Japanese concepts of formality and politeness (with a close passage)


Here is a test passage I came across that made me suspect that my perceptions
of formality and politeness were wrong. In this passage, we are required to
select the options we think are correct ( **bolded** below). I am confused
about the last question.

**Why can the last blank be filled with 日本人にもかかわらず when おおやさん has been
speaking casually all along?**

* * *

> おおや：キャロルちゃん、今日も元気だね。
>
> キャロル：ありがとうございます。毎日楽しいですから。みんな小川さんやおおやさんの{a. せいです b. ためです **c. おかげです** }。
>
> おおや：ハハハ、おせじも上手になったね。で、どうだった、日本語のスピーチは。
>
> キャロル：う～ん、{ **a. けっこう** b. なかなか **c. かなり**
> }まちがえたんですが、無事終わりました。ああ、私の日本語はまだまだなので、{a. もっと練習すべきだと思います。 **b.
> もっと練習するべきだったと思います。** **c. もっと練習しないといけないと思います。** }
>
> おおや：すごいねえ。私は{a. 日本人のくせに **b. 日本人なのに** **c. 日本人にもかかわらず**
> }漢字が書けなくなってきちゃったよ。としをとっちゃったのかなあ。




> すごいねえ。私は{a. 日本人のくせに b. 日本人なのに c. 日本人にもかかわらず}漢字が書けなくなってきちゃったよ。としをとっちゃったのかなあ。

While 「日本人にもかかわらず」 may sound a little more formal than 「日本人なのに」, the former is
not particularly formal in and of itself. It can and will appear in contexts
that are slightly informal as this conversation.

「日本人なのに」 might well be considered the "best" answer by many, but it would be
nitpicking to call 「日本人にもかかわらず」 an incorrect answer.

「日本人のくせに」, however, sounds fairly self-degrading, so that it might not be as
fitting as the other two. If the landlord used it jokingly and purposely,
however, it could not be called an incorrect phrase choice. On a test like
this, though, I doubt that the examinee would be required to think of a rather
specific situation like what I just mentioned regarding the speaker's mood or
characteristics.




> すごいねえ。私は{a. 日本人のくせに b. 日本人なのに c. 日本人にもかかわらず}漢字が書けなくなってきちゃったよ。としをとっちゃったのかなあ。

While 「日本人にもかかわらず」 may sound a little more formal than 「日本人なのに」, the former is
not particularly formal in and of itself. It can and will appear in contexts
that are slightly informal as this conversation.

「日本人なのに」 might well be considered the "best" answer by many, but it would be
nitpicking to call 「日本人にもかかわらず」 an incorrect answer.

「日本人のくせに」, however, sounds fairly self-degrading, so that it might not be as
fitting as the other two. If the landlord used it jokingly and purposely,
however, it could not be called an incorrect phrase choice. On a test like
this, though, I doubt that the examinee would be required to think of a rather
specific situation like what I just mentioned regarding the speaker's mood or
characteristics.

