V Bradley
Word Count 1099
Discuss the similarities and differences between any TWO societies. In your answer, make reference to the role of cultures, norms, values and inequality in social organization.
There are many similarities and differences between the cultures of Japan and Britain, this essay will look at some of these including religion, education, norms, values and inequalities in their social organizations. According to Google’s public data there are 127, 817, 277 people living in Japan compared to 62, 641, 000 living in Britain. (Google, 2011)
There are two main religions in Japan, Shinto and Buddhism. These religions do not play a big part in everyday life, although the Japanese do follow religious rituals at ceremonies
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Blowing their nose at the dinner table is also seen as bad mannered. Foods such as rice and fish are the main dishes to be eaten in Japan and have been for over 2000 years, whereas a Sunday Roast is the most traditional dish in Britain, containing meat and vegetables. (Japan Guide, 2012) Norms such as crossing the street in Britain pretty much wherever we like would not be acceptable in Japan, they are expected to wait until a signal indicates to them they can cross, even if there is no traffic around. During meetings, the Japanese tend to close their eyes when they are listening to the speaker to show concentration, in our society this would come across as rude and impolite. Physical contact in Britain which can be regarded as normal such as hugging or touching ones arm during conversation is rather uncommon in Japan as they perceive this as an invasion of their personal space. Unlike British society, the Japanese call each other by their surnames followed by ‘san’ as this is seen as very polite which courtesy and good manners are important to the Japanese society. To call them by their first names as we do in our society would be looked upon as bad mannered. (Bosso.D,)
Japanese males are expected to lead their households. The structure of the family has historically been patriarchal, their social roles are to be the primary decision makers and income earners in the
Japan is home to a lot of ancient cultural artifacts and yet serves as an example of the developed world samurais, high-speed trains, home to some of the world’s largest tech companies, and may evision Tokyo as a bustling fast paced city. Japan’s population is declining, this isn’t unusual in a time where developed countries are relying on less children.What is overlooked when describing the now 3rd largest economy on Earth is how it went from surrendering during WWII to becoming an industrial superpower. There have been many changes but one have remained constant, which is the collective drive to work and excel. It has heavily influenced the Japan we know today.
It’s acceptable to refuse food, while in other countries this is seen as an insult.
Japan is a collectivistic culture country, they put more emphasis on group members, group obligations, and group goals that on the individual (Hamilton, 2014, p.74). Their culture is more relationship oriented, valuing empathy, listening, preserving friendships and saving face for the individual and others (Hamilton, 2014, p.75). Japan consists of a high context culture, relying minimally on spoken words. This is a tightly bound culture by experiences, family, and tradition (Hamilton, 2014, p.76).
An example of this is that in the United States we find it alright to ask someone to come to us by pointing our finger and curling it toward us. In Japan they find it offensive to signal someone to come to them in this manner. Something as simple as a hug for which we do quite often in the US can be considered offensive in foreign countries. Weird right? Wow, I could get into a lot of trouble in countries like this because I am a hugger. When seeing friends out and about we tend to hug each other as a gesture of missing each other or love for one another. I never knew this because I have friends from these countries that would find it offensive, maybe they have become “Americanized”. Putting your hands in your pocket as many of us have done many, many, many times, this is found to be rude in several countries. I guess Alanis Morsette would be in trouble also (her song Hand in My Pocket HAHAHA). I can honestly say that I would also be considered rude because I have a bad habit of placing my hand or hands in my pocket. I have even been known to walk around with my hands in my pockets. So I guess I better stay away from places like Austria or the Netherlands. Next time you find yourself doing simple gestures such as these you may want to consider where you
In Japan, religion is not shared amongst a community or even discussed openly but is a private family affair. There is no one preaching or readings from sacred writings or religious prayers at schools because what they believe is based on a moral code. That if they live the way of passion and love that nothing shall hurt or harm them or their family. By how they live, Japanese social and cultural values are difficult to tell apart.
The first barrier that comes to mind is Language. Either the Company employs someone who is well versed in Japanese and from that Country or it forces the Japanese to speak English. As English is a more common language in the business world, it would seem as if that forces the Japanese to speak English.
This is completely different from US religious beliefs in many ways. For one, all the religions practiced in the United States worship a specific god or gods. Another thing that’s completely different in Japan than in the US is that they are more accepting of different religions. The other religion that is widely practiced in Japan is Buddhism. Brought over by missionaries in 552 AD and emphasizes simplicity to beauty, devotion to study and severe self-discipline. All the concepts of both of these religions are not concepts that American religions emphasize. Religion is huge for the Japanese and in most houses Shintoism and Buddhism are both practiced and shrines are usually done of both religions. There are many other cultural customs in Japan that are different from those in the US.
Japan operates under the Eastern Asia legal tradition, whereas the United States operates under the common legal tradition. The differences are quite distinct. For example, according to Hahn (1983):
Japan is a country of many cultures. Japan’s most renowned is the art of the samurai and currently, urbanization. Due to the American occupation in the pacific, Japanese moved from a cultural masterpiece, to an eastern constitutional monarchy. Which is generally effected by a western influence.
In the United States we can be so self-absorbed and have no regard for other people and their feelings and well-being, it is a distinguishable norm for American society at this point. We always ask ourselves “What do I want?” or “What can I gain from this?”, but we never ask ourselves “What do they want?” or “What can they gain from this?” This is where Japan separates itself from the United States. The people in Japan hold such high esteem for everyone they know and meet, while we can hardly treat the person next to us with even the smallest amount of admiration and generosity.
But it is worth mentioning that all of this changes were also propelled to protect Japan from the foreigners. Therefore, to some people, this book seems to self-orientalise how Japan could only achieve its modernity in its own unique way which might have appeared to be improbable to other countries facing the same challenges at that period of time. But if we account the history, we can notice that there were also external factors playing a part that forced them to impose a strict social order either nationally or internationally. One of the approach they had taken to achieve this was the Closed Country Edict of
In today world, the United States and Japan have a strong political, economic and military relationship. The United States considers Japan to be one of its closest allies and partners. Both countries are strong economic and political superpowers that help run the world. Both countries also support the preservation of political and economic freedoms as well as the support of human rights. However, despite modernization and American influence, the Japanese way of life is still vastly different than that of America. Although both countries operate and function in similar ways the overall foundation of both countries is different.
Religions are in all varieties there. Buddhism is populated 34.9%. Ethnic religion of japan that focuses on ritual practices to be carried out diligently in order to establish a connection between present day and ancient past.Shinto organisations and others is populated with
In addition, Japan is homogeneous in terms of social cohesion. Japan is homogenous in terms of ethnicity and linguistics. It has high cohesion, untrusting and no apparent increase in political participation, but it has a low tolerance for difference (ethnic, language, etc.). Japan is best represented with the social democratic and Nordic model, where among Japanese people there is equality, but among different ethnic people there is inequality and a low tolerance for them. This also results in Japan having a segmented cohesion because although, there is a low tolerance for people with ethnic and cultural differences, Japanese people are mixing with other races like Japanese and Korean people. The society of Japan also fits in with the competitive race relations model because people who are of different ethnicities and cultures face discrimination, prejudice, segregation and stereotypes. The Koreans who live in the Japanese Society are experiencing this.
The nation of Japan, even more so than other countries, has a long, long history behind it. It's a country dating back as far as the B.C. Era, and that has experienced various powerful events that has shaped the country since its birth. As with other nations, an important part of their past lies in their religion. Before they were introduced to Buddhism and other outside religions, which had a large impact on their society, the Japanese followed something known as Shinto. As the one religion that can truly be called “Japanese,” it follows that its influences would still remain in the eyes of the people and only aided by a traditionally xenophobic view of the world.