~If you could be Japanese?~

[~Natsumi Lam~]

If you were Japanese and lived in Japan... what would be different from how you are now and would you view anime differently?

Where in Japan would you live?

Could you handle the difference in school strictness and pressure?

And would you want to be a Jpop star or an ordinary business man?

The reason i ask this: I have met and have a few Japanese friend that were born and raised in Japan ... they wish they were from America because they had so much family pressure and school pressure that they didnt like living. They also didnt really care about mainstream anime... not until they were older. One of them was a quiet girl who wanted to be more americanized in her femininity[sp?], another guy looked like a sameri guy with long hair... kinda like onizuka from GTO live drama and he liked anime only since he was 30, he also hated family pressure and honor.... and another guy i met on the bus to Phx and he looked like a business man,,, he hated school. So i want to know if americans want to be Japanese ... just like my Japanese friends want to be in the american main stream.. Also all three liked dressing differently than in Japan.




Personally, i would get my hands on all the JDM cars and car parts, i would view all the new video games, i would buy up all the new personal electronics that were "hot off the press".... and i would definately get me one of those cool paper walled houses in the country.hahah ... oh yea i would definately be thinner than how i am now and die my black hair all different colors. I would not be able to handle the social system and the family pressure for sure!

~NL~

[Christian_Shugo]

ummmm what is with all the randow threads. but i want to be a missionary in japan and maby live there ,but still in a american way sorta lol

[~Natsumi Lam~]

General Thread :

Talk about anything in here.....


~NL~

[IZ&Trigun4life]

Well it sounded good untill you ruined it with all the family pressure and the honor and the not liking anime and the taking a crap in a hole thing....LOL! that last one was info from a friend who spent two weeks in Japan this summer. Anyway, this is gonna sound horrible but being white...or caucasian for you politically correctness folks, is borrrrring. I mean.....we're so...bland and pale....and I dunno the next best thing would to be asian. they have lighter skin and beautiful features. So I'd deal with being japanese because it's...not being white. Does that make sense? Lol.

[Mave]

There's a possibility that I might not like anime and manga if I was born and raised in the way you asked for.....I'm not even sure if I would be Christian then.

[GhostontheNet]

If you were Japanese and lived in Japan... what would be different from how you are now and would you view anime differently?

Where in Japan would you live?

Could you handle the difference in school strictness and pressure?

And would you want to be a Jpop star or an ordinary business man?

The reason i ask this: I have met and have a few Japanese friend that were born and raised in Japan ... they wish they were from America because they had so much family pressure and school pressure that they didnt like living. They also didnt really care about mainstream anime... not until they were older. One of them was a quiet girl who wanted to be more americanized in her femininity[sp?], another guy looked like a sameri guy with long hair... kinda like onizuka from GTO live drama and he liked anime only since he was 30, he also hated family pressure and honor.... and another guy i met on the bus to Phx and he looked like a business man,,, he hated school. So i want to know if americans want to be Japanese ... just like my Japanese friends want to be in the american main stream.. Also all three liked dressing differently than in Japan.

Personally, i would get my hands on all the JDM cars and car parts, i would view all the new video games, i would buy up all the new personal electronics that were "hot off the press".... and i would definately get me one of those cool paper walled houses in the country.hahah ... oh yea i would definately be thinner than how i am now and die my black hair all different colors. I would not be able to handle the social system and the family pressure for sure!

~NL~

How should I know how I would be if I were born Japanese? Although I personally think the U.S. could stand to adapt more of the Japanese (or any other honor-shame societies now or in history) for the reason that " In a guilt culture, honor is not as important and indeed we sometimes try to turn what others regard as shameful into something we can be proud of because we are "different"." (See "Honor and Shame" at http://www.tektonics.org/nutshell/nutshellhub.html for quote, info, and references). Indeed, this might cut down on things like those homosexual rallies that are blatantly shameful even to those who think homosexuality is ok. And perhaps, the U.S. church would get a boost if what one Chinese commentator says is true that, " the collectivist, honor-shame mindset was crucial to making the Chinese church I grew up in look a lot more like the one seen in Acts rather than the dead, formal service churches are popularly made out to be." http://www.tektonics.org/tsr/tillstill7-5.html

[Rev. Doc]

I've never had a desire to be anything or anyone other than myself. There is really no way of knowing the answer to any of the questions you pose. I'm satisfied with who I am, what I am doing and not paying as much for anime as they do.

[Hoshika]

Yeah, I have to agree with everyone who said there is no way to answer your questions. It would have been better to ask "Would you rather live in Japan?" than "How would you be if you were Japanese?"

I like who the skin I was born injust fine but like most people I wonder what it would be like to have a different face if I was more lighter or darker complected. If I was taller or shorter. Just a curiousity and if I was a shape shifter I'd put it to the test but in no way do I want to be stuck with a face or body that isn't my own/original or at least not stuck in a form I am displeased with.

Japanese culture is different but I wouldn't say it drives people to suicide. Things can get stressful no matter where you were born and raised and especially if your mind set dosn't go wit the the flow.
Lika already pointed out by GhostontheNet it would do America some good to adopt a sense of humility. This country is just too accepting of sin and even worse promote it as a good thing.

True there are places on this Earth that are just horrible, but I can not say the U.S. is so awesome nor say Japan is the cream of the crop. There is good either way and mess either way. I guess it just depends on the kind of mess you can take and what qualities you rather have.

[Kaorugirl]

I don't know if I'd like it,, but I AM going to live there,, I don't know for how long though. Just as long as God wants me there. (But really I don't want to leave America,, but that's what God wants me to do)

[mitsuki lover]

This is rather an interesting question.
First if I were born in Japan I would probably be a girl.
We might as well make it as totally opposite as me as possible here.
Well one reason is I always like those pictures of Japanese girls in
kimonos.
I think kimonos are cute.
Second I think I would be a bit more outgoing than I am.Probably be one
of those people who are always getting into trouble,but I would definitely
have a good sense of humor.
I would also probably be a nominal Buddhist since there aren't that many
Christians in Japan.More than likely I'd be like Kagome in the first ep. of
Inuyasha.
Would I still love anime/manga?
Yeah,it be my way of escaping a rather drab and boring life and if I had
the talent I would probably spend my days doodling anime and manga
characters in home room(ok I'm imagining myself as a teenaged
Japanese girl here. )
Where would I live:either Tokyo or Sapphoro(sp?).
What would I do for Summer?:Follow Puffy Amiyumi around!
Oh by the way I would also probably dye my hair to make it look a bit like
Hinoki's on Betterman and once I became a Christian I'd feel my room with
crosses and icons and a couple Bibles not just to show off my new faith but also to irk my Japanese mother,who I never get along with because:
a)she always yells at me to work harder and
b)she's never there.

[~Natsumi Lam~]

that was the feedback i was looking for.

~NL~

[Debitt]

To start off my answer - I am half Japanese (half Chinese) and I've always been a bit annoyed by the "I wish I were Asian" thing that a lot of anime fans have going on. I'm Asian, and quite frankly I don't feel any cooler/smarter/prettier/etc. than anyone else. Maybe I take a more active interest in my own culture and heritage and strive for a better understanding than most people in the US, but that's about it. That being said, well, I can't really answer "What would you be like if you were Japanese?" because, well...I am.

But would I want to live in Japan or do I wish I was born in Japan? The way I am now, I'd answer "no" to both these questions. Japan isn't a terrible place by any stretch, and at times may seem a little more suited to my personality than the town I live in. However, 1) the idea of added school pressures etc. does not appeal to me, therefore I am quite glad I have to put up with the stereotypical "you must do well in school or you shame your family" thing only half the time instead of all the time. Yeah, I'm lazy. 2) As for living/moving to Japan, no I'm not going to say I have any desire to do that as well. I'd LOVE to visit, maybe stay a month there and see the country, however I'm at the point in my life where I'm trying to let God's will dictate my descisions, and I haven't heard him calling me to Japan quite yet. ^^

[ashfire]

One thing I just seen on CBS Sunday Morning Show was how honest the Japanese people are. If they find somthing that does not belong to them on the street they will turn it in to the police. If you left your key in a door or in your car or motorcycle it will not be messed with. I have heard from my friend in Japan on how some of the youth in Japan have become delinquent and violent but others seem to stay with tradition.
I think some of our schools here in America might be on the same level with Japan with education and self respect I think they are private schools, academies and schools run by churches. One thing is that you would find students wearing uniforms and the teachers have control of the classroom.
I try to be honest if I find something that belongs to someone and find someway to get it back to them or protect it until they get it back.
When I was in public school I remember that there was a dress code on how students dressed for school but today when I see the student standing at bus stops or walking to school I can't believe what they think is appropriate for school.

[Kaligraphic]

The only thing that I can really guarantee is that if I was born in Japan, I'd probably eat more Japanese food.

[GhostontheNet]

Japanese culture is different but I wouldn't say it drives people to suicide.

I'd say it drives some people to suicide anyway.

Things can get stressful no matter where you were born and raised and especially if your mind set dosn't go wit the the flow.
Lika already pointed out by GhostontheNet it would do America some good to adopt a sense of humility. This country is just too accepting of sin and even worse promote it as a good thing.

That is some of what I was saying anyway, as humility is not the only component. Its not as if Japan is a bulwark against sin, and I strongly suspect ashfire's examples of "honesty" stem from not from good will towards the person in question, but instead likely the desire to avoid being shamed in their actions. Indeed, the downside of an honor-shame system is that one will not feel anything about comitting misdeeds until they are caught, which can be psuedo-offset by the addition a personal rather than collective conscience, but is better offset by the fear of YHWH and His plan for justice.

[Alice]

I think I'm glad to be an American.

Because of my shy nature (in person), I might fit in with being reserved and Japanese, had I been born there. However, I've never really felt like I wanted to be Japanese. Nor do I think I'd like it.

I'd probably be shorter too. And frankly it would have been hard to feel more pressured about schoolwork, just because of all the pressure I put on myself. Sorry if that's false, but that's how it strikes me.

[Sammy Boy]

One thing I just seen on CBS Sunday Morning Show was how honest the Japanese people are. If they find somthing that does not belong to them on the street they will turn it in to the police. If you left your key in a door or in your car or motorcycle it will not be messed with.

I think there's a bit of a flipside to this. A pastor that I know who lives in Japan says that because some Japanese people don't wish to offend you, they will say "yes I will come" if you invite them to church, even when they really do not intend to. When the time comes, they just don't show up. But of course this is only for _some_ Japanese people.

And yeh, there's quite a lot of pressure in Japanese society... I have a Japanese friend who works around 12 hours each weekday in the office. Add travelling time to that and he hardly has enough time left to sleep let alone do other stuff.

I don't think I'd like to be Japanese, simply because living in Japanese society seems to place so many demands on the person. It's similar with people living in China and Hong Kong, but not as much, I think.

I'm just glad I live in Sydney now. The 9 -5 work schedule suits me just fine.

[mitsuki lover]

To start off my answer - I am half Japanese (half Chinese) and I've always been a bit annoyed by the "I wish I were Asian" thing that a lot of anime fans have going on. I'm Asian, and quite frankly I don't feel any cooler/smarter/prettier/etc. than anyone else. Maybe I take a more active interest in my own culture and heritage and strive for a better understanding than most people in the US, but that's about it. That being said, well, I can't really answer "What would you be like if you were Japanese?" because, well...I am.

But would I want to live in Japan or do I wish I was born in Japan? The way I am now, I'd answer "no" to both these questions. Japan isn't a terrible place by any stretch, and at times may seem a little more suited to my personality than the town I live in. However, 1) the idea of added school pressures etc. does not appeal to me, therefore I am quite glad I have to put up with the stereotypical "you must do well in school or you shame your family" thing only half the time instead of all the time. Yeah, I'm lazy. 2) As for living/moving to Japan, no I'm not going to say I have any desire to do that as well. I'd LOVE to visit, maybe stay a month there and see the country, however I'm at the point in my life where I'm trying to let God's will dictate my descisions, and I haven't heard him calling me to Japan quite yet. ^^

I can understand how you feel a bit as I am part Irish and on St.Patrick's
Day every year all of a sudden everyone in the U.S. WANTS to be or
CLAIMS to be Irish even if they're not.It can get a bit rankling at times.

On the other hand no better way to try and understand another culture than by imagining what it's like to belong to it.

[GhostontheNet]

I can understand how you feel a bit as I am part Irish and on St.Patrick's
Day every year all of a sudden everyone in the U.S. WANTS to be or
CLAIMS to be Irish even if they're not.It can get a bit rankling at times.

On the other hand no better way to try and understand another culture than by imagining what it's like to belong to it.

Forgive me if I'm being niave, but it seems to me in general the bloodlines of my fellow Americans are extremely mixed, indeed, "the great melting pot" they call out country. Chances are high some fraction of many people's blood is Irish.

[~Natsumi Lam~]

part of the reason some white people look to or rather want to be of a different culture[or marry into another culture] is because [like myself] i have no family history that has deep rooted culture that my family clings to. We made our own culture... i have no favorite food of my ansestors, i have no culturally sound clothing.... i have no special language.... i have no special art. All i can look to are my grandparents and they dont know what they are made up of. I am part german[ i think], part Native American [ 1/36th], irish [i think]..... i am made of a whole bunch of different white cultures.

SO it is likely for me to desire to have a past that extends more than two generations with special foods, ceremonies, clothing....

in anime they pray to their dead family, have special clothing, talking of their last name [or rather first] as something of pride or defeat. I for one only have that name out of passage... so for me to want to stay in my culture and of my culture is pointless because i have only culture as far as my arm extends.

So dont look badly upon those who say " i wish i was asian, or i wish i was this or that... because some of us dont even have this or that to look at...


~Natsumi Lam~

[Debitt]

I don't look badly on anyone, I simply think that a lot of people hold the "I wish I was asian" sentiment because they want to be the number one otaku and know everything about anime and speak Japanese, blah blah blah. I have absolutely nothing against respect for another culture, what annoys me are malinformed or juvenille statements like that made by wannabe "otakus" who know nothing about the countries they idolize except for the fact that they eat sushi and make anime.

[~Natsumi Lam~]

i agree

~Natsumi Lam~

[Sammy Boy]

Hey Natsumi, this may be a bit off-topic, but have you tried searching for the origins of your last name on websites such as ancestry.com? Sometimes they can tell you more about where your ancestors may have lived, etc.

Cheers.

[mitsuki lover]

As far as it goes I'm pretty satisfied with the way my ancestry goes.
Then again I do descend from *cough CHARLEMAGNE cough*.

[Starfire1]

I'd crumble under the pressure for school. I know I wouldn't be able to handle it unless it was something I was raised in. My hair would definitely be dyed purple by now. I can't help but wonder how I'd look. Think of a black girl mixed with bits of native american, irish, and scottish turned asian. I could see myself living in Osaka, being a fair student-nothing particularly special about my grades, very much into the street style there and still into anime. As far as religion I do not think I'd be as strong in my faith there. I don't think I'd be a Buddhist(sp?) either, but just have taken on some of their philosophy. And I'd definitely crumble under the pressure of the school system there. I know that for sure.

[~Natsumi Lam~]

Hey Natsumi, this may be a bit off-topic, but have you tried searching for the origins of your last name on websites such as ancestry.com? Sometimes they can tell you more about where your ancestors may have lived, etc.

Cheers.

yea i did... it is irish.. unless its changed. and my moms last name is irish. But we dont do anything irish and on saint patricks day we feel no connection. I am also german and just found out i am part native american. but i dont have any family traditions and so on that i have held onto because for many many generations i guess my ansestors havent cared.

~NL~

[Yojimbo]

I don't look badly on anyone, I simply think that a lot of people hold the "I wish I was asian" sentiment because they want to be the number one otaku and know everything about anime and speak Japanese, blah blah blah. I have absolutely nothing against respect for another culture, what annoys me are malinformed or juvenille statements like that made by wannabe "otakus" who know nothing about the countries they idolize except for the fact that they eat sushi and make anime.

I completely agree. I'm sorry guys but I just think this is kind of ridiculous. There's a reason some of us are Japanese and the rest of us aren't. I know this thread was sort of made in jest, but it still irks me. I mean really just because you like Japanese anime/manga, Japanese gadgets, videogames, food, and the language, doesn't mean you should want to be one. I personally like being who I was born as, which is an American mutt. And I wouldn't have it any other way. It's good to know your roots but it's not essential. I am half Irish, and then a good splattering of German/Cherokee/Swiss.

I know some people, not here though, that wish they weren't white because they feel guilty for Imperialism and whatnot. I just have to laugh at that no race on the planet is exempt from some kind of cruel expansionism.

[GhostontheNet]

part of the reason some white people look to or rather want to be of a different culture[or marry into another culture] is because [like myself] i have no family history that has deep rooted culture that my family clings to. We made our own culture... i have no favorite food of my ansestors, i have no culturally sound clothing.... i have no special language.... i have no special art. All i can look to are my grandparents and they dont know what they are made up of. I am part german[ i think], part Native American [ 1/36th], irish [i think]..... i am made of a whole bunch of different white cultures.

SO it is likely for me to desire to have a past that extends more than two generations with special foods, ceremonies, clothing....

in anime they pray to their dead family, have special clothing, talking of their last name [or rather first] as something of pride or defeat. I for one only have that name out of passage... so for me to want to stay in my culture and of my culture is pointless because i have only culture as far as my arm extends.

So dont look badly upon those who say " i wish i was asian, or i wish i was this or that... because some of us dont even have this or that to look at...


~Natsumi Lam~

Well said, to sum it up as J.P. Holding said of Biblical culture, "We put the individual first while they put the group first. People did not go out to "find themselves" because they found identity in the group they were in: Family, religion, friends." (same linK) Ultimately people around here have little identidy outside of what they invent, and if they feel that becomes dubious they have something of an identidy crisis. If one were to try to draw their identidy from external sources, they have few options that will work. Perhaps some might try a grounding in the Republic and its values. I generally draw mine from my affiliation with the universal Catholic, not simply Roman Catholic, but in the old terminology the universal Church and its project.

[Ingemar]

Born Japanese...

I hate questions like these. It is no reflection of yourself, though. The problem with this kind of question is that it leads to all sorts of existentialist speculationism. One cannot truly answer "I would like" or "I would hate to be" [different race] is because to be born and to be raised is something completely out of our control and not of our choosing. To say you would like or dislike being something else borrows heavily from your current impression of [other thing] and would not actually be honest. To make an example, when someone says, "You should be glad that Charles Martel drove back the Muslims at Tours, else you would be a Muslim," would being a Muslim be a bad thing? (Of course, for us who know Jesus Christ then yes--but if you were raised an Arab Muslim, you would probably WANT to participate in a stoning, or have a clitodirectomy if you are female, because those are things you are taught to accept).

Given my response, I cannot say whether or not I'd like it if I were born Japanese.

>>part of the reason some white people look to or rather want to be of a different culture[or marry into another culture] is because [like myself] i have no family history that has deep rooted culture that my family clings to.<<

Not to mention, over a century of "white guilt." I am not white, and my heritage IS as one of the oppressed races--Filipino. But I think it's sad what has come to white people (I also hate the term white--it has a nebulous meaning and can also refer to individuals [of certain minorities] that liberals hate). Any culture around the world can celebrate its heritage, but for any given white ethnic group to do the same (except maybe the Irish) is considered 'racism.' I guess that's at least one reason I'm glad I'm not white. That may be one reason why most whites think that "whiteness" is an achromatic (to borrow from Marc Miyake) trait, that it merely waters down someone else's ethnicity rather than add to it.

[Alice]

But I think it's sad what has come to white people (I also hate the term white--it has a nebulous meaning and can also refer to individuals [of certain minorities] that liberals hate). Any culture around the world can celebrate its heritage, but for any given white ethnic group to do the same (except maybe the Irish) is considered 'racism.' I guess that's at least one reason I'm glad I'm not white. That may be one reason why most whites think that "whiteness" is an achromatic (to borrow from Marc Miyake) trait, that it merely waters down someone else's ethnicity rather than add to it.

I know what you mean, Ingemar.

I used to feel ashamed of my heritage, without any good reason.