Mariko's Room

Sexuality

2007-01-11T07:36:00.000-08:00

The chapter about sexuality mentioned some important issues. In p. 176, White mentioned that manga played an important role for children’s getting sexual information and that among 1.9 billion manga sales in 1989, 474 million were sexual. I think this number is pretty high and this is true today too. Most of the children, especially teenagers, read manga often in Japan, so they naturally get sexual information. However, some of the monthly manga magazines such as ‘Ribon’ is made for elementary school girls and they rarely show sexual scenes. If there was some, they are only kiss scenes or something like that. But I believe elementary school girls see more other matured comics.
In addition, love hotel is unique and important for children in Japan. Nowadays, there are many kinds of love hotels, such as a room made like sea and bed on a ship, and a room with a swing. Some of them are like the amusement park, which enables couples to go light-heartedly. There are some hotels with no people in the entrance. In the hotels, couples get room keys by a vending machine. This suggests that many young couple can go without fear of being seen. I think this leads to the dating methods. In page 183, White mentioned that in Japan, couples go out and see sightseeing for example, and often in America, 70% of the dating is going to the house. I think because of the love hotels and many places made for dating in Japan give less chance of going to the house and meet their parents.

Friendship

2006-12-14T15:12:00.000-08:00

The biggest noticeable issue in the chapter is making groups in Japan. This is significant in today too and I believe making groups leads to bullying, izime. As White mentioned in the book, there is a term ‘Shinyu’, best friend, in Japan. Japanese students, more common about girls, usually make some shinyus and make a group. The group has a kind of leader. I think the group is divided by students’ characters, now such as gal (girls wearing short skirt, white long sox, dying hair, having their ear or the navel pierced) or ikemen (handsome boys who are good at sports, dying hear), quiet people (usually people studying hard during exam, not breaking the school law), otaku and kurai people (people who are playing card game in the classroom during the break time). There often is a student who could not belong to any of these groups and be the target of bullying. Among these groups, I believe people in otaku or quiet group have more chances of being bullied and there is an image that most of the people doing bullying come from gal or ikemen group. Often otaku and quiet group are afraid of gal and ikemen group, because people in the groups do not want to be the target of next bullying.
In addition, the matter about Japanese girls being together all the time is significant in Japanese friendship. The example I can think of from reading the book is that girls in Japanese school always go to the bathroom together. They want to belong to any of the groups not to be lonely and not to be bullied. Thus, they take action together all the time even though the place is bathroom.
These relationships are common in junior high school or high school, not in the university. The reason of this is that there is no HR class, in which students has same kind of subjects and be together all the time, in the university. Therefore, students may learn to act alone and not to make any group which leads to the decrease of bullying.

materialism

2006-12-05T19:01:00.000-08:00

There are several ways in which the marketing industry tries to shape trends and to influence teenagers to buy things, such as making a character, logos, and the events. ‘White day’ was made in Japan, and I have heard of the news that one third of the sales of a CHOCOLATE company in Japan in one year were made during Valentine and White day term. This suggests that the day affects strongly to the customer and the sales. In addition, White mentioned that the writer of comic books is treated as an artist in Japan. The marketing industry is using this trend too and I can see this in the commercials of shampoo using pictures of writer of ‘Slam Dunk’( Japanese popular comic book). Also, I have heard that the fashion brand ‘Vivian’ increased its sales using ‘NANA’ in which the protagonist often wears the clothes of this brand, as a promotion. Moreover, Japanese’ favoring ’kawaii’ character can be seen in the increase of sales ny using ‘LUMINE chan’(name of department) and Suica’s penguin. Furthermore, I believe models are one of the important factors for consumers to buy things. For instance, the clothes which a model ‘Ebi-chan’ who is now really popular among teenagers wears in a magazine increased its sale double.
Although some things in the book, such as ‘Naui’, are out of date, I thought White pointed out many important points which can be said today too.

Comic books

2006-12-05T19:00:00.000-08:00

White pointed out several things about comic books in the book. She said that there are much more comics and readers of them in Japan and I realize this everywhere, such as at school and in the train. Students are lending and burrowing comics in the school and children, even adults, are often reading comics on the train. This may be a surprising thing for foreign countries. In addition to this, White wrote about the difference in the girls’ comics and boys’ comics. They are still different now and from my point of view, the biggest difference is in the size of the eye. Also, girls’ comics are mostly love story with happy ending. I believe comics in U.S.A. often have actions with black humor in it, so there is a difference in the story in Japan and in America. Furthermore, people tend to treat the writer of the comics as an artist in Japan. I think the visual is really important factors in choosing the comics for Japanese people. They sometimes have illustration books of the writer. This is usual and does not mean ‘Otaku’ unless they are really cute characters, such as the maids. Moreover, this was not mentioned in the book, but recently, most of the popular comics in Japan are made into animation, drama, and movies. ‘NANA’, which became to be animation, and movies, is a good example of this. Also, the comics with other languages are often sold, such as Chinese, French, English ‘NANA’.
The addiction of comics in Japan seems unnatural to the people from foreign country; however, Japanese people do not think so and the comics are the important pop-culture to them.

School

2006-11-09T05:05:00.000-08:00

The book showed the amount of studying time in Japan and U.S.A. and it says that there are more homeworks in Japan than in U.S.A.. From my experience of going to the American School in the Philippines, I believe this is not true in high school and junior high school. The examination is the most important for grade in Japan, and not the homework. On the other hand, homework and the class participation seem to be crucial for getting good grade.
The book also mentions that school refusal has become a media headline topic in the past few years, replacing previous news leaders such as bullying and school regulations abuses. I was surprised with this, because I have seen a media making topics of school refusal as headline nowadays. This might suggest that schools will continue to do the same and the number of school refusal might not decrease.
The high school I used to go had little rule. We had no uniform, were allowed to pierce our ears, and to dye our hair. However, I think this is rare in Japan and in general the schools, especially private schools, have much more meaningless(I think) rules, such as the color of sox, and hair. Less rules make more originality in students. And I believe most of the teachers can not explain why the school requires students so many complicated things, such as 'why they can only wear white sox'. Therefore, I think to make students have more originality, schools in Japan should give less strict rules. If the school does not force them much, they will obey and have responsibility in the same time. On the other hand, American system of school, which has less rule than Japan, is better for students in this aspect.

Revised one: comment on chapter 3

2006-10-26T23:38:00.000-07:00

In this chapter, White pointed out that in America, the family, particularly on working mothers are to be blamed. However, I have heard of the news that nowadays, the number of house-husband, instead of house-wives, is increasing, and the wife goes to work instead. Thus, I believe the issue of blaming is changing a bit right now. Besides, White says that parents have a safe relationship with their children in Japan in conclusion, but I believe this is changing also while there are a lot of criminals of their parents or of their children in Japan recently. In addition to this, the book says that a rise in the numbers of teens who do work while attending school does not represent increased independence, but rather, real need in their families’ income. I think we can say same thing for 'NEET', who do not work and also do not go school. The number of ‘NEET’ is increasing and they cannot be independent. In the same time, they make real need in their families’ income by living with their family and staying at home all the time.
Besides, I really agree with the idea of Felixthecat’s comment which my classmates and I discussed in class. 教育ママor the educational mother is a big issue in Japan right now. I know some educational mothers and they seem to be the one who give a lot of pressures to their children, and not fathers. I saw the document of the educational mother on TV. The mother teaches child at home after the child comes back from the cram school everyday. They do not actually have time to play. On the day of the entrance exam of the elementary school, the mother goes to school with her child cheering up. Then, on the day when the result comes up which tells that the child was accepted by the school, the person who cried so much was not the child, not the father, but the mother. I think one of the reasons for doing this is to save their pride, for example, when talking to their neighborhood, because the name value of the school in Japan is really important. There are cases like this happening all around Japan today and I believe it is mother’s side which gives more pressures, and not from father’s.

Comment on chapter 3

2006-10-26T20:40:00.000-07:00

In this chapter, White pointed out that in Ameriaca, the family, particularly on working mothers are to be blamed. However, I have heard of the news that nowadays, the number of house-husband, instead of house-wives, are increasing, and the wife goes to work instead. Thus, I believe the issue of blaming is changing a bit right now. Besides, White says that parents have a safe relationship with their children in Japan in conclusion, but I believe this's changing also while there are a lot of criminals of their parents or of their children in Japan recently. In addition to this, the book says that a rise in the numbers of teens who do work while attending school does not represent increased independence, but rather, real need in their families income. I think we can say same thing for 'NEET', who do not work and do not go school neither.

初投稿♡

2006-10-12T08:52:00.000-07:00

チェック・・

早稲田大学の麻里子といいます♬
アメリカのミシガン州で生まれ、フィリピンにも3年間ほど住んでいたことがあります。それ以外はずっと日本です。

よろしくお願いします!