Essay 1.2

ESL21B

    Have you ever been to Japan? So many people have interests and want to visit Japan. Lately;Punctuation however, thoseCut foreign people sometimes got troublesAwkward which caused by cultural differences and misunderstandings while they stay in Japan. Actually there are so many customs and rules in Japanese culture, and those are made by their ownAwkward characteristic cultural values and traditions. Sometimes those customs and rules are hard to understand, and perhaps make strange feelingsAwkward to foreign people. Through my past life in Japan and the U.S, I realized some differences about cultural values, customs, and rules between Japan and other countries, and there are some examples of Japanese culture which I think foreign people should know when they visit or live in Japan.

    First of all, this is the most biggestAwkward and important difference between Japanese culture and other cultures that Japanese are really strict about punctuality because being late on timeCut is really rude in Japanese cultural value. In the article "Time Talkes, with an Accent". by Robert Levine, the author shows that Japanese are most sensitive about time in the world. For example, when I was in elementary school, our teacher told us that we should get the arranged placeAwkward at least five minutes before the promisedWChoice time, and I always do that. When I came to the U.S, it was so stressful for me because some of my friends from the U.S. always come up laterAwkward the promised timeAwkward, and it didn't happen a lot between me and my Japanese friends. In the end, it didn't become a big problem because I thought that I came to foreign country; therefore, I should adjust myself to their time Values. However, if foreign people came to Japan and did same thing, it would makes Japanese people angry or uncomfortable, and that would be a big cause of trouble or fighting{***}Explain. Japanese have a proverb that "When you go to other country, you should follow the customs and rules of the country". It implies that when foreign people come to Japan, they should follow the Japanese customs and rules.

    Second of all, there is another difference between Japanese culture and some other cultures especially out of Asian countriesAwkward that is difference of communication styleAwkward. In the article "American Values and Assumptions". by Gary Althen, the author describes that Asians don't express their emotion, fellingSpl, and opinion as Americans, Latin Americans, and Arabs do. Of course, Japanese are not an exception. In general, Japanese don't express those above inner feelingSing/Plu and thought thanAwkward other foreign people because they think that is the polite way in their cultural values especially in public situation. Therefore, some foreign people get confused when they have a conversation with Japanese because they can not understand what Japanese are thinking by seeing behavior or attitude of Japanese. For example, Japanese don't talk with looking at each other's eyes or don't have much physical contact evenConj/Trans they are close friends or relations. And also many of them don't speak loudly. Those kind of Japanese own cultural behavior and attitude make some foreign people's feeling that they are angry or disappointed. Sometimes that feeling is right, but not always. If foreign people didn't know about those customary behavior and attitude, that would be so stressful, and sometimes it made them upset. Third of all, these are additional examples and information which foreign people should know when they visit or live in urban areas of Japan. In the article "Where Do We Stand?" by Lisa Davis, the author says that Japanese subways bring people about as close together as humanly possible. The reason why it happens that there are so many people in small land which means Japanese cities are narrow. For example, when a rush hour comes, roads highways, and subways which are connected to big cities or main part of the cities are so crowded. Thus, either way using car or train, you have to care about time because traffic jam takes you long time to get your destination, and sometimes you can not get in the train. And you have to wait another one. Because even in those kind of hard situations, Japanese want people to being on time.

    ForthSpl of all, there is another examples and information about Japanese smoking style. In Japan, there are so many people who smoke cigarettes, and they can smoke a cigarette anyplace even inside of buildings. When I came to the U.S, I was so surprised that people can smoke only limited placeAwkward. The most biggestAwkward things which I was surprised is that people can not smoke inside of buildings, and on the beach. Also an existence of smoking area in so many public place and a restriction that people have to smoke a few distanceAwkward from buildings; however, after I understood laws about smoking, it made sense because the smoking style of the U.S. is more considered about human health and environment. Since the last decade, Japanese smoking laws and people's senses are changing as the U.S.'s one; however there are still so many people smoking anyplace and any situation. Here is one funny ironic story about Japanese smoking style that a smoker visits a patient who has a cancer of the lung, and the smoker talks with the patient with smoking inside of a hospital room{1}. This difference of smoking style is may not beAwkward a big cause of trouble; however, it is good to know the differences because if you were a smoker, you could feel more comfortable, and if you were not a smoker, you could ready to get used toAwkward. Either way {***}Conj/Transyou smoke or not you will be able to have more smoothWChoice conversations with Japanese smokers.

    In conclusion, there are so many different customs and rules between Japanese culture and other cultures. When I came to the U.S. at first time, I have faced so many problems and stresses because I didn't know the differences between Japanese culture and American culture. Therefore, when you go to Japan, I highly recommend foreign people to study about Japanese culture which includes customs and rules by reading books, using internet, or asking to Japanese friend if you have any. That will help you a lot to reduce inter cultural conflicts and misunderstandings in Japan, and also you will be able to have more smooth and pleasant conversations with Japanese.