Remember the Kanji! A Review of the Heisig Method

Does the sheer number of kanji characters frighten and annoy you? Are you someone who has a chronic fear of pictographs? James Heisig appeared to also have these traits, but he loved Japanese all the same. He created a unique way to study kanji that alleviates these concerns.

This article covers his series of books––the Remembering the Kanji series––and delves into what makes them loved (and hated). At the end, we also explore a few alternatives.

What is Remembering the Kanji?

The Remembering the Kanji (RTK) books were designed to get learners of Japanese acquainted with the most commonly used kanji in the language in a very ordered way. There are three books in the series:

If you go through all three books, you should theoretically know how to read 3,000 kanji characters (plus a bunch of example words).

Book 1

RTK 1 is all about meanings. It breaks up the 2,200 general-use kanji into lessons, each of which contains a fair-sized chunk of characters. Lessons are further grouped into parts:

Part 1, Stories, sets the stage for Heisig's memory technique. He introduces the concept of primitive elements (which some people call radicals) and explains how they can be used as building blocks for other, more complex characters. Each kanji is given one distinct English meaning (although characters that act as common primitives will also receive a separate meaning when used as a primitive). The English meaning is connected to the shape or composition of the character itself via a story, hence the name of this part: Stories.

As an example of how Heisig teaches the kanji 肌 (labelled texture in RTK 1), the following example is presented:

This story mnemonic combines what RTK labels as 'wind' (几) with 'part of the body' (月) to get the target character: 肌.

In Part 1, Heisig created the memory aids for the reader. But Part 2, Plots, attempts to wean the reader off of this crutch and instead tries to get the reader to come up with their own stories.

In Part 3, Elements, the majority of the story-building work is on the reader. For instance, the character 意 (labelled as idea in RTK) is only described as:

Book 2

RTK 2 only focuses on character pronunciations. You will revisit all 2,200 general-use kanji that were presented in book 1, but this time in a very different order.

There are two overarching parts: Part 1 focuses on the Chinese readings (on'yomi) and Part 2 focuses on the native Japanese readings (kun'yomi). Part 1 takes up the vast majority of the book (pages 11–300) while Part 2 only takes up about 18 pages. Part 1 is further broken up into ten different sections where characters are grouped by related pronunciations or meanings.

The Pure Groups section of Part 1 is very useful in that it groups characters with the same components that all have the same on'yomi pronunciations. The on'yomi as well as one example word is provided for each kanji. For instance (taken from pg. 21 of the 4th edition):

All of the above kanji share 甫 which tells the reader that kanji that use this component can be pronounced as ho.

Book 3

RTK 3 introduces about 800 new kanji in an attempt to raise the total number of learned kanji to 3,000 characters. The mnemonics are the same and the presentation is fairly straightforward. The book is divided into two major parts: Writing and Reading. 800 characters and their English meanings are presented in the Writing section first. Then, those same 800 characters are revisited again in the Reading section, this time reintroduced with their pronunciations and sample words. It is, essentially, RTK 1 and RTK 2 combined into a single book but with an entirely different set of characters.

The kanji introduced in RTK 3 are used primarily in names, for technical terms, and even as variations of more commonly-used kanji. Having these 800 under your belt would help you break into Japanese literature or newspapers. Otherwise, if you do not plan on doing a lot of reading in Japanese, RTK 3 may be skipped.

Great Points

Over the years, many have raved about the success of the RTK program. We present some of the more beneficial points here.

A Kanji Roadmap

One of the greatest advantages of learning kanji through RTK is the fact that it provides a clear roadmap for kanji mastery. This solves one of the biggest challenges of kanji-learning: where do I start (and stop)? The sheer number of kanji is already daunting enough; where to begin is a nightmare of a challenge.

RTK solves this puzzle by using a building-block approach: simpler kanji are learned first and then are used to build more complex characters. And the best part is: all of the organizational work is done for you! By the time you get to 鬱 (labelled gloom), you will have already seen every component part within it: 冖, 匕, 彡, 木, 缶, メ, ⼂, and ⼐.

Great Beginning for Mnemonics Training

The second great advantage of the RTK series is the explanations and mnemonic training. Book 1 really holds the reader's hand for a while, slowly demonstrating how learning kanji can be like story-telling. After a while, it gradually weans you off, working those imagination muscles. For many, RTK is their first experience in kanji mnemonics. It is seemingly the first approach of its kind and no doubt inspired more modern kanji-learning systems like WaniKani and Tanukanji.

Useful Additional Characters

The third book is particularly beneficial in that it presents commonly-seen characters not found in the general-use kanji list. For serious learners of Japanese, reading is a foundational skill that actually helps extend one's knowledge of the language. To do this effectively, you have to be literate, which requires kanji proficiency. Going through the RTK 3 book can help you get there, expanding an already-plentiful kanji repertoire.

Not-So-Great Points

No kanji-learning approach is perfect. Certainly, RTK has its faults. A few common ones are presented here.

Too Rigid

While some may appreciate a very structured, hand-held approach to learning kanji, it's not for everyone. There are, of course, learners out there who can plow through dozens of kanji, memorizing like there's no tomorrow! And for those particular learners, the number of kanji per lesson and even order in which the kanji are taught may not meet their particular standards.

Of course, many such learners have gotten around this issue by creating their own digital flashcard sets based on the RTK curriculum. This way, the exact number of characters and speed at which they are presented can be adjusted fairly easily.

Why Separate?

Another common gripe with the RTK approach is the separation of meaning from pronunciation. Some learners prefer to see both at the same time, going against Heisig's recommendation to give the brain some rest by only focusing on one aspect of kanji at a time. The primary objection here is that splitting up the meanings and pronunciations into two different books forces the learner to take twice as much time to go through the whole program. Theoretically, learning both the meaning and pronunciation at the same time can cut that time in half. (You also save on money by only having to buy one book instead of two!)

Few Example Words

A single kanji may be used in numerous commonly-used words. RTK 2, however, normally only provides one kanji word as an example of usage. For those used to learning vocabulary via kanji, this can be a large hindrance. Learners of that type may have to supplement RTK's examples with their own using a dictionary.

Who's it For?

Considering the very systematic, hand-holdy nature of the book, it would seem that the RTK series––mainly books 1 and 2––are geared more towards beginner-to-intermediate learners of Japanese. RTK 3 is definitely more applicable to advanced learners.

If you are looking for study material for the JLPT, the RTK books may not be for you. This is because the order of kanji presented in the books may not align well with JLPT levels. For instance, 晶 (shou, labelled as "sparkle" in RTK) is number 22 in RTK 1 but may be found in JLPT N1 or N2 kanji lists. This mismatch makes RTK more suitable for casual learners who are not focused on JLPT study.

Of course, if you are on your own kanji journey and need inspiration for certain characters or components, RTK may be more useful. While you certainly do not have to go through the entire system, you can still draw from its mnemonics, meanings, and selected examples if needed. In that regard, RTK becomes a kind of kanji resource rather than a textbook.

Alternatives

RTK was truly one of the first major efforts to systematize kanji-learning. These days, however, there are a number of similar tools and systems out there for learners to take advantage of. A few popular ones are listed below:

And while others may exist, these are the most well-known and cool resources we found similar to RTK. Check 'em out!

Recap

The Remembering the Kanji series is a very structured way to learn the most common kanji. It is separated into three volumes with books 1 and 2 covering the 2,200 general-use characters. Book 3 extends this number to 3,000 by adding characters not in the general-use list that are also commonly seen in writing.

And while the RTK books are great, they are also very hand-holdy, which may not be the best learning method for everyone. Many alternatives exist, but we here at Migaku are a little biased. So if you want to learn kanji using proven methods like SRS, try out Migaku!

And always remember:

Learning kanji can be a pain. Thankfully, you have resources like Mr. Heisig's RTK series to make things a little more organized and manageable. Happy kanji learning!