Topic marking particles: -은 / 는
The main role of topic marking particles is letting the listener know what you are talking about or going to talk about. These particles are placed after a noun to indicate THAT noun is the topic.
Words ending in a final consonant + 은
Words ending with a vowel + 는
Ex: 이 책 = this book
이 책 + 은 = 이 책은
이 차 = this car
이 차 + 는 = 이 차는
가방 = bag
가방 + 은 = 가방은
저 = I
저 + 는 = 저는
If you just say "이 책" people won't know what it is about the book you are going to speak of. Whether it is the subject or the topic of the sentence, no one will know.
The topic sentence marked by -은 or -는 is usually (but not always) the same as the subject of the sentence.
저 = I
저 + 는 = 저는 = as for me/I (who is taking)
저는 학생이에요. = I am a student.
Here the word 저(I) is both the topic of the sentence (talking about "I"{me} here) and the subject of the sentence ( "I" is the subject and "am" is the verb).
In the following sentence the topic marking particle is used twice while only one word is the topic of the sentence and the other is the subject.
내일은 저는 일해요. = As for tomorrow I work.
내일 "tomorrow" is followed by -은 and is the topic not the subject of the verb 일하다 (to work) because it is not "tomorrow" that works, but "I" that work.
Subject marking particles: -이 / 가
The role of subject marking particles is relatively simple compared to the role of topic marking particles.
Words ending in a consonant + 이
Words ending in a vowel + 가
Ex: 이 책 = This book
이 책 + 이 = 이 책이
가방 = Bag
가방 + 이 = 가방이
학교 = School
학교 + 가 = 학교가
Fundamentally topic marking particles (-은/-는) express the topic of the sentence and subject marking particles (-이/가) express the subject of the sentence. However there's more.
In addition to marking topics -은/-는 has a nuance of "about" something "as for" something, or even "unlike something" or "different from other things".
Ex: 이거 (this) 사과 (apple) -예요 (to be / is)
이거 사과예요. = This is an apple.
You can add -은/는 to this sentence. The subject is 이거 which ends in a vowel so you can add -는.
이거는 사과예요.= (The other things are not apples but) THIS is an apple.
Imagine someone taking like this:
이거 커피예요.= This is coffee.
이거는 물이에요.= That one was coffee but THIS ONE, it is water.
이거는 오렌지스예요.= And this one is different again, it is orange juice.
이거는 뭐예요?= And for this, what is it?
From the examples we can see -은/는 has the role of emphasizing the topic of the sentence by giving it the nuance of, "that one is..., and/but THIS ONE is..."
It is unnecessary to use 은/는 in every sentence so try not to use it all the time unless you REALLY want to emphasis on the topic.
For example, the phrase, "The weather is nice today," could be said in various ways:
1) 오늘 날씨 좋네요. The weather is good today.
2) 오늘은 날씨 좋네요. The weather (has not been good lately but,) today (it) is good.
3) 오늘 날씨는 좋네요. Today (everything else is not good but at least) the weather is good.
In addition to make subjects -이/가 has the nuance of "nothing but" or "nothing other than" without emphasizing it too much when used in a complex sentence.
Ex: Someone asks you, WHAT is good? (emphasizing the "what") by saying "뭐가 좋아요?"
You can respond in several ways: 책 = book
이 책 좋아요. This book is good.
이 책은 좋아요. (The other books are not good and I don't care about the other books but at least) This book is good.
이 책이 좋아요. There is no other book here as good as this one.
~~~
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