After a day at work I finally decided to go and enjoy the good weather today. Getting my head moving brought forth a simple but very constructive understanding that I had not fully grasped before.
The understanding rests on the concept that in Japan society everyone is family. The individual is then affected not only by his or her family but by every member of his or her society. This accounts for the sometimes overwhelming friendliness of the people here (especially when accepting a foreigner into their group), the xenophobia (when not accepting a foreigner), the huge amount of stress to conform, and the sometimes unappealing ways that stress is relieved.
In my last post I mentioned how the desires in one's life are very much affected by their awareness of the regard of family, friends, and loved ones. Imagine if your whole society consisted of this group? All of a sudden each action in your life would be under much more careful scrutiny. You would be more highly rewarded for following the path that you are "supposed to" follow and you could be more damaged if you neglect that path. It is, in local Maui people's terms, "one presha cooka" (a pressure cooker). It is an extremely positive force that includes a powerful support structure for all members of society. But it also may be related to some of the less desirable sides of society here like the snack bars and the xenophobia.
All in all I am just happy that I have come to a much better understanding of this place, even if it is, necessarily, a bit of a simplification.
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4 comments:
Hey.
I don't think Japanese culture is alone in this respct. In fact, familial ties are the norm in most of the developing world (which accounts for nearly 80% of this planet). Families, nuclear first and gradually in their extended forms, are said to be the most basic institution in any given society. Rural communities in particular show a propensity to strong familial ties, because it makes sense in a small community where a relatively high portion of the population is related either directly or otherwise.
Locally this works because of real familial ties. The problem occurs when these overtake the collective mind creating bonds where they do not exist. It is therefore easy to tilt the scales to xenophobia.
The idea of the Japanese nation as a family is an old argument used by the Japanese right wing, which in turn borrows from 19th century ideas of European nationalism. Margalit is even more caustic in his remark that a nation (sic) "has famously been defined as a society that nourishes a common delusion about its ancestry and shares a common hatred for its neighbors."
It's true that there are families and concepts of families in every country in the world. But where else is there such a culturally homogenous country, one that was isolated from the rest of the world for such a long period of time and (relatively speaking) so recently? The Japanese version of "family" functions on a unique level. It may also explain why servitude to family is such a highly placed value here (i.e. filial piety).
As far as filial piety goes, I think that has been the influence of Chinese Confucian thought in the culture more than anything else. Ergo, it's not something necessarily "Japanese." Still, my point stands that filial piety is not as different as in, say, the Middle East, rural Latin America or even Mediterranean Europe. Obligation to family members is apparent in many places. The difference with Chinese-influenced countries is that through Confucianism these ideas have been institutionalised and ingrained in society a lot more.
As to Japan actually being a culturally homogeneous country, that is up to debate. The official picture of Japan and its many realities often collide with each other. I can assure you that life in Miyazaki and Tohoku can be very different, even to this day when cultural "homogenisation" (due to state education and mass media) is at an all time high. It wasn't always like that, though, and people, just like in medieval Europe or the colonial Americas, placed a higher loyalty to their own villages and burroughs rather than in the abstract concept of a country. And let's not even mention the Okinawans, the Ainu and the Burakumin, who, although a part of Japanese society, are not fully fledged members of it. Cultural homogeneity is illusory to say the least.
While isolation was a defining factor in the consolidation of authoritarianism in Japan (and by extension in ideals of collective values), you must take into consideration that Japan was never fully isolated from the outside world, especially Kyushu. If Japan were indeed such a culturaly homogeneous place, there would be no need to strike down the dissidents, as it has so often happened in Japan's history. Mass graves of Christians, Marxists, Buddhists and others attest to the fact that Japan might not be the harmonious "family" it pretends to be.
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