American vs. Japanese Culture Essay

It doesn’t matter what kind of ethnicity you are, or how you were brought up. Everyone is deeply rooted in their own culture. “Culture” has a different meaning to everyone. Comparing American culture to Chinese culture we will find many different meanings to the word “culture”. For example, we Americans are always looking for something bigger and better for our future, and the Chinese are content with a small reserved lifestyle with no intentions of changing it for something bigger. A culture is a way of life of a group of people-the behaviors, beliefs, values, and symbols that they accept, generally without thinking about them, and are passed along by communication and imitation from

Japanese Celebrations Organizational Pattern: Topical I. Introduction A. Attention Getter: The Japanese have a very unique and interesting culture. B. Statistic: 90% of Japanese people celebrate on New Year's Day. C. Thesis Statement: Like the United States, the Japanese celebrate various holidays with lavish festivities. D. Importance: As more and more Japanese people immigrate to the United States, knowledge of the Japanese culture becomes increasingly important and necessary.

Cultural differences are apparent from one group of people to another. Culture is based on many things that are passed on from one generation to the next. Most of the time people take for granted their language, beliefs, and values. When it comes the cultural differences of people there is no right or wrong. People should be aware of others culture and respect the differences that are between them. The United States and China are two very large countries that have cultures that are well known through out the world. There are many differences between the United States and China, but there are many contributing factors that shape the cultures of these two countries.

As Mahatma Gandhi said, “No culture can live, if it attempts to be exclusive” (Mahatma). Our culture identifies who we are and how we behave in social environments and provides us with a foundation in which to live our lives and raise our families. Each individual culture has certain customs and courtesies that are important. Exposure to the cultures of others can be intimidating and can leave a person feeling confused and unsure about how they fit in (Schaefer 60). Culture shock can leave a person feeling out of place in an unfamiliar culture (Schaefer 60). Our diverse societies demand understanding and acceptance of other cultures. Learning and understanding these cultures before being

The 1940s, a time where Nisei, Japanese American born in the United States, was hard. After the bombing at Pearl Harbor, in 1941. On February 19, 1942, The president passed the executive order 9066 (Japanese Internment Timeline 6). This order was a forced law, and in this case it was forcing the Japanese Americans into concentration camps, bringing the United States into World War II (Japanese Internment Timeline 6). There was an argument on the West Coast during this time period that had opinions from each side. I believe it was not equitable for Japanese Americans to be taken out of the Pacific Coast and placed into the concentration camps, also referred to as internment, because there

First, Chinese Americans preserve their ethnic identities through holidays. One of the biggest holidays is the Chinese New Year. The Chinese New Year is different from the regular New Years in that it relies on the moon cycles instead of the western calendar, so it falls on different days each year. There is a lot of preparation that goes into the Chinese New Year. People start cleaning their houses and decorating them with spring couplets on the twentieth day of the twelfth moon. Spring couplets are short poems written on red scrolls of paper in black. A popular New Years tradition in the United States is the exchanging of red envelopes containing money, which are called hong-bao. Most families spend this holiday celebrating together because this holiday, above others, emphasizes family and family ties.

The first holiday I will discuss is La Nocheviaje/El Año Nuevo, known in the United States as New Year’s Eve/New Year’s Day. This holiday is celebrated in all Spanish-speaking countries on December 31st and January 1st. It is based on the transition from one year to another. The new year is typically welcomed, while the past year is reflected upon, and in some cases, ridiculed. There are many traditions that accompany this holiday that differ by country. To pass the old year, the people of a few countries wear masks. Some countries create figures that are then adorned with sayings, poetry, and other things the builders wish to decorate it with. Later, they are stuffed with flammable materials and are set to explode once midnight occurs. To

Pocky, Anime, manga, kanji. Have you heard of any of these? If not… where have you been? All around us teenagers, children, and even adults are being drawn into Japanese culture through TV, books, and even food. Japanese comics, called manga, take up more and more space on American bookshelves, and they've infused new life into the publishing industry. Japanese animation, anime, is on more and more movies and TV screens and influencing popular toys and games.

One of the most significant national holidays in Japan is the Coming of Age, this takes place on January fifteenth. This day represents the start of adulthood for every individual celebrating a twentieth birthday that year. With the title of adulthood comes a list of new responsibilities and expectations to uphold. The individuals turning twenty now have the freedom to drink, vote and become an official member of society. The new members of adulthood are required to attend a monthly meeting which takes place in their particular community. The purpose of the meetings are to inform the new adults of their responsibilities, they are told that they are now responsible for their actions and their actions will now reflect upon their communities. In addition, on May first, every company in Japan help a ceremony for new members joining their team. This was made into a huge celebration because it was essentially a lifelong commitment. In Japan, a fundamental rule is that people are not laid off unless an extreme circumstance takes place. One of the most important holidays occurs on September twenty-eighth: Confucius birthday also known as ‘Teacher’s Day.’ This is a celebration that occurs to celebrate Confucius life and all of his achievements. Holidays are a large part of the Japanese

Kwanzaa is a seven day holiday is on December 26th through January 1st. Kwanzaa people light one candle for each day. There are three different colored candles black it’s in the center means people, red for bloodshed their ancestors, and green is for the African land. On Kwanzaa each day has the meaning and specific thing you do. First day of the

The educational system differs throughout the world; its viewed and taught differently because of cultural differences. Many cultures view education as a necessity of life therefore family are strict and get more involved in there child’s education. Around the world, education is given to students to prepare them for their future. The American education is considered one of the strongest systems of education therefore many countries the American system. The American education system contains many differences and similarities to the foreign system of education; however, students in the American system are not as successful as those in foreign countries like Japan.

Everybody, XinNianKuaiLe. Maybe some of you guys already know what this Chinese mean. It is literally translated to the greeting “happy Chinese new year” in English. Today is the Chinese New Year (Yeh). Chinese New Year is the most important traditional holiday in China. Despite its winter occurrence, Chinese New Year is also known as Spring Festival in China. The festival begins on the first day of the first month, which is today, and ends on the 15th day of that month.

The fourth or fifth day of April each year is celebrated as Qingming Festival, also known as Tomb-Sweeping Day. The Qingming Festival, one of China's most important traditional festival, Chinese people believe that no one will feel unfamiliar with it. Qingming Festival is a day for Chinese people to mourn their ancestors, to cherish the memory of the dead.

According a popular myth, the origin of this day lies in the fight against Nian, a beast in Chinese mythology. The beast would visit cities and eat cattle, crops, and even people. In order for families to protect themselves from the beast, they would place food at their doorsteps so that the beast would not harm them. One day during a family dinner, the family noticed how the beast was startled by seeing the color red. Word of this spread to other friends and family. Soon, from then on, on the first day of every New Year, people would hang red paper lanterns and other red objects to scare off the beast. They would also light bamboo stalks in order to scare the beast away. After some time, the beast stop coming to the city all together. However, by this time relatives and family had already adopted the habit of getting together to protect each other from the beast.

Spring Festival better known as Chinese New Year as to be the most interesting part of the culture. These two weeks is the most important time of the year. This is the time they stop everything even quit their jobs and go back home. Many people go to work in big cities since as Shanghai but they are from many miles away in more rural areas. So during the Chinese New Year they leave everything behind and go back home, some never return to their jobs.