First of all, I apologize if this topic has already been covered in another thread or lesson. (If so, I'd appreciated being pointed in the right direction.)
I've always been baffled at the apparent lack of a polite word for "you" in Korean. I've been told time and again just to avoid any word for "you" and to use the honorific -shi- infix in verbs instead. But sometimes there are cases where I feel I have to say something for "you". Let me give a couple examples:
The other day, I rode the elevator down with a neighbor of mine who is about the same age (mid-thirties) or younger. She said something along the lines of 일찍 출근하시네요. I wanted to say "You too?" but I wasn't sure how to say it! In English we'd say "You start work early too?" with emphasis on "you". So how do I put emphasis on "you" in Korean?? Can I say 아가씨도요? But I've heard women don't like to be called 아가씨.
And how do I say "Is this yours?" I have a book of expressions for Koreans learning English. The phrase "Excuse me, but isn't the paper bag on the rack yours?" is translated "실례지만, 선반에 있는 종이봉투는 당신 것이 아닙니까?" Of course, Koreans would never say 당신 to a stranger. So what can I say in this case instead? For a man? Woman? Older person?
