[samsk]

Reading these scripts is where my efforts to speak Japanese died on Duolingo. I wanted to be able to talk and they force me to learn all the characters. But, nice writeup, I knew the writing systems, but never realized that each has its own function.

Btw. Does anybody knows some alternative to learn to speak/understand Japanese ?

[adilmoujahid]

You can learn basic conversation without reading, but it only gets you so far. Japanese has tons of similar-sounding words, and without kanji, it's hard to build a deep vocabulary or follow meaningful conversations. Reading reinforces understanding—and kanji actually makes it easier to remember words once you get used to it.

[mc3301]

I definitely think you can get pretty far building speaking and listening skills in Japanese without kanji.

However, learning hiragana is, I think, absolutely necessary. Why? They are the building blocks of how Japanese actually sounds.

I have met hundreds of non-Japanese people who have spent time living in Japan and trying to learn the language.

Many can barely read kanji, but are fine with everyday listening/speaking.

But those who refused to learn hiragana? Their pronunciation is terribly difficult to understand, and their listening skills suffer, too.

My takeaway: learn Hiragana first.