ibunka TB_U1

Cultural Commentary lt l Co entary

Personal stories and opinions As we begin our journey through many of the aspects of everyday life , the authors would like to remind you that the Ibunka Survey was conducted with the goal of gathering a range of personal stories and opinions. It was not designed to capture any deYinitive, wide-ranging “truths” about culture and cultural difference. The responses gathered in this textbook and the website were chosen to help illustrate some of the interesting differences and similarities that we think students and teachers would like to explore. Cultural analysis However, in these Cultural Commentary pages, we would like to share with you a number of general ideas that have found some traction in intercultural literature, as well as observations from our own Yindings and experience. They may be useful for teachers, to see where we are coming from, and to help guide students toward extensions and further studies. Please take them all with a grain of salt. We offer them to you, the teacher, in the spirit of cultural analysis , as introduced by Raymonde Carroll in her excellent book Cultural Misunderstandings : the French-American experience . She posits that fostering intercultural awareness means helping students to conceive of the existence of cultural systems different from one’s own. Behaviors that might seem illogical, dishonest or even crazy when seen from the prism of one’s own cultural logic can actually make sense once we understand that they are part of cultural systems that have their own logic. This is one of the goals of the Ibunka Survey and also of this textbook, a goal that we think is simultaneously modest and ambitious. Introducing oneself: blend in or stand out? The topic of Unit 1 is self-introduction, and by extension, the ways in which we present ourselves to others. From the responses to the Ibunka Survey, and personal experience, we can posit that when introducing oneself to a group, there are two distinct common patterns: - the person introducing themself focuses on what they have in common with others (this is largely the norm in Japan, for several reasons) - the person introducing themself focuses on what is unique about them, and tries to make themself “memorable” to others (this is the norm in many “Western” cultures) Both of these behaviors can be rather shocking to people from “the other side.” People from a culture in which uniqueness is valued, when hearing someone from a commonality-Yirst culture might wonder, “Why don’t they want to show themselves? Are they hiding something?” Conversely, people from the other point of view might think, “Why don’t they acknowledge the group, why are they so totally obsessed with themselves?” An example of this can be seen in One Step Further response number 12 (p.76), in which a Japanese respondent admits that self-introductions in the US sounded to him like people “constantly bragging.” “I like music” It has been noted that people from a Japanese cultural background tend to describe themselves in very general terms, using phrases that apply to almost everyone. “I like to sleep”, “I like shopping”, or “I like music” are common descriptions of one’s hobbies. Generally speaking, “Westerners” tend to use more speciYic descriptions. such as “I like jazz”, or “I’m really into science-Yiction movies.” This points to a cultural pattern, in which we can see a general emphasis on roles in Japanese culture, and an emphasis on identity in most Western cultures (Azra, 2011). One’s roles vary with the situation, and adapting to one’s role in a given situation is easier when commonality is sought. Conversely, one’s identity is supposed to be constant, and expressing it clearly without too much regard for the context can be seen as a sign of truthfulness/openness. Formal or less formal, self-assured or self-deprecating Another aspect of self-introductions is the level of formality. In one of the responses to the Ibunka Survey, an American respondent comments that, “Here in Japan, I’ve always found it remarkable how formal the greetings seem.”(One Step Further, response no.1) Of course, American culture is known to be quite casual as a whole in this regard. Europeans for example, while often not being as formal as Japanese people, usually believe that a certain decorum is appropriate and desirable in most social situations. In Japan, there is a “manual” to be adhered to; this is simultaneously reassuring (“do this and you have done what you are supposed to”) and constricting (“even if you want to say something else, it’s not on the menu.”)

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UNIT 1 | CULTURAL COMMENTARY