It is said that what is unique about the Japanese is that they consider themselves more unique than any other nationality and consequently believe their language and culture to be impenetrable to foreigners. As someone who spent four years in the country, I believe there is some truth in this.
I used to live in a small town called Aso in Kumamoto Prefecture and one day, on a trip to the local supermarket, I happened to bump into my boss’s wife. Instead of saying ‘konnichiwa’ ('hello'), the normal greeting, she looked into my basket, exclaiming ‘Nihonshoku ga taberaremasuka’ ('can you eat Japanese food?') when she saw I was buying a bento.
I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve heard the phrase, ’ohashinotsukaikata wa jozu desu ne?’ ('you're good at using chopsticks, aren't you?'), and despite the fact that I lived in Japan for a reasonable length of time, I’m still being asked the same question, ‘nihongo ga dekimasuka?’ ('can you speak Japanese?') and when I reply, ‘hai, dekimasu,’ ('yes, I can'), I always hear, 'sugoi desu ne! '(‘wow, that’s amazing!’)
Where does this feeling of uniqueness come from? It’s likely a legacy of the sakoku period, (the period of seclusion in Japan from 1638 – 1853) and as an island country, these feelings of isolation have continued to a certain extent. This sense of being different is also shown through the language they use to describe themselves and others – e.g. in the word ‘gaijin,’ gai literally means ‘outside, thus ‘outside person.’
This sense of being different has in turn affected the way the Japanese and Japan are seen by outsiders e.g. when I asked a number of business people of various nationalities to give me their impressions of Japan, they all came out with adjectives such as ‘impenetrable,’ ‘intriguing,’ and ‘mysterious,’ and the way the culture is portrayed on TV and in films further reinforces these stereotypes. (e.g. in the film ‘Lost in Translation,’ the Japanese are seen as crazy people who don’t speak good English and live in a bewilderingly alien place).
This perspective creates a dichotomy. On the one hand there is a fascination with Japanese culture as it is so different and unfathomable, on the other, there is a sense that because it is so mysterious we will never quite understand it and such a situation is not conducive to successful communication.
In recent years, however, there has been some progress. A few years ago I was involved in the translation of interviews for a fascinating series called ‘Japanorama’ which looked at the Japanese contemporary scene. I believe such programmes are useful as they help to remove some of the mystique surrounding the culture and provide us with a richer picture of Japan.
In my job as a business English teacher, I have recently been teaching intercultural awareness to groups of business people of various nationalities and have become increasingly aware of an affinity between the British and Japanese perhaps due to the fact that we both come from island countries. For a start we share the same values – the importance of privacy and a mutual respect for each other, which can be seen through our obsession with queuing and apologising.
It is particularly important when doing business with other nationalities that we know how to communicate in a culturally sensitive way and we are off to a head start with the Japanese as the methods they use are similar. In English, for example, we use modifiers such as ‘rather’ and ‘slight’ and add phrases such as ‘I’m afraid’ to soften what we are trying to say and we use very polite, ambiguous expressions which can often seem longwinded. e.g. an expression such as ‘I’m afraid there appears to have been a slight misunderstanding’ actually means ‘you completely misunderstood!’ This polite, somewhat indirect language can be compared to the Japanese ‘keigo’ which is also used to avoid confrontation and create a sense of harmony e.g. in a phrase such as ‘omataseitashimashita.’ ('sorry I kept you waiting').Such ways of communicating are not easily understood by more ‘direct’ nationalities such as the Spanish and the Germans.
It is said that learning a language can provide you with a gateway into another culture but I would argue that understanding another culture can enable you to better use the language of that culture. It is easy for meaning to become ‘lost in translation’ but if the ‘nuances’ of the language are understood, this will result in more effective communication.
One problem I have encountered while teaching is that as the Japanese are perfectionists they are sometimes unwilling to use English because they don’t feel they are quite good enough. I’m currently teaching a Tokyo businessman who runs a very exclusive boutique in Covent Garden. Although he speaks very good English with a slight London twang, he is fearful of making mistakes in negotiations so always takes an interpreter with him, something I believe is completely unnecessary.
In conclusion, Japan doesn’t have to remain unfathomable to be special, and while the differences between our two cultures should not be ignored, by focusing on the similarities, more effective communication can be achieved. However, in order for this to happen, it is essential that the Japanese become more open about their fascinating culture and more able to explain the mysteries surrounding it while acquiring greater fluency in English by losing the fear of making mistakes, As Japan becomes more global and the ‘shimagunikonjo’ (island mentality) gradually disappears, it seems that what this country wants and needs more than anything is to be understood.
