Japan Unmasked

My blog today is actually from some parts of a book that I've been reading called "Japan Unmasked." I believe it will help to explain a bit more about the Japanese culture and what I am experiencing here on a daily basis.  Although I have been here for 9 months now,  there are many things I have yet to learn about the "Japanese way."  And quite honestly, by the time I leave here, my knowledge of this culture still won't have even scratched the surface.  I have many "why"questions about certain things here and in order to get my answers to those questions, my only hope is in the books that I've found.  So to the book we go. :)

 Japan Unmasked
"All of the primary attributes for which the Japanese are known-their strengths as well as their weaknesses, have their genesis in the cultural molds referred to as kata, "form/way," or shikata, "way of doing things."  The way of doing things provides the ultimate answer for what makes the Japanese Japanese.  It refers to the way things are supposed to be done, both the form and the order, as a means of expressing and maintaining wa, "harmony," in society and the universe.  The absence of shikata is virtually unthinkable to the Japanese, for that refers to an unreal world, without order or form.  Japan has no genuine philosophy as such, only form.  Doing things the right way was often more important than doing the right things."

It didn't take me long to learn that there are certain ways of doing things here.  But my question is, do they continue to do these things in the "right way/form" because they want to, or because they have to?  I mean does everyone in Japan really want the same exact bike and wire basket?  Or deep down do the girls really want a fun pink bike?  :)

Dude, where's my bike?

I mean....

"Just as there was only one acceptable way to perform all the various actions of life in pre-industrial Japan, from using chopsticks to wrapping a package, there was naturally only one right way of thinking- the "Japanese" way.  Cultural conditioning based on the kata system made the Japanese extremely sensitive  to any thought, manner, or action that did not conform perfectly to the appropriate kata.  In formal as well as most daily situations every action was either right or wrong, natural or unnatural.  There were no shades of gray that accommodated individualistic thought, preferences, or idiosyncrasies."

Because everything is so conditioned here, even thoughts, this is why it is a little difficult for me to ask the question "why?"  There sometimes aren't even answers for the "why"questions...except that it's just the "Japanese way."

The hallmark of Japan's kata-ized culture from earliest times has been the promotion and maintenance of wa, or harmony.  Personal behavior as well as all relationships, private and public, were based on strictly controlled harmony in the  proper inferior-superior context of Japanese society.

A not surprising characteristic of the Japanese that derives from their emphasis on correct form and harmony is their tendency to avoid doing things altogether if they are uncertain about how to do them."

The harmony that is found in this culture is quite extraordinary and I have NEVER seen anything like it anywhere else.  It really is amazing that there is SO much harmony found throughout the entire country.  Unfortunately, this harmony sometimes comes at the expense of people losing their individuality and not being able to express themselves.  But with every culture, there are pros and cons with everything.

 "The significant difference between the "Japanese way" and the customs that developed in most other societies was that the Japanese kata-ized their whole existence.  Practically nothing was left to chance or personal inclinations.  The kata factor was applied down to everything- down to the arrangement of food on a tray.  Further, the Japanese goal was not just the minimum acceptable standard of behavior, action, or work- it was absolute perfection."

Think of a perfectionist you know.  Then imagine an entire country...millions of people acting, behaving, and thinking in the same manner! I can already see the signs of perfectionists in my little 4 and 5 year old students who organize the slippers outside the door if they aren't lined up correctly.   At a very early age, children are already being taught the "rules" and the "Japanese way" to do literally everything.  By the time they reach adulthood, everything is already so conditioned that nothing is left to chance or for their personal preferences. 

"Some of Japan's traditional kata based practices and skills that remain in place today include the tea ceremony, flower arranging, kendo, judo, and sumo.  Even the imported sport of baseball has been kata-ized.  There is a Japanese way to organize furniture and office desks, for learning how to drive, for treating guests, for buying and presenting gifts, for virtually everything in life."

Everything, and I mean EVERYTHING has a certain way of being done here.  Fortunately for me, I don't and won't ever have to know all of these ways.  :)

"Because of ongoing exclusivity of Japanese culture, the Japanese are unable to accept foreigners as they do other Japanese and tend to be comfortable with them only when they are in Japan as temporary visitors.  As long as foreigners can be treated as guests, the Japanese are able to exempt them from the demands of Japanese culture and can extend extraordinary courtesies and privileges to them.  Non-guest foreigners in Japan inevitably encounter the cultural dichotomy that prevents the Japanese from fully accepting them.  They must therefore continuously be aware that as tolerant and hospitable as their Japanese hosts are to short-term visitors -who are not expected to know or practice their kata-ized etiquette- they are still offended when anyone, foreigners included, behaves "incorrectly." "
  
Although I do try to be myself here, there are many times where I find that I am just trying to do things that are "correct."  There are too many right and wrong ways of doing things here that I am often times too focused on this to truly express myself.

"Few non-Asian residents of Japan complain very much about being excluded from Japanese society.  The weight of the society on a person who is Japanese is very heavy.  The truth of the matter is that life in Japan is only tolerable for most non-Asian residents because they are excluded from the society and treated differently.

 "The close-knittedness and security provided by Japan's web of kata have also made the Japanese exquisitely sensitive to anything unexpected.  They cannot stand for things to be unpredictable- which is one of the reasons why those who are un-Westernized are so uncomfortable when dealing with foreigners.  Because they cannot predict what foreigners are going to do or say, such Japanese are under constant stress when in their presence."

"Kata have, in fact, traditionally been used to replace honest human relationships.  The social etiquette the Japanese developed to support the shikata system doesn't fit in the modern world but that without kata the Japanese are lost and do not know how to behave."

Besides the couple of Japanese friends I have made, I believe this is one of the biggest reasons why foreigners aren't able to develop many strong relationships with people here.  Many of the Japanese might be more concerned with doing or saying the right thing....which leads to friendships and relationships taking much longer to develop.

"There are several reasons why few westerners, even today, speak Japanese with any real fluency.  The language is so intimately integrated with the thought processes and behavior of the Japanese that it is impossible to speak it correctly - from the Japanese viewpoint-without knowing how to think and behave like the Japanese do.    When someone speaks the language w/o following the dictates of Japanese customs, it strikes the Japanese as arrogant, as anti-Japanese, and as proof of the old belief that foreigners are incapable of learning how to speak the language properly."

Luckily I'm not fluent in Japanese hey?!  :)

I know that some of this stuff might be hard to read if you're not familiar with Japanese culture, but this is the best way I can sum up the majority of my existence here.  :)