My perception of Japan before I do the research

I have been interested in Japan; Japanese entertainment as well as its culture for a number of years already- 5 years to be exact. I cannot claim that I know many things nor am an expert in it as I am still discovering new things every time.

Before I got interested in Japan, I knew little about it except how the country was involved in the war, and mainly about their cuisine; like sushi. However, I got introduced to the Japanese world during the start of my secondary school days, through a senior. Interestingly, it was though Japanese comics, or otherwise known as manga. It was because of this introduction that I learnt many new things; like how most of the technological products I own originate from Japan, how the Japanese food that I had been eating all along wasn’t as authentic as I thought it was, and I even discovered about the daily customs of the Japanese culture. Most importantly, with the introduction of manga, I got into the fascinating world of Japanese entertainment and culture and which I am a fan of even till today.

Fig. 1 My first ever Manga; Tenisu no Ōjisama

I find that the Japanese people are very enthusiastic about their hobbies and interests. For example, Cosplayers spend a lot of money as well effort to make their costumes and props from scratch. Not only that, they buy or make their own accessories and wigs which are quite expensive depending on the quality. Others may buy from designers or shops but it is no less cheap. An average costume can cost up to a few hundreds and there is also the cost of attending and travelling to the conventions. Also, it usually takes at months to complete a set of costume. I have friends who cosplay and they treat it seriously, spending many hours and a lot of money each year.

[Vid 1 Cosplaying in Japan, videos ‘CNA Almost Famous- Cult to Culture’]

*this is only part 1. the rest of the parts can be watched on Youtube.

Fig. 2 Famous Cosplayer, Kaname

I know how the Japanese are very detailed and place much importance on the appearance and presentation of things. For example, when I was purchasing a souvenir in Japan, the price of it was less than Singapore five dollars and yet the staff packaged it nicely in a beautifully designed paper bag for me. Another example would be the importance they put into presenting their food dishes; visual presentation is part of the entire dining experience.

Fig. 3 Japanese food presentation

There are many other things that come to my mind when Japan is mentioned; I think about technology and Japanese entertainment immediately. When asked what my thoughts about the country are, I would say that it is very orderly and the people are polite and friendly. Japan is known for being an advanced country and that most things are easily accessible and readily available. The country also has many companies that produce technology products such as the big names Sony and Panasonic. Another good example would be the Shinkansen, also known as the Bullet Train. Japan is also known for having vending machines of all kind, making purchasing easy and fast.

Fig. 4 Fresh Bananas vending machine

Lastly, the aspect that has a big influence on me is the Japanese entertainment. After all, it is through dramas, movies and variety shows that I learnt a lot about the Japanese traditions, customs as well as their daily life. It is also through the entertainment scene and J-Pop that I managed to pick up basic Japanese language as well.

[Vid 2 & 3 e.g Gakkou e Ikou – maiko world, manner no neko ]

What represents the culture of Japan

Japanese Language

The Japanese language ranks as one the world’s most important language with over 126 million speakers inside, and outside of Japan. About 124 million of them live in Japan while the other 2 million are mostly from United States, Australia, and Asia; such as Korea and China. It is believed to be connected to the Altaic language family but also have some similarities with the Austronesian languages.

Visual Arts

The many forms of cultural expression preserve the rich Japanese fine arts tradition. This includes painting, calligraphy, sculpture, ukiyo-e (woodblock prints) and ikebana.

During the Meiji Restoration period, these were mostly often cast inside as the people of Japan are keener on being ‘Westernized”. During the 1920s, Yanagi Soetsu; the founder of Japan Folks Craft Museum, led a revitalization of Japanese folk crafts. And since then, the government of Japan has put in effort to preserve and develop the country’s culture and heritage.

Fig. 5 Tale of Genji Pictorial Scroll

Performing Arts

There are four traditional theatres in Japan. They are the noh, kyogen, kabuki and bunraku. Noh is the oldest existing form of theatre in Japan. One important aspect of it would be the masks.

Fig. 6 Noh masks

In Kyogen, masks are seldom used, even if the play has a slight relation to Noh, though most are not anymore. It was brought to Japan from China in the 8th century. Kyogen developed along with Noh and thus have close links with Noh even till today. However, Kyogen has a longer history and is characterized by its humour.

Fig. 7 Kyogen

Kabuki is a dance-drama and is known for the styling of the drama and the elaborate make-up that the some of the performers put on. However, due to actresses of Kabuki participating in prostitution, women were forbidden to be casted anymore. Men take over the role of the female characters as well.

[Vid 4 Takizawa kabuki]

Bunraku, or other known as Ningyō jōruri (Japanese puppet show) has three kinds of performers taking part in one performance. They are the Ningyōtsukai or Ningyōzukai (puppeteers), the Tayū (the chanters), and the Shamisen (a three-stringed traditional Japanese musical instrument) players.

Fig. 8 A scene from a famous Bunraku performance

Fig. 9 A Shamisen player and a Tayū

Traditional Clothing

The various traditional garments in Japan are still worn today, especially during special occasions such as weddings and festivals.

The kimono is worn by both the men and women. It is a straight sided piece of simple clothing. The wearer wraps the kimono left side over the right before it is closed with an obi (a decorative sash). Kimonos may be covered with beautiful designs or may just be simple coloured or patterned.

There are also many different kinds of Kimonos. Also, the style of the kimono may differ because of the season during which it is worn, the occasion it is worn for, and also the person wearing it.

There is also something called the Yukata, which is seen much more often. It is made of cotton (Kimono is made of silk) and is worn during the summer season. They usually have bright coloured designs and are worn during summer festivals and the Bon Odori Festival (a Japanese traditional dance).

There are also traditional footwear worn together with the traditional clothing such as zōri or geta , and tabi (split toe socks).

Fig. 10 Boyband Arashi wearing traditional clothing for a New Year’s Special Television show

Fig. 11 Female actress wearing a Kimono for a photo shoot

Fig. 12 Young girls in Yukata

[Vid. 5 Bon Odori Dance Natsu Matsuri Singapore 2011- Yukatas]

Sports

There are actually many traditional Japanese sports that many people in the world know, or are learning, but many people do not that these sports actually originates from Japan. Traditional sports of Japan include Sumo, Kendo, Aikido, Judo, Karate and Kyudo.

Sumo is a Japanese style of wrestling and is also Japan’s national sport. It originated from ancient times in Japan and was actually as performance for the gods. The sport still contains many traditional rituals that have been preserved over times.

Fig. 13 Sumo wrestling ceremony

Kendo means “Way of the Sword”. It is martial arts of sword fighting, but the real sword is not used. Instead, the Shinai, which is meant to represent the Katana (Japanese blade), is made of bamboo. The concept of Kendo is to discipline the practitioner the human character, and this is through the application of the principles of the Katana.

Fig. 14 Kendo Dojo (Hall)

Aikido is Japanese martial arts, founded by Ueshiba Morihei. Even though the sport is very physical in nature, its focus is actually to gain control over the opponent and throw him away from one by using one’s own energy. It stresses greatly on motion and the dynamics of movement.

Fig. 15 Aikido throw

Judo actually originates from the fighting system of federal Japan. It was founded in 1882 by Kano Jigoro. Judo, when loosely translated means “gentle way”. It teaches the principle of flexibility in the application of technique. Skill, technique as well as timing are more important than brute strength.

Fig. 16 Judo throw

Karate means “the way of the empty hand” since it does not usually involve weapons. It was developed in the South of Japan, in Okinawa.

Fig. 17 Karate kid movie

Kyudo literally means “way of the bow”. Among all the martial arts, it is considered the purest. Kyudo is now practiced mainly as a method of physical, moral and spiritual development. An important part of Kyudo is the ritual preparation before each shot. Training of one’s mind is very important.

Fig. 18 Kyudo

Popular culture

This is made up of many components including movies, television programmes, manga and anime, music and game, etc.

[Vid. 6 J-Pop culture Discovery Channel from Yt]

*this is only part 1. the rest of the parts can be watched on Youtube.

National character

The Japanese “national character” has been written under the term Nihonjinron. It literally means theories and discussions about the Japanese. It refers to a type of writings that focuses on issues of the Japanese national and cultural individuality and uniqueness.

The Ainu people

The Ainu people are a group indigenous people of Japan. Ainu means “human”. They originally lived in places like Sakhalin Island and Hokkaido.

The staple of the Ainu diet is a soup called “ohaw” or “rur”. Meals are seasoned with fish or animal fats, spices and salt. Their food is obtained from hunting, fishing, agriculture, and gathering of wild plants.

Fig. 19 Ohaw soup

The Ainu clothes are made from a variety of animal skins. This includes birdskin (made of feathers from sea gulls), bear, deer, fox, seal, and dog, among others. However, out of all these traditional clothes, only the “bark” clothes remain. The most popular would be the “attush” fabric which is made from fiber. This fiber is obtained from the Elm tree’s endodermis.

Fig. 20 Attush fabric

After obtaining cotton in the late Edo period through trade with the Japanese people in mainland Japan, the embroidered cotton, “chikakarpe” was born. There was also the “Kaparamip” which means thin clothes. “Ruunpe” are those that have elaborate designs and are rarely seen. “Chijiri” is the general term for clothes and are those that are directly embroidered without applique.

Fig. 21 Chikarkarpe

Fig. 22 Kaparamip

Fig. 23 Rurunpe

The Ainu believe that gods or their incarnations are found in any occurrence and item. There are various ceremonies held throughout the year including those for sending back the spirits. The Ainu dedicates their dances to the gods. This is by having festivals so that families and the villages can live together in peace. There are many different kinds of dances. One of them is the “upopo”, whereby women sit in a circle and sing to the rhythm. This is by the beating of the lids (hokai). It is actually a prelude to other dances.

Fig. 24 Upopo

The Ainu people originally did not have an alphabet of their own. And thus, tales, legends are passed on through generations orally.

Tourism impacts and authenticity of Japan’s culture

As it can be seen in Vid. 6, the Japanese people are influenced by the outside world. Even though they accept and embrace the foreign culture, they mix it into their own culture, and it comes out something different yet the same. It becomes “Japanized”. This includes things like the food they eat, the fashion and the clothes that they wear, as well as the way they think, talk and act.

For example, the fashion of the people, especially the youths in Japan are influenced by the western world. Fashion styles such as “cowboy” were a trend for a few years.

Another example would be how the diets of the Japanese people have changed. In the past, Japanese people eat very healthily, with their diets made up of rice or noodles, vegetables, meat and fruits. Soup is also included. However, with the introduction of fast food chains like McDonalds into Japan, the people of Japan are not eating as healthy as they used to anymore. The obesity rate especially among the younger generation has risen over the last few years as well.

However, the majority of the people entering and visiting Japan is actually interested in the country’s culture. They go to Japan because they want to learn more and experience for themselves the unique culture of the country. For example, hundreds and maybe even thousands of people flock to Japan to attend International Anime and Manga events.

In the past, Japan locked herself and prevented anyone from outside entering the country. However, when it opened up, the outside world gets to know and also experience the Japanese culture. This is how so many people from all around the world know of Japanese culture, whether traditional or modern. A good example would be the fact that thousands of people take the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (an international acknowledge examination) in Singapore each year. Another would be the thousands of people attending the Anime Festival Asia each year.

However, there are certain aspects of the Japanese culture that is showcased to the world that are actually not that authentic. One good example would be the food. For example, the sushi restaurants in Singapore, many of them actually do not sell “authentic” Japanese cuisine. Most of the dishes do not contain the actual ingredients used for the dish. If not, there are dishes served that do not exist in the Japanese cuisine, like those dishes that are altered with a Singapore “flavour”. Another example would be the Bon Odori Dance. When I went to the Summer festival Singapore this year, they had the Bon Odori dance session which they actually danced to famous animation songs. Those who do not know well would have thought that the Bon Odori dance had such songs as well.

Focus of calendar of events

There are many festivals and events as well as national holidays in Japan.

To have a more information, please visit these two sites.

http://www.tokyotopia.com/japanese-national-holidays.html

http://www.tokyotopia.com/japanese-festivals.html

Globalization / Disneyfied

There are evidences of Theming such as in Tokyo, Japan, each area is popular for a certain thing. Harajuku is for fashion, Akihabara is for technology and electronics, etc.

Performative labour is also evident, and this can be seen in the examples of the geishas, who perform as part of their life. Another would be the cultural performance showcases down for tourists.

Merchandising is seen everywhere in Japan, especially in the tourist spots. For example, the Tokyo Tower is one of the icons of Tokyo and Japan, and thus all over Japan, especially in Tokyo itself, merchandise such as magnets, key chains, shirts displaying the Tokyo Tower is sold.

Hybrid consumption is also evident. Japan has large shopping malls and theme parks, and these places contains anything and everything; from food, clothes, to spa services, etc.

Reflection

Japan has a very rich culture of its own and has earned itself many fans for its uniqueness. The Japanese may get influenced by the outside world, but they are proud to be Japanese, and are proud of their culture and heritage. The Japanese culture is unique and is preserved well, passed down from generations. Tourism actually has quite a good effect on Japan as many people get to know the culture and realize how different it is from being portrayed in international movies. Many people have become avid fans of the Japanese culture, and that includes me.