Kenneth G. Henshall

The Mainstream of Society: Being a Normal Japanese

There is a widespread perception among western visitors to Japan that Japanese children are spoiled and ill-disciplined, especially the boys. Unchecked by their parents, children point and giggle at the funny foreigners. They butt into adult conversations. They queue-jump blatantly at bus-stops. Once on the bus they remain seated while infirm elderly people stand swaying precariously next to them. They are five times less inclined to help around the home than American children. They go to bed late, with young junior high students of 13 or so commonly staying up beyond midnight and even preschoolers often staying up beyond 10 p.m.1 And they have every latest gadget and toy, with cost seemingly no object.

Of Courtiers and Warriors: Early and Medieval History (710–1600)

The Yamato state needed a capital. Without this its centralised system of control would have no real core. In the final stages of the Yamato period there had been a few attempts to establish a permanent capital, but these had all failed for one reason or another.1 Then, in 710, the capital was moved to Heijo, better known now as Nara. Nara was modelled on the T’ang Chinese capital, Ch’ang-an. It was a similar rectangular grid pattern, but at 20 sq km was only about a quarter of Ch’ang-an’s area. In less than a hundred years the capital was to move again. Nara proved not to be the hoped-for permanent site. Nevertheless, it represents the high point of the Japanese effort to learn from China. Physically, China’s influence was seen not only in the design of the city but also in grand buildings such as the Todaiji Temple—the largest wooden building in the world—and the huge bronze statue of Buddha it contained. In broader terms, the age of the Nara capital may have been brief, but it shows most clearly the workings of the ritsuryo and other Chineseinspired political and legal reforms. And it was during the age of Nara that Chinese writing led to the appearance of the first real books produced in Japan, the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki chronicles of 712 and 720. These were followed shortly afterwards by the first poetry anthologies, the Kaifuso (Fond Recollections of Poetry) of 751 and the Manyoshu (Collection of Ten Thousand Leaves) of 759. Some documents were even printed—another Chinese influence.2 However, the respect for things Chinese did not lead to indiscriminate imitation. More often than not there were distinctive Japanese modifications to Chinese ‘imports’.

On the Fringes of Society: Minorities and Other Marginals

Living in a particular country does not necessarily mean being accepted into its society. This is not just true of foreign residents or recent immigrants. It can also apply to those whose roots in their nation go back countless generations. The reasons why such people are never fully accepted by their native society, but are marginalised on its fringes, reveal much about the values of that society.

Conclusion: Japan as Itself, and the Aesthetics of Purity

Japan does, after all, make sense. It may do things differently. It may confuse us, frustrate us, challenge us, but ultimately it proves not to lie beyond the frontiers of human understanding. Probably to the considerable disappointment of many Japanese, it is not destined to be eternally veiled in mystery. It is knowable, even to westerners.

The Essentials of Society: Men and Women

In many ways Japan is a male-dominated society. Though attitudes towards traditional gender roles are slowly changing, men still occupy around 95 per cent of positions of authority in business and politics, as opposed to the 60 to 70 per cent common in many western countries. They earn more, have better promotional opportunities, and are better educated.1 Outside the home, they make almost all the major decisions.