I thought I'd say a few things about Japanese culture. I'm by no means an expert, but it might be informative to some and it'll be nice for me to look back on later and see how much my grasp of Japanese culture has improved.
The idea of in-groups and out-groups is huge in Japanese culture. Commonly known even by English speakers in its proper Japanese terms, the uchi -(essentially the in-group) soto (the out-group) relationship is arguably the most important concept in Japanese society. Sadly, I am not an expert on the concept, and therefore not the best person to explain it. I linked to the Wiki article which you should read if you're interested.
I will note, though, that the article points out that becoming part of any uchi group in Japan is especially difficult for foreigners. I would love to become close enough to be considered uchi with my family (and if I stay with them for a year I think it would be almost inevitable -- either I become uchi or they kick me out). Of course, it all depends on my family and how I adapt and interact with them. As a college student, I'm used to being relatively free, deciding most things for myself and having limited duties/obligations, so I can't pretend that it will not be difficult for me right away. Also, while I tend to catch on to language pretty well, I'm not as good at catching on to cultural differences. I'm hoping that if I work hard, I can overcome these mini-obstacles and become close to my family.
Similar to uchi-soto, honne and tatemae are also important and commonly discussed aspects of Japanese culture. The Wiki article describes it well, but essentially honne is what people really think, while tatemae is what they show around others. A website I just recently read called tatemae the "wrapping" that people use to soften their ideas and speech around others. Of course, it made much more sense when the website explained it, but at least I tried, right?
To be fair, there's a good amount of "wrapping" in American culture, too. But trust me when I say that it's more important and prevalent in Japan. People rarely directly speak their minds and are expected to understand the truth behind the tatemae in all situations. (This will be especially difficult for me with my small grasp of the Japanese language, but I hope to catch on.)
I was also interested to read that a lot of students try to avoid the problems honne-tatemae might cause with their host families by telling them to just "be honest" with them and skip all of the soto/tatemae parts of the relationship. The website made a good point in showing that the Japanese host families in these situations find this extremely uncomfortable, but will usually agree because they feel responsible for comforting ("wrapping") their guests. Thus, the host family has been forced to use a huge degree of tatemae while the student thinks that they have fixed all future problems. Not a good situation.
I'll try hard to learn more about Japanese society while I'm learning the language so I can share what I learn with everyone. Most importantly, I'm determined to not give up on trying to become close with my family or to feel intimidated by the different culture to the point that I stop trying to learn about it. I know that I will make mistakes, and I know that I will never perfectly fit in. Still, I'll work hard to make a positive experience out of whatever I get.
1 comments:
Post a Comment