The Xenophobe's Guide to the Japanese E-Book

Sahoko Kaji

• Herausgeber: Xenophobe's Guides
• Kategorie: Geisteswissenschaft
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2010

Beschreibung

A guide to understanding the Japanese which goes beyond the etiquette to uncover the real nature of the people of the rising sun.

Das E-Book wird angeboten von und wurde mit folgenden Begriffen kategorisiert:

Leseprobe

Contents

Title Page

Nationalism & Identity

Character

Manners & Etiquette

Systems

Government

Attitudes & Values

Eating

Business Practice

Family Matters

Hygiene, Health & Looking Good

Custom & Tradition

Humour

Leisure & Pleasure

Language

About the Authors

Copyright

The Japanese call Japan ‘Nippon’ or ‘Nihon’, meaning ‘sun origin’. Japanese mythology says that they, and their country, are descended from a sun goddess which explains the origin of their name. Westerners call it Japan from the Chinese pronunciation of the characters ‘sun origin’.

Japan’s 7,000 islands add up to an area a little larger than Germany and the same size as the State of Montana. At 127 million, the population is 41% of that of the United States. But cram nearly half the population of the United States into 25% of Montana, and you have a more accurate picture of living in Japan.

Nationalism & Identity

The ins and outs of being Japanese

To the Japanese, the world is split into two kinds: ‘we Japanese’ and everyone else (or, vaguely, ‘Westerners’, for everywhere, even Hawaii, is west of Japan).

Five-sixths of Japan is uninhabitable because it is so mountainous that it is only suitable for pine trees, and there are no roads, houses, or factories. The remaining one-sixth, mostly on the coast, is uninhabitable because there is nothing but roads, houses and factories. This means the Japanese live on top of each other, so any idea of individuality, of not relying on another person, is well and truly expunged from the psyche.

“Individuality and selfishness are as welcome as a sumo wrestler barging the line at a buffet.”

The Japanese are gregarious by nature – individuality and selfishness are as welcome as a sumo wrestler barging the line at a buffet. They consider one of their strengths to be their homogeneity: sentences often begin with the phrase “We Japanese”, as though they all act identically and hold exactly the same views. The result is a strong sense of uchi, meaning ‘inside’, i.e., ‘us’ or ‘at home’, and soto meaning ‘outside’, i.e., ‘them’ or ‘abroad’.

To be taken seriously, for your well-being to receive proper attention, in other words to matter to the Japanese, you must be uchi. If you are not, you can expect little consideration: you are soto, and what you will get is benign neglect. You are invisible. To the Japanese, foreigners are soto most of the time.

“Once you are their acquaintance, preferably their customer, the red carpet rolls.”

Japan is uchi, everywhere else is soto, so the Japanese can behave differently overseas. There you can express an opinion, admit you don’t actually want to get married or study accountancy – so long as nobody at home hears about it. ‘Embarrassment on the road is left behind’ as the proverb conveniently goes. Many a European man is bemused to find that the sparky, fun-loving, independent Japanese girl he’s met on her travels turns into a meek yes-woman back at home.

To your uchi friends, you divulge your innermost secrets. With mere acquaintances you stick to talking about the weather. Under no circumstances should the two attitudes be confused. Thus the existence of a stranger in the lift or the corridor is never acknowledged. Doors slam in your face, elbows ram into your side, briefcases leave marks on your knees and nobody apologises. But once you are their acquaintance, preferably their customer, the red carpet rolls.

The Japanese find such sudden switching quite natural. The uchi/soto business is about cutting up the world into manageable proportions. You are brought up to care for each other; but obviously you can’t care for everyone, so uchi comes first, strangers last. You have to draw the line somewhere. And, for the Japanese, the coast of Japan is a convenient place to do it.

How they see others

To be Japanese, you must have a Japanese name and exclusively Japanese blood. Everyone else is a gaijin (‘outsider’) and can never be Japanese. If you are a ‘proper’ Western gaijin, the Japanese will be disappointed if you are not tall, blond and blue-eyed. These looks have big appeal, especially to the younger Japanese, many of whom wear contact lenses to make their eyes look blue, or dye their hair. Considered the ultimate in visual desirability, Western models, actors and rock stars are recruited by the media to advertise everything from cars to cough drops.

“To be Japanese, you must have a Japanese name and exclusively Japanese blood.”

To the majority of Japanese, foreigners are classified roughly as a) the dark-skinned, b) Koreans, and c) Americans. (Even the British are regarded as Americans. The Japanese love affair with America runs deep. Asked ‘What nationality would you like to be if you were to be born again?’, 30% of those polled answered ‘American’.)

Large numbers of Koreans live and work in Japan due to Korea being a former colony. The Japanese Constitution forbids any discrimination – but only against Japanese citizens, and as the Koreans are not allowed Japanese citizenship they are exempt. Discrimination is a touchy subject – and therefore avoided. The Japanese way of dealing with something they find unacceptable is by not talking about it: if it isn’t acknowledged, then it can be regarded as ceasing to exist.

“The Japanese way of dealing with something they find unacceptable is by not talking about it.”