Japanese mindset - part 1

In defining people, and their cultural groupings, two terms are sometimes used:
- frame, which describes the circumstantial situation of a person i.e. place of residence, work etc.
- attributes, which is what a person is, so what skills they possess, who they're related to etc.

In Japanese society, frame is the most important factor in determining social groupings - where you work, what town you live in, who lives in your house - is more important than what attributes you have. This is in contrast to most other societies, which place huge importance on the value of family, the most extreme being the caste system in India where where you're born into determines you for your whole life.
For Japanese, this means that their workplace becomes more important than anything else, and more shockingly to me, that their homes once they get married are more important than the ones they come form - to the extent that even servants are included and are sometimes considered more important than sisters or even parents who live in other houses.

This is the first point made in a book i've started to read, and it's fascinating. I'll give you a little summary over the next week or so.

The next point is a further distinction. One of the things that it stresses is that the nature of Japanese people is one that will always make rankings. No one is ever exactly the same, unless they're extremely close.
The next distinction, which will clarify this, is that of the vertical relationship compared to the horizontal one - i.e. older-younger vs peer to peer. The vertical relationship is the most important one in Japanese society, i.e. that if you are older, or if you have worked for the company for longer, you are superior to that of your colleague. You are always placed in this vertical system, even with people who work in the same department in the company as you.
As this tie is more important, along with your frame, your alliance will be with your sempai (your elder) and your kohai (your junior) rather than with people doing the same job but for a different company. This is so ingrained that not even the highest member in the vertical chain is able to make a change to this (though this vertical distinction is sometimes only really realized by the youth once they start a career).
This is a mindset that has become under increasing pressure recently with smaller business because merit has very little swing with your position - in fact what university you went to is far more important than what marks you got when graduating. But it is also a more stable mindset and form of ranking, which has allowed Japanese life to be so regulated.

2 more points on this latter topic:
- this distinction of older to younger goes so far, that even in a dining setting, the elder sits by the window with the plants, but the inferiour sits on the worst chair by the entrance.
- this distinction has made the Japanese mind as uninquisitive as it is. A junior takes great care not to create open confrontation with his superior (and as a distinction between senior and junior is made almost everywhere, you usually don't say a thing). it's better not to say anything than to say "no" or "i disagree" and risk being cast out of the group - which is why many conversations are one-sided sermons, usually intellectually dull and emotionally enjoyable only to the speaker, not the listener. I haven't explained this point nearly enough but i just want to say that this explains so many things i have noticed - most people hate goign to office parties when their boss is there, and that in Japanese no one says "iie", the Japanese word for no. They instead choose to use, "ii desu" it's fine (for example if asked if you want the receipt, saying ii desu means no), "...wa irimasen" (I dont need...) or "chigau/chigaimasu" it's different.

Now that shit would not fly back home!

Anyway, that's what i've understood from the book so far.
On a slightly different note, i think you may find this link quite interesting:
It's a video of a penis festival they hold near here every year - they carry a penis statue, and eat phallic-shaped ice lollies and everything!
Enjoy
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXh3UUwn1_I&feature=fvw

Last day at junior high school

Yesterday I finished at my junior high school here in Japan. Although part of me was glad, part of me was very sad too. Let me just point out that this was mainly in relation to the students - i felt vastly unappreciated by the teachers. (i think if their appreciation showed at all it was in encouraging the kids to talk to me, that's all).

But let me describe the day to do - it was quite something!

So I got to school my usual time - around 8am and on my chair i found some chocolates from one of the 3rd year teachers who is always so sweet - she's about 24 and i think she regrets not being able to communicate with me (the feeling's mutual) - and with the chocolates was a note written in English. I was touched.
I went outside to greet the students, not a requirement of my job but something i enjoy doing and the students have said they'll remember me by. I was called back inside by the kyotosensei (vice principal) and I had to give a speech to the staff room - something i'd prepared in Japanese and i said i with bad pronunciation (in hindsight).
Then I had to give a speech to all the students in a morning assembly. The way these work is that all the studnets sit in a line in their classes and there is complete silence with the teachers inspecting their behaviour, then several bows to the kochosensei (prinicpal) and anyone else who has to say something. Therefore I was given a bow too - it's weird when 750 people do that for yoU! I started my speech with good morning - and i got several back from the students too - that was funny. When i finished my short but sweet speech, one of the English teachers translated it. A student then came up and gave me these beautiful pink flowers. When it was finished the students parted, like the red sea would've done for moses in the stories, and they clapped as the kochosensei and I walked passed. Now that was just embarrasing! I hate that kind of spotlight (esp as i was walking with this huge bunch of flowers).

Classes started as normal. I did the usual last classes, which involved playing shiritori for the last 15 minutes (game: ate -> egg -> guitar etc) which has never failed in any class, and a picture with the class. My schedule was pretty packed as I was asked (and gladly accepted) to go to the special needs class in my free period, which I have occassionally done in the past. They are so cute, they did 2 dances for me! I love going to that class. All i know is that there's a girl with down's syndrome and 3 with autism, but maybe asperger's as it's not very obvious.

Working back to back until lunch and at lunch I ate with my 2nd year students in the lunchroom (no pictures of this but there's only space for 4 classes in the lunchroom, so they rotate who can eat hot lunch and the rest eat a cold lunch in their classrooms). Luckily it was a yummy beef curry lunch. After lunch i went to my last real class: 107 (class 7 of the first years) and they are so great to teach. They always clap when i do something exciting and they're studious but really fun! I will miss them the most, maybe. At the end, one of the girls asked for a hug, and she started crying. I gave her like 5 more, and took some a photo with her but i felt so bad!

I had been asked earlier if i was teaching in my 6th period, because a 3rd year class wanted me to come to their class for picture shiritori (like shiritori above but you draw out the words instead of writing them) which was really fun. But i also wanted to say goodbye to most of the students i could. I left and went to the teachers room to finish some paperwork. When the students started leaving i went to say goodbye and I got more responses than usual. some 1st years asked me for a message in their notebooks, some gave me little notes, and one, who had given me a gift, also started crying! The most bizarre though was when some 3rd year boys came and saw me with this heat pack (signed by a 3rd year girl) so they wanted to give me something. One gave me his heat pack and a band-aid (anything he could) and another gave me his lunch ticket for monday! It was so random.

I put the photos on a memory stick for whoever wanted the pictures i took of their class, and when i finally finished i packed up (luckily a teacher offered to drive some stuff over) i was ready to go and everyone around in the staff room came and waved me out. I thought that was very sweet. And then as I walked away and got some last "ester! byebye!" from the students, i didn't really feel any different. Is that a bad thing? In my mind, i was relieved, and touched.

I know I'm coming back though - many 3rd year students asked me to see their graduation ceremony on the 9th of march, and also i've agreed to play with the brass band at a concert. Now that is something I did not see happening here in Japan!I was asked by one of my English teachers to play for the students, and the music teacher (as well as some students!) asked me to be the special guest. How could i say no?