My novel thread - questions regarding Japanese culture

[RolandtheHeadless]

Really good points from Roland, also Roland curious as to what you have written I love a good read.

Send me a PM. I've learned not to post identifying info on public forums.

To OP: I think there are differences between Okinawan and mainstream Japanese culture, although I don't know how significant they might be to your story.

 

[Glenski]

A question about gift giving: when a foreigner visits a Japanese family with children under drinking age; is it appropriate to gift, for example, some premium Belgian beer? Would it be important that this isn't really a seasonal gift?

I would think that bringing just the beer would be something done only if the visitor is not thinking about the kids at all, which would IMO not be standard J thinking. Beer for the parents, snacks (crackers, cakes, or fresh fruit) for everyone.

Also, I've read there is a special way of wrapping bottles together, but I couldn't find any conclusive information about that. How is this done?

Aside from furoshiki, if you bring over more than just a couple of bottles, you'd probably leave it to the store to wrap things. Original package (6-pack?) in bag or box, and then that in a shopping bag to identify the store as well. It's typical J overkill. Just a couple of bottles? Uh, kind of weird IMO.

And, seasonal gift or not, people wouldn't think of bringing a gift that was unwrapped in some way, even in the complex box in a bag in a box in a bag way I described. Just not done.

 

[Wardibald]

To OP: I think there are differences between Okinawan and mainstream Japanese culture, although I don't know how significant they might be to your story.

I picked Okinawa partly because the island has a history of mixed cultures, due to the American presence there. Gives me decent leads on how to approach this. I am definitely keeping some specific Okinawan subtleties, but I also made the island fall under Japanese jurisdiction much earlier, just like many other places around the world fell earlier under the expansionism of other contemporary empires.

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In my story, things like disposable wrapping paper should be in the past; producing companies are economically responsible for the waste their products create when they go end of life. I guess stores could utilise reusable furoshiki-cloth with their logos on, or something like that. I'll have that over-wrapped with personal cloth from the gift-givers. Thanks for the info