Question to all Japan-forum users
 

Hello everyone, I'm a college student and currently following a course about "Culture and Literature in Japan". The problem is that we all have to write a couple of blogs on the college-website about a specific cultural aspect of Japan (e.g. Akihabara, Geisha, Shogi,Go, Kimonos...). Now my question to you all is
do you have any ideas of some typical Japanese culture aspect that I could write about, I'm basically all out of ideas (since about 50 students already made 1 blog, the basic things have already been taken). It would be great if you could help me find a topic :vsign:

How about bowing, as a greeting, not a sign of submission.

How about Anime & Manga & Cosplay ( or crossplay?)

Do a study on the Japanese people's sense of "wa", or harmony -- or "saving face"

Anyone familiar with these concepts?

I'm not familiar with it, but it sounds interesting. Care to explain briefly? Or I'll just google it...

Shinto, Onmyoudo, Gion, Maiko, o-kome/gohan, o-cha, senbei, mochi, Hiroshimima okonomiyaki vs. Osaka okonimiyaki, Kiyomizu-dera, Nara Park and the Great Buddha, Shinkon Vajrayana, the moon in Japanese culture, I can keep going.

Wa - The most valued principle still alive in Japanese society today is the concept of 'wa', or 'harmony'. The preservation of social harmony dates back to the first constitution in 604 AD and the teamwork needed when living and working on collective farms. In business terms, 'wa' is reflected in the avoidance of self-assertion and individualism and the preservation of good relationships despite differences in opinion. When doing business with the Japanese it is also important to remember the affect of 'wa' on many patterns of Japanese behaviour, in particular their indirect expression of 'no'.


Kao (face) - One of the fundamental factors of the Japanese social system is the notion of 'face'. Face is a mark of personal pride and forms the basis of an individual's reputation and social status. Preservation of face comes through avoiding confrontations and direct criticism wherever possible. In Japan, causing someone to lose face can be disastrous for business relationships.

How about the concept of wabi-sabi? The BBC (I think) did a documentary on it last summer. Interesting stuff.

you could write something about bento boxes ^^

How about the concept of printed matter?

Lot ot of people read the printed matter.
Manga novel newspaper magazine and more.

新聞を読みながら朝食を取り、電車の待ち時間や電車で の移動中に本を読む。


日本では毎日200冊前後の本が新しく出版されています。 （雑誌を除いて）