I'm going to be honest here-Japanese people are still largely a mystery to me. This is mostly due to the fact that there is a huge language barrier between me and about 99% of this country. Of course, language isn't everything, there's still a lot that can be learned through observation. But I feel that my own incompetence in the Japanese language is obscuring a huge portion of my interaction with the people. Hopefully this will change as I get better at Japanese and bolder about speaking.
Two random observations:
-Public transportation is quiet. Most Japanese seem to keep to themselves and not bother anyone else when on trains and buses. Some of my own experiences in the U.S. have been similar, but not quite to this extent.
-Umbrella sharing doesn't have quite the same attitude, at least in my experience. In one case, I was walking back to the dorms in the rain along the bike path that runs by the komatsu plant. I didn't have an umbrella with me that day, and as I was walking this middle-aged guy came up to me and shared his umbrella. He started making small talk (turns out he works at the plant) and held the umbrella over my head until I had to make a turn towards my seminar house. Another time, one of the girls that had been in my Kyoto tour group insisted on holding her umbrella over my head as we walked back to Kansai Gaidai in the rain, despite me telling her several times that I didn't really mind getting wet.
The thing I've learned from these so far? It seems to me that Japanese people can be extremely open or extremely closed off, depending on the situation. There's probably many other examples of this that I haven't experienced yet. Or maybe I'm completely misinterpreting things based on only the encounters I've had. Either way, I still want to learn more.
PS.- I changed the blog name.
3 comments:
YOU CHANGED THE BLOG NAME
Also, interesting experiences. I can't wait to see you get bolder and more willing to speak Japanese with the Nihonjin!
Our topic this week is "Japanese People," or more specifically how we as anthropologist go about representing a group of people. I can understand how the language barrier can be difficult. It is something all of us visual anthropologists have to deal with. In the meantime you can continue with your observations and study. I like how you use your personal experiences here, but I think you are trying to apply them to broadly to explain all Japanese people. A more specific focus would be helpful. You also want to examine the context of your experiences. Sometimes the trains are quite loud and why do you think people shared their umbrella with you? (Where were you at the time?) How are your photos illustrating your text? For example, if you are discussing the noise level inside of the train, why do you provide a picture of the outside of a train?
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