With Respect to the Japanese Book Report
I got an A on this book report and my professor said it was very insightful, so I guess I can share it with the intertrons. I kinda got the idea when I saw other people posting their old assignments online when I was researching for another assignment, and thought it was a great idea! If you stumble upon this though, please do not plagiarize my work! This has already gone through Turnitin.com, so it won't work if you copy it 100%.
“With Respect to the Japanese” was written by John C. Condon and published in 1984. Despite this book being outdated in present times, it is a book that is often read by individuals or companies that plan on doing business in Japan. It is a very detailed book, mainly dealing about how our cultures deal with respect and how upbringing and culture impacts the way we are.
Chapter 1 of the book opens up by describing America (mainly the United States) and Japan as an “odd couple” (1). Besides being on opposite sides of the world, both cultures are the polar opposites of each other. While Americans are perceived as being open to all cultures and very diverse, the Japanese are very exclusive and no one can be Japanese unless you have it in your blood. While the Japanese understand the differences between themselves and different cultures, people who try to be too Japanese are called “hen na gaijin 変な外人”, or “strange foreigner” (3, 18).
Chapters 2 to 4 talk about behaviors and lifestyles, and how both cultures apply and use them differently. The examples come from both of the cultures, and show how our upbringings can bring miss-communication and frustrations with one another.
Japanese are often taught while growing up to think as a group with emphasis on respecting seniority while having little to no changes in order not to disrupt the “wa 和” (harmony) of a group. This style of upbringing is taught starting at a young age, and it follows them through the rest of their lives. They also have many differences in socializing, including emphasis on gestures, being indirect with their wording and being able to show their own humility. As Americans, we rely too much on individualism and the way we use our words. To the Japanese, we are thought of as arrogant and egotistical due to this.
This book presents a lot of ideas on why we are so different. It is especially shown in chapter 6 of the book, when answering questions that Americans have posed onto Japanese society.
Even though the Japanese are a very old society, they only started to modernize in the past 150 years during the Meiji era. Japanese people were shipped across the world to Western countries to begin learning ideals and ways to improve their society. When these Japanese brought back what their government needed, these ideas were applied and became thoroughly “Japanese”. Like the United Kingdom, they have a royal family with a Parliament. These ideas are not new, but because of the belief that they are a superior homogeneous society, it is purely “Japanese”.
Another problem that is raised with the Japanese is that because modernization took too long to begin, their social system is old. Despite technological advances, they are thought of as “an antiquated social system in an otherwise modern industrialized nation” (21). This incredibly restrictive social system is developed starting at a young age, but I think that there might be a time when it is destroyed. Even though the book shows how some Japanese are disgusted by how we socialize in the West, I think that many people will be able to want to talk more freely.
Some of their ideals are already being shattered in present time society, including being able to show humility and shame. It is not the case anymore, where they feel that they must hide their real emotions and put on a ”face”. Suicide is mentioned briefly in the book as being “the ultimate means of taking responsibility for having brought shame to one's group” (30). While this theory still applies to today, suicide is a growing problem that has claimed 30,093 lives in 2007 (Lewis).
What I think that Condon tried to explain throughout the book is that while we are very different, the best way to work together is to understand each others cultures. Even though there are certain Japanese and Americans that have adapted to the cultural differences, it might take years to create a mutual understanding between the countries. I feel that both of our cultures are a bit stubborn to change our beliefs, and are waiting for the other to begin the process of mutual understanding.
Works Cited
Condon, John C. With Respect to the Japanese: a Guide for Americans. Yarmouth, Me.: Intercultural, 1984. Print.
Lewis, Leo. "Japan Gripped by Suicide Epidemic." Times Online. 19 June 2008. Web. 25 Apr. 2010. .
“With Respect to the Japanese” was written by John C. Condon and published in 1984. Despite this book being outdated in present times, it is a book that is often read by individuals or companies that plan on doing business in Japan. It is a very detailed book, mainly dealing about how our cultures deal with respect and how upbringing and culture impacts the way we are.
Chapter 1 of the book opens up by describing America (mainly the United States) and Japan as an “odd couple” (1). Besides being on opposite sides of the world, both cultures are the polar opposites of each other. While Americans are perceived as being open to all cultures and very diverse, the Japanese are very exclusive and no one can be Japanese unless you have it in your blood. While the Japanese understand the differences between themselves and different cultures, people who try to be too Japanese are called “hen na gaijin 変な外人”, or “strange foreigner” (3, 18).
Chapters 2 to 4 talk about behaviors and lifestyles, and how both cultures apply and use them differently. The examples come from both of the cultures, and show how our upbringings can bring miss-communication and frustrations with one another.
Japanese are often taught while growing up to think as a group with emphasis on respecting seniority while having little to no changes in order not to disrupt the “wa 和” (harmony) of a group. This style of upbringing is taught starting at a young age, and it follows them through the rest of their lives. They also have many differences in socializing, including emphasis on gestures, being indirect with their wording and being able to show their own humility. As Americans, we rely too much on individualism and the way we use our words. To the Japanese, we are thought of as arrogant and egotistical due to this.
This book presents a lot of ideas on why we are so different. It is especially shown in chapter 6 of the book, when answering questions that Americans have posed onto Japanese society.
Even though the Japanese are a very old society, they only started to modernize in the past 150 years during the Meiji era. Japanese people were shipped across the world to Western countries to begin learning ideals and ways to improve their society. When these Japanese brought back what their government needed, these ideas were applied and became thoroughly “Japanese”. Like the United Kingdom, they have a royal family with a Parliament. These ideas are not new, but because of the belief that they are a superior homogeneous society, it is purely “Japanese”.
Another problem that is raised with the Japanese is that because modernization took too long to begin, their social system is old. Despite technological advances, they are thought of as “an antiquated social system in an otherwise modern industrialized nation” (21). This incredibly restrictive social system is developed starting at a young age, but I think that there might be a time when it is destroyed. Even though the book shows how some Japanese are disgusted by how we socialize in the West, I think that many people will be able to want to talk more freely.
Some of their ideals are already being shattered in present time society, including being able to show humility and shame. It is not the case anymore, where they feel that they must hide their real emotions and put on a ”face”. Suicide is mentioned briefly in the book as being “the ultimate means of taking responsibility for having brought shame to one's group” (30). While this theory still applies to today, suicide is a growing problem that has claimed 30,093 lives in 2007 (Lewis).
What I think that Condon tried to explain throughout the book is that while we are very different, the best way to work together is to understand each others cultures. Even though there are certain Japanese and Americans that have adapted to the cultural differences, it might take years to create a mutual understanding between the countries. I feel that both of our cultures are a bit stubborn to change our beliefs, and are waiting for the other to begin the process of mutual understanding.
Works Cited
Condon, John C. With Respect to the Japanese: a Guide for Americans. Yarmouth, Me.: Intercultural, 1984. Print.
Lewis, Leo. "Japan Gripped by Suicide Epidemic." Times Online. 19 June 2008. Web. 25 Apr. 2010. .