Japanese History & Culture (Showa Period: 1926-1989)

[SteveAJones]

Recent posts and exchanges in other General Forum threads has convinced me there may be some interest here in exploring Japanese History & Culture, specifically what is known as the Showa Period (1926-1989). I thought I would open this topic of discussion with Emperor Hirohito, widely considered one of the most controversial figures in history.

 

[SteveAJones]

Tokyo Station: 100 Years

 

[Anjin-san]

Steve,have you read 'The Rising Sun' by John Toland?

[IpMan]

Thanks Steve, great stuff.

[redrum]

I remember the Iwo Jima reunion where the one old Marine said: How could such gentle people be such ferocious fighters? 

[SteveAJones]

8 hours ago, Anjin-san said:

Steve, have you read 'The Rising Sun' by John Toland?

No. It's on my list to do so now.

6 hours ago, IpMan said:

Thanks Steve, great stuff.

3 hours ago, redrum said:

I remember the Iwo Jima reunion where the one old Marine said: How could such gentle people be such ferocious fighters? 

That is one of many things to possibly be presented and discussed in this thread.

[redrum]

The last bike I had had 'SHOWA' forks.

One of my favorite movies.

[Anjin-san]

Steve,let me know waht you think,Toland nails it (IMHO).I think that Japan as very ancient society can be further exporded by going back to the 3,000 year history of it's people.I stick to the parameters you have set for this discussion.May I also suggest James Bradley?  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Bradley_(author)

Most of us are too young to have lived thru WW2,yet he does deal with this period fairly,....

Anjin-san

[tenyearsgone21]

Steve just curious - I'm not sure how long you've lived in Japan versus how many years you were in the US, but do you find apart from the language, assimilating to the culture as an American? Also, what aspects of Japanese culture do you admire and dislike compared to the US? If you want to answer off this thread, I'm fine with that. 

[SteveAJones]

4 hours ago, redrum said:

One of my favorite movies.

Akira Kurosawa is definitely one of my favorite directors. If I was ever to go into film making I would approach it the way he did.

 

 

[SteveAJones]

9 minutes ago, tenyearsgone21 said:

Steve just curious - I'm not sure how long you've lived in Japan versus how many years you were in the US, but do you find apart from the language, assimilating to the culture as an American? Also, what aspects of Japanese culture do you admire and dislike compared to the US? If you want to answer off this thread, I'm fine with that. 

I have lived in Japan nearly eight years, which is still a couple of years less than the amount of time I lived in Europe. One thing about Japan is if one is an outsider (foreigner), one is an outsider. One can assimilate into the culture until the samurai come home, but at the end of the day one is not a full-fledged member of the club, so to speak, and never will be.

There are many aspects of the culture that I admire and/or appreciate. Violent crime is virtually non-existent. I can essentially go anywhere at anytime. Public transportation (trains in particular) runs on time to the minute which makes travel less stressful. Citizens are unfailingly polite towards others, which makes dining out and attending concerts, for example, truly enjoyable experiences. World class customer service exists everywhere one goes, from the local department store to the local Seven Eleven. Although Tokyo summers can be humid, the winters are very mild with only trace amounts of snow. If I was to sum all of this up, I would say the homogeneous society (Japan) provides clear expectations that are always met.

With regard to dislikes, I do have a few. I find that Japanese architecture, generally speaking, is abominable. Very occasionally one may see a skyscraper or other structure that captivates the imagination, but normally buildings are very utilitarian in their design. Residences, at least in this area (metropolitan Tokyo) are often built very small and very close together. Parking lots piss me off, as all seem to have been designed down to the minimum that one needs to park a vehicle. Finally, and perhaps surprisingly, I have no appetite for Japanese food. 

In closing for now, perhaps my summations above seem superficial and perhaps they are. Regardless, as I have tried to explain to others, living in Japan, at least for me, is a state of mind as much as it is a daily reality. Often, my state of mind is "mono no aware". Yes, I do appreciate the transience of all things, to include myself. I've no time for trifling social concerns and such nonsense, except to make fun of it occasionally. My life here is like one of those boxes within a box within a box, and by that I mean I never know what the day may bring but I still look forward to the journey and the discovery. I'm as happy as I've ever been here (earth) and possibly as happy as I'll ever be. No complaints and few regrets.  

   

[Kiwi_Zep_Fan87]

Hi Steve,

Do you have in mind, any books that I could read about the Social history of Japan during the Showa period? 

I have always been very interested in social history. I am always keen to read and learn about how people belonging to specific countries, lived during a particular era.

I am watching that documentary on Emperor Hirohito you posted on this thread and it's fascinating (to say the least!)

Thanks (in advance). 

[Kiwi_Zep_Fan87]

Declassified British document depicts Emperor Hirohito as being wary of WWII military aggression 

[SteveAJones]

3 hours ago, Kiwi_Zep_Fan87 said:

Hi Steve,

Do you have in mind, any books that I could read about the Social history of Japan during the Showa period? 

I have always been very interested in social history. I am always keen to read and learn about how people belonging to specific countries, lived during a particular era.

I am watching that documentary on Emperor Hirohito you posted on this thread and it's fascinating (to say the least!)

Thanks (in advance). 

SHIGERU MIZUKI authored a series of books on the Showa era of Japanese history that are accessible, affordable and highly rated:

https://www.amazon.com/Showa-1944-1953-History-Japan/dp/1770461620

Additionally, I would recommend Peter Barakan's Begin Japanology and Japanology Plus television series on NHK World. Many episodes are freely available on YouTube. I really enjoy the comfortable yet inquisitive approach he takes to the topics of interest.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Barakan

 

[SteveAJones]

Tokyo resident David Lee Roth (of Van Halen) discusses post World War II Japan and tells the tale of Rikidozan, a sumo wrestler who turned to professional wrestling, and in doing so became a national hero for the Japanese.

 

[tenyearsgone21]

18 hours ago, SteveAJones said:

I have lived in Japan nearly eight years, which is still a couple of years less than the amount of time I lived in Europe. One thing about Japan is if one is an outsider (foreigner), one is an outsider. One can assimilate into the culture until the samurai come home, but at the end of the day one is not a full-fledged member of the club, so to speak, and never will be.

There are many aspects of the culture that I admire and/or appreciate. Violent crime is virtually non-existent. I can essentially go anywhere at anytime. Public transportation (trains in particular) runs on time to the minute which makes travel less stressful. Citizens are unfailingly polite towards others, which makes dining out and attending concerts, for example, truly enjoyable experiences. World class customer service exists everywhere one goes, from the local department store to the local Seven Eleven. Although Tokyo summers can be humid, the winters are very mild with only trace amounts of snow. If I was to sum all of this up, I would say the homogeneous society (Japan) provides clear expectations that are always met.

With regard to dislikes, I do have a few. I find that Japanese architecture, generally speaking, is abominable. Very occasionally one may see a skyscraper or other structure that captivates the imagination, but normally buildings are very utilitarian in their design. Residences, at least in this area (metropolitan Tokyo) are often built very small and very close together. Parking lots piss me off, as all seem to have been designed down to the minimum that one needs to park a vehicle. Finally, and perhaps surprisingly, I have no appetite for Japanese food. 

In closing for now, perhaps my summations above seem superficial and perhaps they are. Regardless, as I have tried to explain to others, living in Japan, at least for me, is a state of mind as much as it is a daily reality. Often, my state of mind is "mono no aware". Yes, I do appreciate the transience of all things, to include myself. I've no time for trifling social concerns and such nonsense, except to make fun of it occasionally. My life here is like one of those boxes within a box within a box, and by that I mean I never know what the day may bring but I still look forward to the journey and the discovery. I'm as happy as I've ever been here (earth) and possibly as happy as I'll ever be. No complaints and few regrets.  

   

Very interesting. Thanks for sharing. The things you admire are things that would be wonderful to see in other countries. I can certainly imagine no matter how long you would live there (anyone), if you're not Japanese, you will always be somewhat of an outsider. 

[Kiwi_Zep_Fan87]

17 hours ago, SteveAJones said:

SHIGERU MIZUKI authored a series of books on the Showa era of Japanese history that are accessible, affordable and highly rated:

https://www.amazon.com/Showa-1944-1953-History-Japan/dp/1770461620

Additionally, I would recommend Peter Barakan's Begin Japanology and Japanology Plus television series on NHK World. Many episodes are freely available on YouTube. I really enjoy the comfortable yet inquisitive approach he takes to the topics of interest.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Barakan

 

Thanks for the recommendations, Steve. Much appreciated!  

 

[hummingbird69]

Here is my contribution to the page. 

 I never knew much about Japanese culture although at 15 I did work at the very first Japanese restaurant in my neck of the woods. My mother's friend opened up a small place in Lawrence Mass and I washed dishes for her.  Her name was Michiko and she could cook. She would play Japanese music on a huge one speaker boom box, a type I had never seen before. It was a karaoke machine and nobody even knew what that was at the time. It was a shame that she closed after only a year due to slow business. Too bad because now there a bunch of Japanese restaurants all over the place.   

It was she who turned me onto Akira Kurosawa and his movies. The 7 Samurai was one of them but the one that really stuck with me was "Dreams"  I had no idea what I was watching but the visuals were incredible. Dreams is a series of vignettes that told separate stories dealing with Japanese folklore, culture, legends, and nightmares.  One of the shorts was about a group of mountain climbers who get trapped in a blizzard and while watching I was immediately reminded of South Side Of The Sky by YES.  This short depicts that song perfectly and even though I have never tried I bet you could make a decent mashup with the short and the song for an interesting video.

If you want to watch an artsy movie with your kids this is the one to watch.