I like to think of myself as not entirely uncultured but there is always going to be a bit of a culture clash when I watch anime. I think that’s true for a lot of western viewers. The social reality we live in as well as the history, traditions and beliefs we grew up with are bound to affect how we take in our entertainment. When an author writes a story there’s all sorts of things they take for granted. For instance if a large male character goes grocery shopping in a ball gown, that’s an odd and maybe comical scene but only because our social conventions skew against it. There was a time where a similar scene would simply have been used to mark the character as an aristocrat.
Personally, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with interpreting a story within your own context but I do get curious about the world it was crafted in. For instance I’m vaguely aware of Japanese mentality and biases regarding gender, visible minorities and foreigners. I’m somewhat acquainted with the myriad of social conventions and norms expected of anyone within Japanese society and the general consequences of breaking with said taboos or conventions.
But for all of that, I’m almost entirely ignorant of Japanese class constructs. I know they exist. I assume they are somewhat rigid and complex because…well because most of what I know about Japanese social mores is a little rigid and complex. It’s possible that my perception is outdated.
Anywho, we all know that there’s an elaborate social hierarchy present in almost every level of Japanese society. It’s most obviously expressed through the multitude of honorifics one can use depending on who they are addressing but it can be seen through the language as well. Polite forms of Japanese can easily be considered as their own dialects. It dictates actions and reactions and really defines relationships. But what are these class distinctions based on?
One that I know is “age”. Unlike the youth cultures of North America, Japan still has a healthy respect for seniority. As such people that are older than you or have been working at a place for longer, automatically outrank you. But what about money? Just plain old wealth? Who do I owe *more* respect to, the guy that’s a few years older than me in school or the kid in my class that comes from an obscenely rich family? Does education matter at all and if so is there a bias. For instance does a scientific background prime over an artistic one?
What of reputation and nobility? Can tracing your bloodline back to some ancient renowned general or emperor give you some instant cred or is it a neat factoid to whip out at a party and nothing more?
It’s not that you need to know the answers to any of those questions to understand and appreciate anime. However appreciating the social context of a story can add another layer to it, which is.. cool… Guys, I really don’t know why I had ever considered myself a decent debater. I think I just exhausted my opponents.
All right, I’ve already cluttered half the post with vague questions. I believe it’s about time we go find some answers. Disclaimer, for today’s post my source will be “the internet” as such the integrity of the information cannot be guaranteed. Please learn responsibility!
- https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2015/03/why-inequality-is-different-in-japan/
- https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2015/10/10/business/economy-business/japans-rich-acutely-aware-wealth-not-flashy/#.XMXf0-hKiM8
- https://www.dw.com/en/japan-a-wealthy-nation-with-poor-children/a-36875397
The few articles I read were more interested in the behaviour and integration of Japan’s economically elite into greater society than the other way around. One thing that was stressed though is that the Japanese **upper class**, keeping in line with general Japanese tendencies towards modesty and discretion, does not tend to flaunt their wealth.
It is therefore fairly difficult to even know that someone is from an advantageous family situation unless you know them well or they are downright famous. This fact alone should skew perception towards a more indifferent regard for money.
I’ve been using the notions of wealth and social class pretty interchangeably so far and I fear we’ll run into an issue of semantics. For the purposes of this post alone, I’m referring exclusively to earner class or tax bracket when discussing Japanese Class structure. I know that Japanese society is in fact extremely complex and moreover, evolving when it comes to social conventions and norms, and I’m not pretending to understand any of it. But let’s get back to money.
From what I was able to pick up, it seems the Japanese in general are a bit more relaxed when it comes to issues of money than in western or even european society. A growing rich poor gap in the country is slowly changing that mind you but traditionally, money was just one element to bring you clout and by far not the most important one.
If we go back to my earlier question of how much riches weight in comparison to age, social service, academic achievement and so forth. The answer is probably about the same to slightly less. Or for comparison, the reputation and respect you can get just based on how much money your family has (especially if you didn’t earn it firsthand) is less than in most other parts of the world.
This sort of fits in with what I’ve seen in anime. You will occasionally see insanely rich characters but no one knows about it until they go visit their house or something. The riches in question can be used to help the plot along on a practical basis but rarely come with much influence beyond the ability of bribing people, and other characters’ attitude rarely changes at all with the reveal of someone being well off. It’s just a trait that gets less dramatic build up than finding out a character is older than another.
This is pretty different to how we’ve come to view and represent money in North America. We’ve long been a merchant class society with a relatively short history so it makes sense that money would be an easy way of defining societal success and worth. We just don’t have that many other things to go by.
It’s nice to see a healthier and more relaxed attitude towards wealth. Especially coming from a place that’s not exactly renowned for being relaxed. This is mostly conjecture though and the attitudes might change quickly. If you have experience living in Japan, let me know, is money an important factor? How is class structure defined?
Wealth in general tends to be a very isolating point of living, both for those who have it and those who don’t. As you mentioned, there is a tendency towards wanting to be as “Japanese” as possible in most situations which in many cases serves to regulate a lot of behavior. In that context, it makes sense that wealth people in Japan would not be as interested in flaunting said wealth for fear of isolating themselves for others. It is an infinitely fascinating topic which has a lot of dimensions, not the least of which has to do with the general political bend of the country. A great post that really got me thinking.
I’m glad to hear it. For sure the Japanese tendency towards homogeneity will influence how they view and show status! I should read up more on it
There’s a saying in Japan that wealth doesn’t last more then three generations. It has to do with Japan actually taxing the insanely wealthy in modern times. It holds up looking at Japan’s past economy growth (especially with the 80’s bubble bursting). More food for thought and a very important point!
That’s actually a great point that I hadn’t considered at all
And then there is Fitz in Bungo Stray Dogs.
I see a lot of class consciousness in anime and it is often associated with wealth. Particularly the pretty hime who joins the class and everyone is in awe of her.
I always figured Fitzgerald represented American society and a specific aspect with Great Gatsby
Does Fyodor represent the Russians? Fitz is chaotic neutral – but has been rehabilitated to have a tiny smidge of good. Fyodor is just evil as far as I can see; the evil of extreme intellect unchained by any moral compass.
One. More. Try.
I love your thoughtful posts. This is a really good question. And comparison. Living the the U.S. there has always been class structure based on income, and it is becoming more rigid and ugly every day. Because many things – such as a truly good phone – are actually necessary in order to recieve certain services (use the app!), the poor are being punished severely. Because of a few events in the last decades, there are a lot of poor who never expected to be down here, and it’s not for lack of intelligence, education, or work ethic. But that’s a whole ‘nother conversation I didn’t mean to get into. It is very interesting, now that I think about it, that the Japanese culture – although they clearly value working very hard, and getting a good job – well, even a good job can mean something quite different – your income is not what you are judged by. I think, maybe, this is more or less true throughout Asia. Well, I just watched a cute K-drama about a lawyer (with autism) and this judge pulled out the “my family is the blah blah blah, who is your family?” thing in court. It was clear that everyone thought this was kind of wrong, but they also played into it by announcing their own family creds. So maybe it isn’t that common across Asia? Anyway – I’m less interested in my babbling on than in reading comments made by others here some of whom may be more knowledable, perhaps living in Japan, who can answer some of these questions. My summary is that I wonder if, given how much I dislike the class based on income of my own culture, that one of the reasons I particularily enjoy anime is the “vacation” if you will from that way of classifying people. And, of course, especially as I myself get older, the respect for older people compared with the youth worship we have here. (I am getting WAY TIRED of being treated as if I were a complete idiot because of my age) Great post and I’m looking forward to the ensuing conversation!
Okay, my comment is not showing up – going to try again.
I love your thoughtful posts. This is a really good question. And comparison. Living the the U.S. there has always been class structure based on income, and it is becoming more rigid and ugly every day. Because many things – such as a truly good phone – are actually necessary in order to recieve certain services (use the app!), the poor are being punished severely. Because of a few events in the last decades, there are a lot of poor who never expected to be down here, and it’s not for lack of intelligence, education, or work ethic. But that’s a whole ‘nother conversation I didn’t mean to get into. It is very interesting, now that I think about it, that the Japanese culture – although they clearly value working very hard, and getting a good job – well, even a good job can mean something quite different – your income is not what you are judged by. I think, maybe, this is more or less true throughout Asia. Well, I just watched a cute K-drama about a lawyer (with autism) and this judge pulled out the “my family is the blah blah blah, who is your family?” thing in court. It was clear that everyone thought this was kind of wrong, but they also played into it by announcing their own family creds. So maybe it isn’t that common across Asia? Anyway – I’m less interested in my babbling on than in reading comments made by others here some of whom may be more knowledable, perhaps living in Japan, who can answer some of these questions. My summary is that I wonder if, given how much I dislike the class based on income of my own culture, that one of the reasons I particularily enjoy anime is the “vacation” if you will from that way of classifying people. And, of course, especially as I myself get older, the respect for older people compared with the youth worship we have here. (I am getting WAY TIRED of being treated as if I were a complete idiot because of my age) Great post and I’m looking forward to the ensuing conversation!
I love your thoughtful posts. This is a really good question. And comparison. Living the the U.S. there has always been class structure based on income, and it is becoming more rigid and ugly every day. Because many things – such as a truly good phone – are actually necessary in order to recieve certain services (use the app!), the poor are being punished severely. Because of a few events in the last decades, there are a lot of poor who never expected to be down here, and it’s not for lack of intelligence, education, or work ethic. But that’s a whole ‘nother conversation I didn’t mean to get into. It is very interesting, now that I think about it, that the Japanese culture – although they clearly value working very hard, and getting a good job – well, even a good job can mean something quite different – your income is not what you are judged by. I think, maybe, this is more or less true throughout Asia. Well, I just watched a cute K-drama about a lawyer (with autism) and this judge pulled out the “my family is the blah blah blah, who is your family?” thing in court. It was clear that everyone thought this was kind of wrong, but they also played into it by announcing their own family creds. So maybe it isn’t that common across Asia? Anyway – I’m less interested in my babbling on than in reading comments made by others here some of whom may be more knowledable, perhaps living in Japan, who can answer some of these questions. My summary is that I wonder if, given how much I dislike the class based on income of my own culture, that one of the reasons I particularily enjoy anime is the “vacation” if you will from that way of classifying people. And, of course, especially as I myself get older, the respect for older people compared with the youth worship we have here. (I am getting WAY TIRED of being treated as if I were a complete idiot because of my age) Great post and I’m looking forward to the ensuing conversation!
I wonder if there’s a comparison on how the rich/poor decide is viewed and expressed in different cultures. It’s fascinating
Hmmm… it is and I wonder if anyone has ever really sat down and researched it and written a paper or something. Seems like there should be.
I’m sure that there are more, but the only character I know who shows off his wealth in anime is Suneo from Doraemon. I get the feeling that his family got rich after World War II, so we don’t see much of a traditional behavior from him.
On a side note, reading or watching 70s Japanese media is a great way to see how the Japanese society has evolved. And it also gives you credit among anime nerds. “What? you don’t read from every decade? don’t even speak to me for the next 50 years!”
I think I’ve only seen Astro Boy from the 70s
It is the only popular one from that period, and the only one which received international attention. Which is sad, because there are some really good anime were created during that time, and I argue that they can help you understand Japanese culture much better compare to anime made now.
REally? But culture in Japan especially has evolved exponentially since then
This is one of the key reasons I got attracted to anime and manga. You’re absolutely right: culture is a subtext of art. So I always wonder about what I am missing in a story and trying to find out what it is
Right!?! It’s fascinating but a little frustrating when you feel you’re missing a piece