or (; , "wall", and , "bang") refers to the action of slapping a wall fiercely, which produces a loud sound, "don". One use of this phrase is to describe the action of slapping a

wall A wall is a structure and a surface that defines an area; carries a load; provides security, shelter, or soundproofing; or serves a decorative purpose. There are various types of walls, including border barriers between countries, brick wal ...

as a

protest A protest (also called a demonstration, remonstration, or remonstrance) is a public act of objection, disapproval or dissent against political advantage. Protests can be thought of as acts of cooperation in which numerous people cooperate ...

in collective housing, such as

condominium A condominium (or condo for short) is an ownership regime in which a building (or group of buildings) is divided into multiple units that are either each separately owned, or owned in common with exclusive rights of occupation by individual own ...

s, when the neighboring unit makes too much noise. Another use often appears in

shōjo manga is an editorial category of Manga, Japanese comics targeting an audience of adolescent girls and young adult women. It is, along with Shōnen manga, manga (targeting adolescent boys), Seinen manga, manga (targeting young adult and adult men ...

anime is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...

when one character forces another against the wall with one hand or leans against the wall, making the "don" sound. This has become a popular tool to invoke the "clever move of confession" trope and for creating an intimate atmosphere.

Origins

The term first appeared in 2008 when

voice actor Voice acting is the art of Acting, performing a character or providing information to an audience with one's voice. Performers are often called voice actors/actresses in addition to other names. Examples of voice work include animation, animated, ...

Ryōko Shintani is a Japanese voice actress and singer from Kanazawa, Ishikawa.Doi, Hitoshi.Shintani Ryouko. ''Seiyuu Database''. July 30, 2010Archivedby WebCite July 31, 2010.Nakagami, Yoshikattsu; Yoshida, Moichi; Onitsuka, Kanako; Nishimoto, Keiko. "Voice Actr ...

described it as "lovely situation". It has been popularized in the

L DK ''L DK'', stylized as ''L♥DK'', is a shōjo manga by Ayu Watanabe, serialized in the Japanese manga magazine '' Bessatsu Friend'' since 2009; it has been adapted into a live-action film that was released in 2014. The story tells about the ...

'' by author Ayu Watanabe; and in April 2014, the manga was adapted into a live-action film. Afterwards, the term started to become familiar to the public and has appeared in multiple shojo manga stories.

Usage

typically appears in Shōjo''

manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...

when a man corners the woman against the wall; at the same time, one or both of his hands slaps the wall on either side of the woman and the sound of "don" is produced. In Japan, the walls of many accommodation buildings are thin and not insulated against sound. As such, simple actions like closing a door or turning on the television can easily be heard by neighbors. When this noise becomes too loud to bear, Japanese people tend to bang their connecting walls in protest. The practice of ''kabedon'' was borrowed into Chinese with the pronunciation ''bidong'' (, ''bìdōng'') through television dramas like ''

My Sunshine ''My Sunshine'' () is a 2015 Chinese television series based on the novel ''Silent Separation'' written by Gu Man. It stars Wallace Chung and Tiffany Tang. The series premiered simultaneously on Dragon TV, Jiangsu TV, and iQiyi on 10 January 201 ...

''. In Hong Kong, the actor

Gregory Wong Gregory Wong Chung-yiu (; born 2 October 1978) is a Hong Kong actor. His notable roles include ''Lan Kwai Fong'' (2011), '' The Election'' (2014), and '' The Menu'' (2015). On 29 April 2015, Wong renewed his contract with China 3D Digital Enter ...

performed the ''bidong'' in a commercial for

Listerine Listerine (, ) is an American brand of antiseptic mouthwash that is promoted with the slogan "Kills germs that cause bad breath". Named after Joseph Lister, who pioneered antiseptic surgery at the Glasgow Royal Infirmary in United Kingdom, L ...

mouthwash.

References

{{DISPLAYTITLE: ''Kabedon'' 2008 neologisms Anime and manga terminology Japanese words and phrases

Sound symbolism In linguistics, sound symbolism is the perceptual similarity between speech sounds and concept meanings. It is a form of linguistic iconicity. For example, the English word ''ding'' may sound similar to the actual sound of a bell. Linguistic ...

Society of Japan

Origins

Usage

See also

References