"Perceptions Of Japan"

[arnadstephen]

What if I "threw-out" some perceptions I have of Japan, never being in Japan. So perceptions are by reading about Japan, meeting people from Japan and obviously the stereotype I have somehow obtained.

->Very modern country, in the top 3 in the world
(its five-stars="*****")

-> The white-collar world works very hard to improve technical skills.

->Hard working and focused

-> Not good stewards of the environment would cut down every
tree to keep Japan Inc. going

-> Good manners, and speak carefully and thoughtfully
(a big plus !)

->Women in Japan very disciplined on looks and figure, few overweight

-> Very serious, maybe too much

-> Weak morals on corruption and graft
(many politicians are corrupt, this is probably changing !)

->Even low-wage jobs, the Japanese worker is a first-rate solid worker (a big plus, even Dave Barry says this in his book about Japan)

->Many Japanese are very artistic, maybe not soo much risk-takers

->One of the few places to successfully blend an ancient culture with a modern society (which I believe Saudia-Arabia has failed to do !)

-> Less strict attitude towards sexual behaviour. Fairly common that High-School girls are part-time for money (I MIGHT BE OVER-JUDGING THIS ONE)

->Japanese women are more aggressive sexually than, say, American women.

->Recentlyy, Japan is doing more and more to protect the old culture, now that so much has been lost to industrialization.

->Japan accepts the quirky ideas with vigour and fun
(Octopus-Ice-Cream !)

-> Many fads, which come and go very, very rapidly.

->Japan military stays away from tough decisions, like "serious" involvement in Gulf-War.


I am sure I will upset somebody, that was not my intent

 

[Iron Chef]

Actually, that's a pretty good list of general perceptions, and I tend to agree with most of them. Not too sure about the "Japanese women are more aggressive sexually, than say, American women." one, though. Then again, who can really know such things with certainty across the board, heh?

Re: "Not good stewards of the environment would cut down every tree to keep Japan Inc. going." I think that may have been the predominant attitude in the past, but when you have almost half the population of the U.S. in a geographic territory slightly smaller than the state of California... dealing with urban sprawl becomes a major issue. I think the Japanese have really moved towards finding a balancing act of late between addressing both sides of the issue (concern for environmental preservation and urbanization).

Re: "Weak morals on corruption and graft (many politicians are corrupt, this is probably changing)." Unfortunately, this is a very pervasive problem that, in turn, really turns off most people to foster an interest in politics. I know from my own experiences that many of my Japanese friends really had an adverse opinion about the nature of their own government and being almost indifferent in many cases. Hopefully, this will change.

Re: "Many fads, which come and go very, very rapidly." Hit the nail on the head there--not much more to say, really, heh.

 

[kirei_na_me]

"Good manners and speak carefully and thoughtfully"...yeah, but what does that mean? You never know what they're really thinking. This is a big issue in Japanese/American relationships of all kinds. They can come over as not genuine, which is not a very good thing either. They are not very good at communicating what they're really feeling, which can cause bumps in any kind of relationship. Also prone to bottling up emotions, which causes explosions later. I know from experience.

hehe...Japanese women are more agressive sexually than American women are...I don't know about that... From what I've been around, that doesn't hold true at all, but that's another thing that differs from individual to individual.

As for Japanese women being more "disciplined" as far as looks are concerned, they are lucky! They have good genetics working for them. High speed metabolism and their frame is naturally small. They're meant to be little. I don't think it comes from discipline. They're just lucky. My Japanese friends eat like hogs and still are tiny. My best friend's favorite food is a triple cheeseburger from Wendy's and she eats them ALL the time! lol A select few of us American women have been known to discipline ourselves too...

I can definitely say that the "very serious, maybe too much" holds true a lot of the time--especially for men. My husband is way too serious sometimes. He once told me that our fun was over when we got married and had kids. He is also very conservative, which is not like me at all, but I continue to work on him.

And if I'm not mistaken, Japan's military actions are very limited due to the Americans. They really don't have much of a choice concerning those matters.

 

[arnadstephen]

Perceptions On

You have to live in the South (Florida, Georgia ..). The number of people who are very very overweight is increased.

Their genetics keep Japanese woment petite and such. Trust me its genetics mixed with good solid dicspline.



Japan military/government stays out of tough decisions on being involved with war (Gulf War 1991). That is the convenient excuse !



Environment is also Japan-Inc, influencing the many
factories and iron/coal/tin-mines, and logging that is funded
by Japan-Inc, in other countires.

 

[mdchachi]

->Women in Japan very discplined on looks and figure, few overweight

In general, it's a lot easier to maintain ones weight in Japan because the food is generally less fatty and are in human-size portions. In the U.S. almost all portions are super-size -- you either have to take half your dish home or be a pig to eat it all. And common U.S. food is laden with fat. At typical restaurants, even a seemingly healthy selection like fish is usually deep-fried or smothered with buttery, cheesy sauces.
In addition, everyday life for most Japanese involve walking or riding a bike for significant distances and going up and down several flights of stairs.

 

[kirei_na_me]

You have to live in the South (Florida, Georgia ..).

I do live in the South. I'm in Virginia and I'm originally from North Carolina. I know how exactly how obese people can be here. I see them everyday. It's sad.

And I happen to know that it's more genetics than it is discipline. My Japanese husband eats continuously and enormous amounts(much more than my dad or any other American male I'm around) and he still weighs in at 130. He cannot put on weight and he has tried and still tries. It cannot be done. It's in his genetic make-up. He gets to eat like crazy and do nothing and I have to excercise religiously to keep mine down. It's just not fair!

 

[meverie]

The relative criterion is the U.S??
Umm...I'm not sure of each average, though.

-> Less strict attitude towards sexual behaviour. Fairly common that High-School girls are part-time, for money (I MIGHT BE OVER-JUDGING THIS ONE)

Lol...incidentally, not only high-school girls but also homemakers are doing kind of that. But I think it's a part of the whole. As far as folks around me are concerned, it's not so much. they had dates with about 3-5 specific guys before they've married. But it depends on the individual.

Japanese women are more aggresive sexually, than say American women.

Umm...I'm afraid I guessed the opposite since I haven't seen the woman sticking around a town in summer without a brassiere. (just from the impression of Hollywood movies and MTV).:sorry:
as long as the communication way among common folks, I guess it's rather conservative.
I can't say like 'I miss you so often, even to my guy just as one of the references. It's somewhat embarrassing and would decrease its worth. Instead, we (not sure of other Jps) usually speak in euphemism, but still not often. Many love phrases sound like ' I can't trust you without many confirmations'. Also, it depends on the individual, though.

This is a big issue in Japanese/American relationships of all kinds. They can come over as not genuine, which is not a very good thing either. They are not very good at communicating what they're really feeling, which can cause bumps in any kind of relationship. Also prone to bottling up emotions, which causes explosions later.

Ugh, you hit the nail on the head. I can't say anything about it.
perhaps we have watched too much TV programs like 'OSHIN'.lol

-> The white-collar world works very hard to improve technical skills.
-> Hard working, and focused.
-> Very serious, maybe too much
-> Good manners, and speak carefully and thoughtfully
->Even low-wage jobs, the japanese worker is a first-rate solid worker

That's why many nervous depression cases can be spread.

 

[arnadstephen]

Perceptions/Weight Control


1)Japan because the food is generally less fatty and are in human-size portions

2) In addition, everyday life for most Japanese involve walking or riding a bike for significant distances and going up and down several flights of stairs.

3)It's in his genetic make-up. He gets to eat like crazy


Item 1, 2 and 3 are great things. Japanese must be healthier, longer.

RELIEZE I LIVE IN THE BLUE-COLLAR SOUTH

AMERICANS ARE BECOMING FATTER AND FATTER
AMERICANS ARE BECOMING FATTER AND FATTER.

 

[meverie]

aw! not nervous depression, but suicide, stupid....

 

[peipoh]

JAPAN good in terms of discipline, technology and nice texture(their skins are super smoof)

but bad in terms of social pressure, the social heriachy are so rigid, u are always being look down if u down follow the masses definiton of success...and by the i cant think of more now,..actually i want to learn jap language in penang but dunno where can i learn?

 

[Tiger]

->Japan military stays away from tough decisions, like "serious" involvement in Gulf-War.

After the ending of World War II, America wrote a new constitution for Japan. One of the conditions of the constituton was that Japan is not allowed to have an army and is not allowed to go to war. The idea was to stop Japan ever attacking another country again. There is a Japan "self-defence" force, but it is small and doesn't do much. There has been a lot of discussion recently about whether this force should be increased due to the threat from North Korea.

Tiger

 

[mdchachi]

There is a Japan "self-defence" force, but it is small and doesn't do much.

Even now it is not insignificant. Japan is the #3 spender in U.S. dollars on its military of all developed nations (data as of 2001). It has the most powerful Navy of all countries in the Asia-Pacific region.