indicates that there is a logical connection between this expression and what follows it. In other words, when they'd like to emphasize the meaning, they use the latter. So, if your friends or parents doubt the truth of your story, you should convince them to believe it with the latter; "'To see is to believe.' Go and see with me!"

It is said interchangeable sentences could have subtle differences in meaning. Even though it may seem to you that this kind of knowledge is unnecessary for you to pass Japanese university entrance exams, you should care about it. It's indispensable to polish your practical English. Another English proverb goes, "Slow but sure wins the race."