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Who Killed Our Culture? We Did
A Japanese actress mourns her country's obsession with American values
By YOUKI KUDOH
I belong to the generation of Japanese whose parents are the children of those who grew up during and after the war, suffering from hunger and poverty. It was our grandparents who really experienced the long and agonizing war.
Afterward, the people of Japan could gather the strength to get on their feet again only by directing all the frustration they had built up in their minds--grudges, remorse, negative feelings--toward the state. They even refused to sing the national anthem. The result was that we of the younger generation were taught that patriotism is bad. If you express your love for the country, you are called "pro-war," you are considered a right-winger.
The Americans, meanwhile, had Coca-Cola, chocolate, family life, music and dance--all the pleasures we lacked. The goal of post-war Japan was to catch up with America by every means available. The economy took off; we ran up the ladder and became a first-class economic power, pretending all the while not to see the huge hole in the mind, the distrust of our own country.
Most of today's young people grew up in the absence of some important values. They aren't positive about being Japanese, nor about their own identity. They are losing their integrity because they always pretend to be like someone else. Whatever becomes popular, they want to follow. When girls put on the platform shoes that are fashionable now, it is as if they are trying to step up to another level, to be someone they are not. These girls want long legs, big breasts and Caucasian features. The sense of beauty has changed. Young women don't recognize what is good about themselves.
It is good to be flexible and open to other cultures; that is a quality young Japanese have that their parents did not. But at the same time we have to hold on to our own culture. We have become polluted by American culture, contaminated by materialism. We don't love our country, don't respect it. We are negative about our culture: traditional things are seen as old-fashioned, and everything new is good. Social order and moral standards have disappeared. Some people are even obsessed with denying their Japaneseness. Many girls dye their hair and tan their skin. The streets and towns of Japan are made to look like France or America. Our cities were destroyed and re-created to resemble a foreign country. Traditional culture is not even accessible to most of us; it is disappearing into oblivion. This makes me very sad.
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THIS WEEK'S TABLE OF CONTENTS
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Young Japan Home
The Me Generation:
The country's privileged youth are struggling to define what they want. Their efforts--both frivolous and fundamental--are already beginning to transform the culture
Day in the Life:
What a 17-year-old girl does--and buys
Culture Club:
Tokyo has taken over as the source of what's hip and happening for the rest of East Asia
Sound Factory:
An Okinawa school turns out stars
Talk Talk:
What teens are chatting about online
Not Playing Ball:
A fresh generation is starting to shake up the hidebound world of Japanese baseball
Outside the Box:
Breaking the education straitjacket
Viewpoint:
Actress Youki Kudoh says respect the old ways
Viewpoint:
Parents should examine their own ethics
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