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U.S. Culture: lessons from the classroom / Anime gives U.S. students window on Japan Date: 4/25/2005 |
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Kimiko Manes / Special to The Daily Yomiuri I teach Japanese at community colleges outside Philadelphia. The demographics of my students have completely changed in the past 10 years. Until several years ago, the majority of my students were interested in commerce: they were businesspeople, lawyers and doctors. Now, the students enroll in my classes because they are interested in anime, manga, J-pop, or even videogames. Some of the students are also interested in joining the JET program. As a result, my classes have become more youthful. I get completely different vibes from these students compared to previous ones. While most have never visited Japan, I feel I can relate to them better. The earlier students, even those who had been to Japan, didn't have as good an understanding of it. Although they often had a lot of knowledge about Japanese culture, they retained a certain detached attitude toward it. An appropriate way to describe these students would be to use the Japanese expression "taigan no kaji" literally, "fire on the opposite bank." However, my new students come into the classroom listening to J-pop on their MP3s, and toting backpacks adorned with anime characters. They informally say, "Sensei, ohayo!" On tests, they draw their favorite anime characters and after class they exchange anime DVDs and music. I began to realize that these students were absorbing Japanese language and customs directly with their eyes and ears, not trying to intellectualize their experience the way my previous students often did. Some of the kids learn Japanese intonation and inflection through anime. Of course, this creates problems at times. For example, I'll teach: "Kyo wa ii tenki desu ne," and they'll respond "Ii tenki dayoooo," as if they were anime characters themselves--charming, but somewhat inappropriate in this context. "Why do you like anime?" I inquire. A few of the many answers are: "Because it's fun!" "The sex, and the violence." "The pictures are so pretty!" "Because it's cool!" "Because there's actually a plot and a story." One of my students said: "I find the unusual storylines refreshing from the redundant ones of American television and cinema. The characters in anime seem to be more fully developed. The characters fail, learn and grow, so I feel that I can really relate. Animation may be the initial attraction for many fans but it's the creative plots and unique storylines that keep us interested." Fans also have many choices of themes to choose from. The local anime shop carries action, fantasy, science fiction, adventure, comedy, adult, hentai, historical, samurai, mecha and detective videos. Each anime has a different and creative plot and realistic human characters along with sophisticated themes. All seem to exclaim, "These are things that you don't find anywhere else." Japanese living conditions they see in anime must be a big culture shock for them. However, what seems to perplex my students even more is Japanese psychology, as the characters operate on a different value system. In human interactions, they operate with different moral norms. There seems to be a difference in religiosity as well. As most of my students have grown up in a culture that ties morals and religion closely together, they sometimes fail to understand where the Japanese sense of morality comes from. There is no singular "God," but morals clearly do exist. What kind of society is this? What kind of place is Japan? They feel the difference viscerally; they crave answers. Thus, they register for Japanese class at the community college. As for the allure of anime, an interesting answer was "because it's uncensored." The expression in anime is quite different from Western logic and customs; this is how it might seem to them. This genre normally portrays a Japan that is not religiously oppressive in terms of human interactions, sex and violence, and therefore appears to be a refreshing paradigm for American youth. The United States, of course, seems to be an open, free country. But it is surprisingly not so; there are a lot of restrictions. The content of television, films and radio broadcasts is subject to constant censorship from audiences that are very sensitive to moral values. Americans seem to form a committee for any sort of problem. These committees, ubiquitous in the United States, supposedly represent city residents for any given issue, and try to influence policy on a specific facet through government action. Anime, at least for now, does not have to deal with such pressure. Generally, Americans believe that they have a right to express their opinions; meaning, if they do not like something they have a right to complain. They believe that eliciting both sides of the story is justice, and mistake this as democracy. They understand that whatever statements they make, they have to be responsible for their implications. If you see the United States as the realization of the ideals of the Puritans who came to the New World to escape persecution in Europe, one can comprehend this tendency. Unfortunately, nowadays--although this is my perspective--it seems that the act of taking responsibility has been forgotten. Yet many Americans continue, sometimes vehemently, to insist on their sole righteousness. When students find errors in the text that I have written, they proudly report, "Sensei, this is wrong!" I reply with a smirk, "Oh, that's not my fault. It's the computer's fault." Seeing that they are smiling wryly, I elaborate, "I learned how to blame others for mistakes after I came to the United States!" The whole class erupts in laughter. "You learned fast!" someone might quip. This is when I have to voice my admiration for Americans--they are open enough to excel at the art of humorous self-deprecation. Living in the United States, I experience cultural clashes on a daily basis. I have an ongoing interest in societal issues, and have observed how changes in fashion, customs and laws have affected how people speak and interact with each other, contributing to what one might call Zeitgeist. However, as a teacher who interacts with college students and those in the workforce, I have begun to gain a deeper insight into understanding the American psyche, and on extension, American society. When expats in Japan get together for drinks, I am told, Japanese customs and behavior are discussed endlessly. People, by nature, take similarities for granted and become curious of things that are different. In this column, which I will write monthly, I would like to voice my observations as a Japanese woman living in the United States. Manes resides in Philadelphia and teaches Japanese-language courses at Bucks and Montgomery county community colleges. She is the author of "Culture Shock of Mind." (Sunmark Publishing Company; in Japanese). |
| Source: The Daily Yomiuri |
