So far, yet so close
| September 22, 2011 | Posted by Sam Altmann under international, lifestyle |
I think we’ve all seen the advert where an Englishman is having dinner in a Japanese restaurant; he clears his plate – the polite custom where he is from – and is brought another course due to the Japanese custom that one should not finish all he is given. His courses get larger and larger until he is served something vaguely recognisable as a whale.
The moral of this story is meant to be something like ‘we are very different to the Japanese’, however I disagree with this and it has annoyed me for quite some time. Let me show you why.
Now, like any good argument, I intend to start with the counter argument before proficiently destroying it, so just bare with me. The first major difference is that we all know the Japanese to have a very strict, honour-bound culture enforced by peers and seniors alike. Now, we all see England as much more liberal, but is it really? The philosopher Rousseau once stated (in regards to most western culture, though at the time his intentions were more focused) that “man is born free, but everywhere he is in chains”; referring, for one thing, to the social laws that are set in place by us, our friends, our family and the media. Or, as it is sometimes known, the status quo – which we must stick to or risk being disliked and ostracised by peers.
The other common argument for the differences is that the Japanese are polite, always learning and speaking the languages of places they visit – we all recognise friendly Japanese tourists trying their hardest to communicate with us. Whereas you then get us Brits, who do not bother to even try and speak the local lingo on holiday, preferring to use a mixture of vigorous hand gestures combined with speaking slowly and at a high volume. Well actually the Japanese are meant to do this too, a book called the Hagakure (book of the samurai – essentially a collection of philosophical notes on their culture by Yamamoto Tsunetomo) states that “it is vulgar to look down upon the ways of one’s own district as being boorish, or to be even a bit open to the persuasion of the other place’s ways and to think about giving up one’s own.“ This links in with the whole idea of them being highly honour bound, as they refuse to give up their own ways and to admit another’s is more correct, or closer to the ‘one true way’. It may also be worth noting here that many of the English are very polite, in fact we have often been known for it, especially by our friends across the pond.
Yet another difference is in the famous act of ‘seppuku’ (ritualistic suicide by disembowelment) which a Japanese was expected to commit should he bring shame to himself for, let’s say, not getting himself cut down by exacting revenge in the correct fashion: attacking a fortress on his own. I should also point out at this point that with the aid of westernisation, many of these customs have been stopped, ‘seppuku’ being an exception that was in fact stopped much earlier, around 1776. So you may argue now that we have no such thing in England… don’t we?
Well the fact of the matter is that we do, though ours, due to not being quite so drastic, has continued over the ages. Take a politician for instance. Should he make a bad decision and shame himself, he is then often pressured into stepping down; Tony Blair being a prime example of this. Other examples on a smaller, more relatable scale include headmasters who are pressured into leaving after a bad accident within their school.
Another similarity lies with our navies. In fact, the Japanese navy was modelled on ours, since Britain has always been famous for its sea power. They even went so far as to use our phrase “Aye Aye” instead of the customary Japanese “Oss”. This change took place around 1876 and hasn’t yet properly changed back; you can think of the events of the film The Last Samurai as a slight parallel.
There are also some differences which can be attributed to our surroundings, such as England’s trains having the ability to be consistently late, not to mention our buses. But studies in behavioural microeconomics and social psychology have been able to accredit these sort of statistics to things like laziness caused by a bad environment during youth, and by a bad environment I am here referring to the lethargic atmosphere that I am sure we are all familiar with, often manifesting itself in the form of ‘Oh, I’ll do it later’. This environment has then been obscurely linked (through the power of yet more social science) to the decline in the British Empire (people being big headed before losing it all, so getting used to just coasting along in life without particular goals) which I shall admit that I don’t totally understand. But on the other hand, the Japanese also once had a successful empire – though not an overly large one – which then similarly declined. Perhaps without all their rules being much more set in stone, or without the cultural similarities passed on to them through historical relation to the Chinese – also of honour and discipline – then they too may have descended into the same western mindset as we have. Or maybe this is too farfetched to be true; another great possibility.
On the subject of empires and power, one can see another similarity between us and the Japanese, in the success of past military campaigns. One possible explanation for the similarity between our records of victory and theirs may be the geographical relationships that are obvious to see. We are both island nations, separated from the rest of the continent which we are forced to frequently have interactions with, so it is possible this is a trait amiable for power.
You can then pick out a similarity when thinking about how England was conquered by the Romans/the French/the Danes, in relation to the fact that the indigenous Japanese people were originally conquered and slaughtered by the Chinese who then settled on the island, meaning very few Japanese are not of Chinese origin. Just like with us – I mean who can really say that their bloodline is pure British, without French or other European ancestry? It is worth noting however that, though one can see that we have more of a mix of races than the Japanese, this difference is perhaps down to our being in close proximity to numerous countries, as opposed to Japan’s single, albeit large one.
There are numerous more similarities and differences that I could go into, many to prove my point, many which will destroy it and so subsequently be swept up under the carpet. Though the main theme that I am trying to convey with this is that two cultures so seemingly different, can have so many subtle similarities if only you look for them.
Shameful display…
To begin with you propose that while Japan has a strict, honour-bound culture, it is untrue that England is more liberal. You assert that Western cultures are not dissimilar to Japan because they are bound by social laws and expectations that lead people to be ostracised if not followed. Rousseau’s words are true for every culture that has law, not just Western cultures. Even the most primitive cultures have a status quo that governs an individual’s place or status in society. It does not make the English any more like the Japanese than any other civilisation. In the present day, England IS more liberal and Japan IS stricter, even if it is less honour-bound than it has been previously.
Next you challenge the viewpoint that the Japanese are polite, and willing to make an effort to communicate in another country’s language while abroad, whereas Brits make no such effort. Your argument that the Japanese are meant to do as we do is empty. You quote a 300 year old book that was meant for the Samurai class who followed the code of Bushido, not Japanese people in general. It is reckless to use tourists and Samurai in the same argument.
If you are talking about cultures being inflexible to embracing ways other than their own, then a nation’s behaviour abroad is a poor angle on which to base this point. Using a broad generalisation, English people ARE more ignorant and more badly behaved abroad than the Japanese. You say that many of the English are very polite, and yes, anyone going to Japan from there probably is, even if the specifics of etiquette are not adhered to. However, any Japanese person who is going to England on holiday is going to be wealthy, thus what you see is a small socio-economic group which does not represent the behaviour of a whole nation. In contrast, you are better informed about the habits of wealthy English people who may travel to faraway places like Japan, as well as those who are limited by how far they can go. Politeness and affinity to a ‘one true way’ should be dealt with as separate issues.
Even more confusingly, you go on to liken the long-past tradition of seppuku to Tony Blair being pressured to step down after making bad decisions and shaming himself. You interject about the influence of Westernisation on Japan without first presenting the English parallel to seppuku. The example with headmasters is on a more relatable scale indeed, but it is just as irrelevant. Again, you are trying to draw similarities between the culture of the Samurai class and modern England.
It is true that public figures in England are expected to resign in the circumstances you mentioned. It’s the same in Japan though, and in many other countries. That would then make the two more similar perhaps, but that is like trying to say a laptop and a car are subtly similar because they both have metal screws in them. They’re not.
Again you present a very weak parallel, this time with the navies. This is the first time I have ever heard someone try to say that two cultures are similar because of how their navies are modeled. It’s absurd, though I am not disputing the fact that they are comparable. The Last Samurai had nothing to do with the navy; the film was mainly about the stark differences between the two cultures, not the similarities.
After this you describe the English public transport system without then describing the Japanese counterpart. Whether or not behavioural microeconomics and social psychology can explain why our trains are always late is beside the point. You merely try to explain why Japan and England are different but could hypothetically be the same.
The idea that we are similar because we both have had successful military campaigns and empires is also laughable even if factually correct. English people joke that they are not like the French who never win wars, but people recognise that it is not a serious way of comparing countries. If you had gone on to describe how both empires employed the same tactics in battle, for example, your argument would be more credible. You’re absolutely right that we’re both islands, but would you say to a Japanese person, “we’re not that different you know… we both live on islands separated from the rest of the continent.”? Even as a joke?
The last point you mention is that both nations have been conquered and mistreated by other nations in the past. The attackers settled and by virtue of this, neither blood-line is of single origin. Fantastic – we’re all mixed race. Better have a pint together to celebrate it. There I was thinking we were different.
You suggest that the Japanese are less mixed because they are only close to a single, large country. I assume you are talking about China here. Japan was close to three historically: Korea, China and Russia, before Korea was split asunder. The first Korean kingdom was founded in 2333BC so it has been there a long, long time next to Japan. I’m pretty sure Russia hasn’t suddenly appeared either. When people say that Japan is a homogenous society, it is because immigration is very low. That is the difference.
So to conclude, these subtle similarities you speak of existing between Japan and England are actually as follows: both are bound by a status quo and suffer because of it; the higher socio-economic groups of both countries tend to be polite; both pressure important figures into stepping down if their performance is poor; both say “aye aye” in the navy (I’ll take your word for it); both had successful military campaigns; both are islands; neither populations are descended from an acute origin. Half of this is generic enough to apply to any country.
Japan has been influenced by the West in many ways but to claim that they are similar is nonsense, especially when using a historical context. Your original counter-argument was that Japan is strict and honour-bound while England is liberal, yet the rest of the article addresses this matter only lightly and poorly. The cultures seem different because they are different, and anyone who believes otherwise is either gullible or hopelessly misinformed.
Okay firstly, i will apologise for this and any inconvenience or irritance (not the best word, though i am not overly gifted at being able to pluck out words as some are) it may have caused. my only intention was to have a bit of fun, and perhaps to point out that one should not look at two things, people or countries and simply assume that they are so different – especially if you have no extra knowledge of a subject. i myself did not have much detailed knowledge on this subject, so i did some research after i was drawn to this topic.
Now i obviously understand where you are coming from with the vast majority of your points, i must beg that we simply disagree on certain topics. the idea that britain may be more liberal than japan could be said to be only my opinion. i am sad to say that i have never had the fortune of visiting the country, but from what i know and been told by people who have visited the country, it is at least a little less liberal. so when most people (definitely including me) take a brief look at the two, they will see a (huge) difference. then if they look closer, hopefully some may see that actually no culture is totally as free as people may think, which i believe is part of what rousseau will have been thinking during the ancien regime when people were being told that they HAD to believe in god – perhaps a slight exagerration, but still.
Now i must admit, i was totally thinking about the fact that japanese civilians will probably not follow the ‘way of the samurai’ though that was not what i was trying to imply. i had simply been reading the book while on a plane, noticed that part, thought it interesting, and jotted it down. i did not believe for a second that all japanese people were expected to rise before the sun, groom themselves and their hair, before eating a breakfast of rice and vegetables while watching the sun rise. Nor that all men are slowly turning into women. the point i was trying to make revolved around the fact that the common image of a british holiday maker is of a person wandering around paris asking for directions to the mona lisa. i then tried to point out that the japanese had at one time (again, could have been useful to state this) been meant to do the same thing. also, where i mentioned that the british are sometime known for being polite, have you ever heard someone put on an english accent? does it come out like a scouse (not certain if that is how to spell it), or stereotypically posh, possibly implying that we may like to drink a spot of tea. can i also direct your attention to just about any american TV show featuring a british person; they usually come out inherently posh and more often than not, incredibly polite. though guess i should have watched more than one country’s television to properly get an idea of any of that.
i suppose that now is also a good time to point out that everything i have written is assuming a generalisation anyway, i am pretty certain that not all british people will act this way, just as i will also assume that there must be at least a few japanese who are not quite so curtious while over here. while on this topic may i also point out that i can think of at least one or two people who follow the odd one or two of these older rules. in saying this, i basically mean that i can be short sighted, and i can also say that depending on the circumstances, i would call a car and a laptop similar, they both have screws yes, but they were both also made to make the lives of others easier, and they are both luxuries to which people have become increasingly, and maybe too attracted to.
now one thing i now know for certain that i have been wrong about is that Russia had anything to do with the japanese genepool, as i did not read that anywhere. Korea however, i am afraid to say that i did notice, but chose to leave out as i didn’t think it was especially useful. though the knowledge that more than one race mixed in to japan in fact furthers my point, so i suppose i should thank you really.
Also, when you say that there are only a few similarities, i can agree with that easily, though in my opinion, at least one similarity is enough to make two things similar in at least one way. though on the reverse side of this concept i can also state that you can call two things very different if they have just a couple of differences. i mean in which case, what cultures are similar? and even within britain it could be argued that there at about thirty odd, all differing in some way or another.
Let me say now that a vast amount of the information that i got for this, i got from a trusted aquantance of mine; someone who has actually spent a huge number of years in japan and made many japanese friends (knowing him, a few enemies too) and was also connected with the military (british) so i had no reason to doubt anything he said. then after some other things i learned, what he said was only backed up. though admittedly the ‘aye aye’ thing seems to be from at least when he was younger and over there, so perfectly probable that it has been halted. it was due to him that i became interested in this notion of them being similar, and also him that mentioned the point about the military campaigns.
Can i finally say that i never intended any of this to be viewed totally seriously, i had expected people to read for the reasons that i do: for fun, perhaps to learn new things and also for the sake of reading a few nicely written articles (yes i realise that not one of mine quite comes under that category) and i mostly believed that this was what people did, i guess i should not have stepped into this end of the proverbial swimming pool, and hell, maybe i could do with getting back out.
One final note, you started with ‘shameful display…’ if you were refering to the rather terrible layout and fair lack of varying paragraph size, then you would be quite correct. you see i didn’t quite understand how to put the words in the box, then it came out wrong so i did it again, then i had to fuddle it about because the lines where a weird length. so yes anyway, all this proves is that i am not the most computer literate person in the world. by a long way. in future i will stick to a good old pencil.
also, can i just add – thank you for reading it.
I think it’s a worthy cause to try and dispel certain stereotypes about the cultures people know little about. You’re right, people do tend to assume that things are different when they might not be beneath the surface. We shouldn’t think that we’re so different to someone else that we can’t coexist and get along.
I suspect that most of us think Japan has a ‘stricter’ society than England but is becoming less so with the newer generations. There isn’t really one good word to describe it. People in England are a lot freer than some others but we are by no means free, of course.
Those are some good stereotypes of both cultures you described there… although I would be tempted to argue that most (but not all) men are becoming feminised. Lots of people do think that all English people are posh and drink tea, which is just as bad as thinking Japanese people go and kill themselves because their shame is too great. It happens, but stereotypes are stereotypes. I wasn’t trying to suggest that you held stereotypical views though. It’s quite important to remember that anyone travelling so far to the UK from Japan is going to be quite wealthy and therefore more likely to be polite etc.
I didn’t mean to imply Russia had anything to do with the Japanese gene pool, only that it is geographically near Japan. The way you wrote it made it sound like you thought that England is close to lots of countries, but that China is the only country close to Japan.
I’d say that Western cultures are similar to each other and Far-Eastern cultures are similar to each other, logically. Trying to draw comparisons between distant countries is difficult.
Lastly, the ‘shameful display’ comment was a satirical reference to the Shogun II game, keeping in line with the Japanese stereotypes (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ay9ZxsulN2c). It wasn’t, by any means, an assault on your style of writing. Don’t assume! I understand your perspective better now. Only a partial perspective was presented in the article, understandably.