I am back in Japan know. It feels like I never left. However, Japan is a place like that. All the patterns for ones life are set by society. So one can let ones hands go and never decide a single thing about ones life. Here, society tells you who to be, just like the USA. But is is different some how. It is hard for me to put my finger on it.
My guess is that American (including Canadian) people can be as different as they want to be externally. However, the second someone finds out about them being a truely genuine and unique person, the person often come under fire from those around them. In Japan, everyone is externally the same. They were the same clothes, say the same phrases and try to project the same pseudo-offical images of themselves. But, in Japan no ones gives a shit about who you are. All anyone cares about is that you followed the form. For instance, here all you have to be is polite, even if it is obvious that you hate the person who you are being polite to. Whereas in America people are much more fixated on what they percieve is going on in the other persons head.
I know I haven't quite nailed this on the head yet, but I will keep trying.
Posted by Elijah at April 24, 2003 09:10 PM