Anime and manga are well known concepts in the Western world, having been introduced through the television medium as well as the internet and books. One of the most influential of these is Pokemon, an anime built on the popular Pokemon manga series by Satoshi Tajirin, with colorful monsters that are captured and trained to battle with their special elemental powers or simply kept as pets. Throughout this anime, a feeling of team spirit is present and great emphasis is on cooperation and friendship. Traditional Japanese culture appears in between, with traditional and bittersweet scenes from festivals and scenic rice fields, praising Japan’s ancient culture. This strongly resembles the cooperation focus of the Japanese society where benefit …show more content…
In the Japanese society, the individual is seen as a member of a group. Harmony and “groupism” that is very prominent in Japan’s modern society (Haitani, 1990), the spirit of cooperation still remains. In the education system children are taught to fit into their group whereas children who don’t follow the flow of the group and seem unhappy are considered strange (Hendry, 2013, 47). This does not encourage individuality and it may results in bullying. In Hendry’s Understanding Japanese Society, she argues Japanese societies are based on cooperation and hierarchy. Cooperation makes individuals focus on maintaining harmony in the group, but it turns out that whole society does not emphasis individuality (Hendry 2013, 47-48). Changing the excessive groupism is difficult because it requires a lot of changes in the society. But with acceleration of globalization, the suppression of individuality might be changing with the emergence of modern popular culture in the …show more content…
There she discusses how rice went from being a foreign influence to being the symbol of the Japanese nation. For many of the Japanese today, the rice fields are fascinating since they represent a timeless part of Japan’s landscape, history and culture. Today, rice fields are seen as the ideal Japanese landscape, Japan’s ancestral land their culture derives from. In Yanagita’s search for the original pure Japanese culture, he studied the “common people” that were considered outcasts by the society (as cited in Ohnuki- Tierney 1993, 92-98). He was convinced that the Japanese were a people indivisible from rice and farmers are the ones who cultivate this national symbol. Just as rice has been used to identify the Japanese self, it has also been used to separate Japan from the outer world, making it an even stronger national symbol. Japanese rice is expensive but the majority of the Japanese were against foreign import even though other food products were being imported without any problems. This suggests the cultural importance rice has in Japan and how strongly the Japanese relate to it (Ohnuki-Tierney, 1993, 25-29). Rice does not only serve as a metaphor for the Japanese self but it also has greater influence on their daily life reflected in the societies’ way of
Much of what is considered modern Japan has been fundamentally shaped by its involvement in various wars throughout history. In particular, the events of World War II led to radical changes in Japanese society, both politically and socially. While much focus has been placed on the broad, overarching impacts of war on Japan, it is through careful inspection of literature and art that we can understand war’s impact on the lives of everyday people. The Go Masters, the first collaborative film between China and Japan post-WWII, and “Turtleback Tombs,” a short story by Okinawan author Oshiro Tatsuhiro, both give insight to how war can fundamentally change how a place is perceived, on both an abstract and concrete level.
The world is divided up into numerous things: Countries, states, cities, communities, etc. However, when looking at the big scope of things, one can group the vast amount of people into a society. This society is where the majority lie in the scheme of things - in other words, the common people. Individuals do exist in this society, but they are scarce in a world of conformism. Society’s standards demands an individual to conform, and if the individual refuses they are pushed down by society.
A culture’s tendency to be individualistic or collectivistic can be found at the root of
Throughout History, there have been many different groups or events that are still widely known today. Groups of people such as the Indians or Vikings are popular groups which are referenced constantly in today’s society. However, none of these groups is more known or referenced than the Japanese Samurai. Originating in 646 AD, these Japanese warriors developed from a loose organization of farmers to the dominant social class in Feudal Japan. Along with their dominant military and political standing, the samurai brought with them a unique code or moral belief that became the core of Samurai culture. Because of this, the Samurai and their principles still affect modern day Japanese society with social customs today deriving directly and indirectly from the beliefs of the Samurai.
Japanese immigration created the same apprehension and intolerance in the mind of the Americans as was in the case of Chinese migration to the U.S at the turn of the 19th century. They developed a fear of being overwhelmed by a people having distinct ethnicity, skin color and language that made them “inassimilable.” Hence they wanted the government to restrict Asian migration. Japan’s military victories over Russia and China reinforced this feeling that the Western world was facing what came to be known as “yellow peril”. This was reflected in the media, movies and in literature and journalism.4 Anti-Oriental public opinion gave way to several declarations and laws to restrict Japanese prosperity on American land. Despite the prejudice and ineligibility to obtain citizenship the ...
Greene, Carol. Enchantment of the World Japan, p. 97. 28 Pitts, Forrest R., Japan. p. 78. -. 29. Davidson, Judith.
War played a central part in the history of Japan. Warring clans controlled much of the country. A chief headed each clan; made up of related families. The chiefs were the ancestors of Japan's imperial family. The wars were usually about land useful for the production of rice. In fact, only 20% of the land was fit for farming. The struggle for control of that land eventually ga...
This shows how language plays a role in Japan by the maintenance of the hierarchical structure of the society.
Confucian ideals had a prominently drastic impact and influence in Japanese society. The Confucian ethical system stressed the utopian idea of a society in which a hierarchal structure is maintained. The hierarchal structure’s foundation is based upon the subservient and submissive idea of subordinates’ obedience to superiors and male dominance over women and children (Yoko and Katsurada, 2002).... ... middle of paper ...
Denison. B. (2002, January 1). A Basic Overview of Japanese Culture . . Retrieved May 3, 2014, from http://www.mizukan.org/articles/culture.htm
We, as humans, hold individualism in the highest regard, yet fail to realize that groups diminish our individuality. Lessing writes, “when we’re in a group, we tend to think as that group does. but we also find our thinking changing because we belong to a group” (p. 334). Groups have the tendency to generate norms, or standards, for behavior in certain situations. Not following these norms can make you stand out and, therefore, groups have the ability to influence our thoughts and actions in ways that are consistent with the groups’ values.
Ohnuki-Tierney, Emiko. "The Ambivalent Self of the Contemporary Japanese." Cultural Anthropology 5.2 (1990): 197-216. Print.
Western Washington University (2011). US / Japan culture comparison. Retrieved February 9, 2014, from www.wwu.edu/auap/english/gettinginvolved/CultureComparison.shtml
According to Sledge, Miles, and Coppage (2008) individualism versus collectivism is “the concepts of ‘I and Me’ versus ‘We and Us’” (p. 1670). Some cultures rely heavily on groups and teams. Collective societies look at group accomplishments rather than individual accomplishments. Some countries such as China and Japan rely heavily on groups. Countries like the United States and Canada are more of an individualism society. People focus more on individual accomplishments. Teams have started to become popular in the United States, but are not as effective as in a collective society. In a country where individualism is strong individual recognition and rewards would be effective motivators.
Our preliminary class gave a brief, yet detailed outline of major events affecting the East Asian region. Within that class, prompted by our limited geographical knowledge of Asia, we were given a fundamental explanation of the geographical locations of the various events taking place in the region. In subsequent classes, we were introduced to the major wars, political shifts, and economic interests which shaped Japan, China and Korea to what they are today. We examined the paradigm of pre-modern Japanese governance, the Shogunate, and the trained warriors which defended lord and land, Samurai. In addition, we examined the socio-economic classes of Medieval Japan, which included the Samurai, peasants, craftsmen, and the merchants. We also examined pre-1945 Japan’s policies toward foreign entities, notably the Sakoku Policy, which sought to expunge all foreign presence and commerce in an effort to protect its borders and culture. 1945, however, saw ...