How do I have to understand 参加させてほしい?


会社で働いています。ビジネスマナーのセミナーの案内をもらいました。仕事に必要なので、 **参加させてほしい** と課長におねがいします。

This excerpt is from my textbook. I don't understand why there is causative in
the bold part. "...that you wish to be let taken part..." is how I would
understand it literally. This sounds so complicated that I don't know wether I
understood it correctly. I could let it pass as a humble formulation, but
since it feels so circuitous, I wanted to ask for confirmation/correction here
^^




Here 参加させてほしい literally means "I want 課長 to let me participate". To break
down:

  * 参加する: (intransitive verb) to participate
  * 参加させる: ([causative form](http://www.guidetojapanese.org/learn/grammar/causepass) of 参加する) to make/let someone to participate
  * 参加させて: the te-form of 参加させる
  * te-form + 欲しい: [I want someone to ～](http://japanesetest4you.com/flashcard/learn-japanese-grammar-41/)
  * 参加させて欲しい: I want someone (=課長) to let someone (=me) to participate

Another similar and useful set phrase is ～(さ)せてください, which means "Let me ～",
"Allow me to ～".

>   * 考えさせてください。 Let me think about it.
>   * 確認させてください。 Let me confirm.
>




Here 参加させてほしい literally means "I want 課長 to let me participate". To break
down:

  * 参加する: (intransitive verb) to participate
  * 参加させる: ([causative form](http://www.guidetojapanese.org/learn/grammar/causepass) of 参加する) to make/let someone to participate
  * 参加させて: the te-form of 参加させる
  * te-form + 欲しい: [I want someone to ～](http://japanesetest4you.com/flashcard/learn-japanese-grammar-41/)
  * 参加させて欲しい: I want someone (=課長) to let someone (=me) to participate

Another similar and useful set phrase is ～(さ)せてください, which means "Let me ～",
"Allow me to ～".

>   * 考えさせてください。 Let me think about it.
>   * 確認させてください。 Let me confirm.
>

