Appearances - Is Beauty More than Skin Deep?
Exams officially started today, which means the beginning of the end of a busy period for me. We still have classes after finals (but not many) before summer vacation starts on the 20th. Yes, I still have to go into work everyday (Japanese teachers' schedules are not like American teachers - they get 40 vacation days a year, but no summer break), but it's going to be for shorter days and I will have a lot of free time. YES!!! A lot of my friends will be out-of-town during the break period (I'm heading to America very late), but I think I'll have a lot to do and see, so I'll be running around a bit. I have foregone visiting Hiroshima thus far because I want to attend the Peace Conference (as mentioned) the first weekend of August (the anniversary of the A-bomb), then there's the Obon Festival (probably going to Kyoto) and we'll have new people in the community who I might be able to help out (or will at least want to get to know). In addition to getting started on grad school applications... it's probably going to busy more than anything.
Anyways, so after school today, I met with a second-year student named Ms. S (her nickname) to help her prepare for the English Proficiency test she's taking this weekend. I worked with her last year and she did well on the pre-second level (she's doing level 2 now), so we're now comfortable working together and have a lot of fun. I met with two third-year girls (studying for the same test) after school on Monday and Tuesday, so it's all part of the groove. The reason I mention this is because I found Ms.S's response to one opinion question particularly interesting and wanted to share.
The question went something like this: Many girls in Japan focus a lot on how they look. Some girls even start to pay a lot of attention to their looks as young as 10 years old. Do you think this is a good thing?
And to my surprise, she answered with a confident, "Yes." This was actually not what I was expecting (and it's my job to get her to give more information), so I continued with the standard, "Please tell me more." Ms. S explained that clothing is an important form of expression; it's a way for girls to show their individuality. When you put it that what... she's absolutely right. Our school has a reputation for being strict and Ms. S is a very good student (from what I gather), so I was actually a bit impressed that the overriding indoctrination (if that's not too harsh?) hadn't muddled her impressions.
I've discussed the passive stereotype for women in Japan. Fashion, however, is a whole 'nother story here... possibly the exception to the unform/passitivity. People are lot less judgemental about what you wear in Japan (compared to pretty much every other country I've spent time in) , and runway styles are taken more literally. Because of this, the variety of fashions you can find here is mindblowing. If you want to try something out or experiment with a new look, this is the place to do it.
While it's good that there's so much freedom in visual expression, from a 'western' standpoint, the *emphasis* placed on looks still seems, more often than not, a little over-the-top (hence the question). Through high school, students are required to wear a standard school uniform, but it's like they explode esthitically after being pent-up in sailor suits for 18 years. And there really is a LOT of FOCUS on how you look. It's not considered vain to do your make-up in the middle of the train, even holding a large mirror while you do it is normal. My kids actually pull out mirrors to check their hair in class, and I see girls stop to look at themselves and adjust their make-up in shop windows all the time. Normal, normal, normal.
It sometimes seems like the focus on appearance is taken to extremes, but I know a lot of this (and how I view it) might also have to do with cultural norms and how we are brought up to think. For example, take the school girls who roll up their skirts really short. Mini-skirts, hotpants & shorts with heels are extremely common, too. It's just normal for girls to show a lot of leg, usually paired with stilleto heels. To me, this looks really provocative and sexy (um, especially when it's a Sunday afternoon in the country and a lot of ladies are still strutting at the grocery store). But then you start to notice there aren't many girls with really lowcut shirts on (even when you go out), which I recently learned is (conversely) considered overly sexy & provocative here (while the leg-bearing attire is not). It's a flip - the opposite is true here from what we believe in our culture. I guess, if anything, it's a lesson that it might be worth it to step back and take a more anthropological look at the fashion issue. But for now, I feel like - I too - should be on the less-judgemental side about some of the wacky get-ups I encounter. Guess that means I shouldn't start the "Men's Fashion Collection" blog with all the pictures of men in crazy clothes that I've been taking all year, eh?
While I'm on the topic of appearance, there's one other thing I want to mention before closing the post. Upon arriving in Japan, it has taken my guests an average of approximately one day for them to come out with a comment about how many 'hot girls' there are in Japan. And it's true. Even without the hotpants, it seems like every other young girl is pretty (except messed-up teeth are considered kinda cute...hmm...), skinny and really fashionable. But, again, from our western perspectives, I think a lot of these shock-value of seeing so many girls that look like they could be in a magazine surrounds the fact that these girls are REALLY skinny, and can pull-off looks we consider sexy at home. There is still expression through clothing, yes, but the fact that so many people are really thin provokes images of... well, the catwalk.
I know this is a long post, but subject sort of transcends to another issue...the weight issue. I think a lot of people (these 'catwalker crawlers') would be 'suspected of' anorexia at home, where a lower- weight level is normal, or even expected, here.... so many people just accept it as a normal lifestyle. And if this is the case, it has to contribute to a greater cultural acceptance of focusing on it, right? I think there are deeper and more dangerous roots lying beneath this issue*, but for the most part, I guess I have just become accustomed to the eating patterns in Japan being normal (I'm a foreigner so they don't apply to me, btw - merely observations).
I don't think most people in Japan are skinny because of the "healthy food" that you always hear about (and I mean, they're skinny - we just did health checks at work and the women on diets were UNDER-weight) . There's too much snacking, fast & fried food here (even if the rice IS good for you) for it to be that healthier than what we have in America. I have come to think that the weight difference here has a lot to do with portion control. Many people take very small bites, eat slow, and I have seen coworkers dump out half of their lunch before eating it to ensure they don't overeat (I saw one of my co-workers eat a slice of cheese for lunch one day). The strange part is that because I am foreign, I don't feel the same pressure so these are observations.
And I could be wrong about some of them. Either way. I might run another marathon next year (so get in better shape), but I don't think you'll see be coming back to America as a size zero.
*For example, I have heard that there is a big ordeal surrounding personal appearance and weight. There is apparently a belief that, if you are overweight, it tells other people you can't control your eating and therefore have little discipline (a trait which transcends to the workplace, home life, etc).
Anyways, so after school today, I met with a second-year student named Ms. S (her nickname) to help her prepare for the English Proficiency test she's taking this weekend. I worked with her last year and she did well on the pre-second level (she's doing level 2 now), so we're now comfortable working together and have a lot of fun. I met with two third-year girls (studying for the same test) after school on Monday and Tuesday, so it's all part of the groove. The reason I mention this is because I found Ms.S's response to one opinion question particularly interesting and wanted to share.
The question went something like this: Many girls in Japan focus a lot on how they look. Some girls even start to pay a lot of attention to their looks as young as 10 years old. Do you think this is a good thing?
And to my surprise, she answered with a confident, "Yes." This was actually not what I was expecting (and it's my job to get her to give more information), so I continued with the standard, "Please tell me more." Ms. S explained that clothing is an important form of expression; it's a way for girls to show their individuality. When you put it that what... she's absolutely right. Our school has a reputation for being strict and Ms. S is a very good student (from what I gather), so I was actually a bit impressed that the overriding indoctrination (if that's not too harsh?) hadn't muddled her impressions.
I've discussed the passive stereotype for women in Japan. Fashion, however, is a whole 'nother story here... possibly the exception to the unform/passitivity. People are lot less judgemental about what you wear in Japan (compared to pretty much every other country I've spent time in) , and runway styles are taken more literally. Because of this, the variety of fashions you can find here is mindblowing. If you want to try something out or experiment with a new look, this is the place to do it.
While it's good that there's so much freedom in visual expression, from a 'western' standpoint, the *emphasis* placed on looks still seems, more often than not, a little over-the-top (hence the question). Through high school, students are required to wear a standard school uniform, but it's like they explode esthitically after being pent-up in sailor suits for 18 years. And there really is a LOT of FOCUS on how you look. It's not considered vain to do your make-up in the middle of the train, even holding a large mirror while you do it is normal. My kids actually pull out mirrors to check their hair in class, and I see girls stop to look at themselves and adjust their make-up in shop windows all the time. Normal, normal, normal.
It sometimes seems like the focus on appearance is taken to extremes, but I know a lot of this (and how I view it) might also have to do with cultural norms and how we are brought up to think. For example, take the school girls who roll up their skirts really short. Mini-skirts, hotpants & shorts with heels are extremely common, too. It's just normal for girls to show a lot of leg, usually paired with stilleto heels. To me, this looks really provocative and sexy (um, especially when it's a Sunday afternoon in the country and a lot of ladies are still strutting at the grocery store). But then you start to notice there aren't many girls with really lowcut shirts on (even when you go out), which I recently learned is (conversely) considered overly sexy & provocative here (while the leg-bearing attire is not). It's a flip - the opposite is true here from what we believe in our culture. I guess, if anything, it's a lesson that it might be worth it to step back and take a more anthropological look at the fashion issue. But for now, I feel like - I too - should be on the less-judgemental side about some of the wacky get-ups I encounter. Guess that means I shouldn't start the "Men's Fashion Collection" blog with all the pictures of men in crazy clothes that I've been taking all year, eh?
While I'm on the topic of appearance, there's one other thing I want to mention before closing the post. Upon arriving in Japan, it has taken my guests an average of approximately one day for them to come out with a comment about how many 'hot girls' there are in Japan. And it's true. Even without the hotpants, it seems like every other young girl is pretty (except messed-up teeth are considered kinda cute...hmm...), skinny and really fashionable. But, again, from our western perspectives, I think a lot of these shock-value of seeing so many girls that look like they could be in a magazine surrounds the fact that these girls are REALLY skinny, and can pull-off looks we consider sexy at home. There is still expression through clothing, yes, but the fact that so many people are really thin provokes images of... well, the catwalk.
I know this is a long post, but subject sort of transcends to another issue...the weight issue. I think a lot of people (these 'catwalker crawlers') would be 'suspected of' anorexia at home, where a lower- weight level is normal, or even expected, here.... so many people just accept it as a normal lifestyle. And if this is the case, it has to contribute to a greater cultural acceptance of focusing on it, right? I think there are deeper and more dangerous roots lying beneath this issue*, but for the most part, I guess I have just become accustomed to the eating patterns in Japan being normal (I'm a foreigner so they don't apply to me, btw - merely observations).
I don't think most people in Japan are skinny because of the "healthy food" that you always hear about (and I mean, they're skinny - we just did health checks at work and the women on diets were UNDER-weight) . There's too much snacking, fast & fried food here (even if the rice IS good for you) for it to be that healthier than what we have in America. I have come to think that the weight difference here has a lot to do with portion control. Many people take very small bites, eat slow, and I have seen coworkers dump out half of their lunch before eating it to ensure they don't overeat (I saw one of my co-workers eat a slice of cheese for lunch one day). The strange part is that because I am foreign, I don't feel the same pressure so these are observations.
And I could be wrong about some of them. Either way. I might run another marathon next year (so get in better shape), but I don't think you'll see be coming back to America as a size zero.
*For example, I have heard that there is a big ordeal surrounding personal appearance and weight. There is apparently a belief that, if you are overweight, it tells other people you can't control your eating and therefore have little discipline (a trait which transcends to the workplace, home life, etc).
posted by Brenda Ann Elizabeth McKinney @ 3:44 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home