Gambari-
The Japanese people have a unique attribute that separates them from the rest of the world. This unique attribute is the Japanese determination and patience. "Gambaru is a frequently used word in Japan, with the meaning of doing ones best and hanging on. For example, student gambaru (study hard) in order to pass entrance exams" (p 83). The book says that this sort of mentality stems from Japan's history and culture, because the country is so isolated, small, mountainy, with many natural disasters, it makes the Japanese more determined to press on. This seems to go to extremes where Japanese people don't feel at ease unless they're working. Schools just recently switched to having two 5 day weeks vs the 7 day weeks and parents don't know what to do with their kids in the off time. To not work everyday, to put in overtime, even to retire, is seen as wasteful, lazy, looked down upon. This is in sharp contrast to the American mentality where people generally only work their 9-5, 5 days a week and retire at 65. The suicide rate in Japan is especially bad in relation to these ideals; older Japanese people who reach retirement don't know what to do with themselves anymore and end up committing suicide. People often literally work themselves to death with all the overtime and not taking time off. This is really different to American ideals, people generally try not to work more then they try to work, we still work and want to work, but not near to the same level.
Kenkyo-
"Modesty or humility is one of most important aspects of proper behavior in Japan" (p 143). Kenkyo is the Japanese virtue of modesty. No matter your skill, or age, or social status, there is always a level of modesty or humility that you want to take. I feel like this relates in a lot of ways to Aimai, the ambiguity of Japanese speech. This ties back to people not wanting to upset the status quo, public opinion means the most to the Japanese. So having a certain level of modesty is a key point, they don't want to seem better than or too proud or egotistical. They also have three separate types of speech that they use in different situations, when they're talking normally, when they're talking to superiors, or when they're talking to someone of great respect. "In Japanese society, people are expected to be modest regardless of their social position; that is, they must learn to modulate the personal display of talent, knowledge, or wealth in an appropriate manner" (p 143). The Japanese run into issues when dealing with the western states, like the US. Americans are more upfront about what they feel or do or want; You still have the shy, timid, or indecisive people, but as a whole, the Japanese bring it to a different level. The book gave the example of when someone would compliment a Japanese on their English, they would seem to reject the compliment and put themselves down, something thats quite different than what most Americans may be used to.
Honne and Tatemae-
"In Japan, the terms Honne and Tatemae are often used in conversation, but the concepts themselves are seldom fully understood, they can be defined as follows: these two words are often considered a dichotomy contrasting genuinely held personal feelings and opinions from those that are socially controlled" (p 115). The idea of private vs public stance is again, relating to the Japanese mentality of not going against the grain of society. People don't want to be alienated from everyone else, what they may say or think about something in private is not always necessarily what they'll say in public. Why, because they don't want to be seen as different, or looked down upon by those around them. Americans on the other hand are all about sharing personal feelings and that differs drastically from the Japanese mentality. American's are more like to go against the grain and voice their opinions (as a whole), but often times you can find a number of people that agree with your opinion, whereas I feel like the Japanese wouldn't get that satisfaction of knowing that because they never voice their opinion in the first place.
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