Japan Culture Essay

Japan, officially Nippon, a country off the east coast of Asia. It consists of four large islands- Honshu, Hokkaido, Kyushu, and Shikoku- and more than 3,300 smaller ones, including the Ryukyu chain (Gluck et. al, 1987). Japan lost some of its possessions as a result of World War II. These included the southern part of the island of Sakhalin, the Kurile Islands, Manchuria, Korea, and Taiwan. II. Discussions A. Culture Japanese culture is partly of Chinese origin and partly indigenous, for the Japanese adapted and did not merely imitate the culture of the mainland. Since the middle of the 19th century, Japan has been influenced more by the culture of Western countries than by that of its neighbors. Adoption of many Western ways produced sharp contrasts between the new and the old. Buildings and clothing, for example, are now seen in both traditional and Western styles. Among forces that have helped to mold the Japanese character are Buddhist, Shinto, and Confucian religious beliefs, the effects of a long feudal period, and the influences of Japanese industrial revolution. With industrialization came a change from rural to urban living. American influences have been particularly string since World War II (Hall et. al, 1987). B. The Arts Japanese arts have been strongly influenced by Chinese art. From the mainland came the technique of ink painting on silk and the Buddhist influences in sculpture and painting. A landscape school developed from Zen Buddhism after the 13th century. Japanese prints of the 17th and 18th century had a profound effect in Western art. Distinctive contributions have also been made in architecture. Traditional arts also include landscape gardening; bonsai; the cultivation of dwarf trees; ikebana, flower arranging; ceramics; and origami, paper folding (Beasley, 1987). Flourishing throughout Japan are no, classical plays in which the actors wear masks depicting their character; Bunraku, puppet plays; and kabuki, drama with stylized chanting and dancing. An important part of Japanese culture is the tea ceremony, a highly formal ritual, of which there are many variations (Morton, 1984). As a way of entertaining guests, it is regarded as the best expression of traditional etiquette. Some of the traditional arts- especially classical Japanese music and dance and the tea ceremony- are part of the repertoire of geisha, a female entertainers who perform for groups of men. C. Family and Home In Japan the family is a traditional and strong institution. It has a formal structure with authority vested in the male head of the family. The wife is expected to be subservient. Children learn discipline and their respective roles in the family at an early age. Sons are given preference over daughters, and the eldest son is superior to all others. However, many of the repressive aspects of the family, such as that of parents determining marriages, have weakened since World War II (Morton, 1984). Japanese homes are noted for their simplicity. Nearly all are built of wood. On many homes, paper- covered wooden frames, called shoji, are used for windows and doors. Being light and easily moved, they allow much of the house to be opened to the out-of- doors. Some homes are adjoined by landscaped gardens. Rooms are usually having thick straw mats, called tatami, on the floor and very little furniture. D. Language and Religion The Japanese language is unrelated to other Oriental tongues. However, it is written in characters that originally were adapted from Chinese writing. The Japanese constitution of 1946 provides freedom of religion and separation of church and state. The two major religions are Shinto and Buddhism. Many Japanese adhere, in varying degrees, to both. Confucianism, though not a religion in the Western sense, has had considerable influence on Japanese personal and social relationships. There are some 1,350,000 Christians, of whom about 30 percent are Roman Catholics and about 70 percent are Protestants (Morton, 1984). E. Food and Clothing The Japanese clothing includes the Uchikake, Kimono, Nagajugan, Yukata, Michiyuki, Hakama, Shiro-maku, Haori, and the Accessories like Obi, Shoes, Socks and the like. The Japanese foods includes the Wasabi or the Japanese Horseradish, Donburi which is a bowl of cooked rice, Yakitori or a grilled chicken, Gomaae which is a sesame dressing, Udon or thick Japanese noodles, Gyoza is like dumpling, Tempura which is a deep fry sea –food and vegetables, Korokke is made of potato, Sushi most famous dish outside Japan, Mushrooms or kinoko in Japanese, Soba a native Japanese noodle, Nikujaga composed of the meat and potatoes, Seaweed or kaiso, Ramen a noodle dish. Sashimi which is a raw seafood, Rice which is Japan’s important crop, Okonomiyaki is a combination of a pizza and a pancake; and Soya Bean with the soya sauce or shoyu (Christopher, 1983). F. Politics Japan’s form of government is Constitutional Monarchy. The emperor is the head of the state. Although it is Monarchy, still it is very limited because it is based on the Constitution. Prime minister serves as the President of the government of Japan. The Diet is their body of legislatives, where it is composed of the Representatives elected by the people. Their right of suffrage starts at 20 years old (Morton, 1984). G. Religious Beliefs There are three major religions in Japan and these are Shinto, Buddhism and Christianity. Japanese have these rituals that they are earnestly following. The kami which means a diety, is their god. The kami are of variety forms like those that lived in stobes, hills, and other parts of the environment; those that serves as a protector god; and the diety of the rice wagon (Christopher, 1983). Kami is worshipped at the fields of rice where in they also had their feasts. Shinto focus only on the kami. Buddhism also reached Japan which was then from India. Developments like the rising of commoners, zazen or the meditation, koan or the irrational riddles and the enlightenment which is the satori. The Japanese also believed in kamikaze which is the divine wind, the hara-kiri or the suicide where it is rarely practiced now in Japan, where the Japanese commits suicide whenever they fail from any business they establishes (Christopher, 1983). H. Economics Japan is one of the world’s leading industrial nations, ranking behind only the United States and the Soviet Union. During the 1960’s and early 1970’s, Japan’s gross national product or the GNP grew at the phenomenal average rate of about 11 percent a year- more than twice that of the United States (Packard, 1987). The worst postwar slump came in the mid- 1970’s, when worldwide recession brought high levels of unemployment and inflation and a sharp decline in economic growth. Most of Japan’s postwar economic growth has been due to keen corporate management, a well- educated, industrious labor force, high levels of savings and investment, intensive promotions of industrial development, and vigorous foreign trade. Government has also been a decisive factor. Its influence is powerful and widespread, though exercised mainly though informal, cooperative arrangements with business. Giant conglomerates, many of which are interlocked in manufacturing, finance, and trade, are of prime importance in the economy. Coexisting with them are many small and medium- sized firms. Government ownership of industry and business is negligible, limited mainly to transportation and communication services. There has been little foreign investment in Japan because of numerous governmental restrictions (Gluck et. al, 1987).