Hey Dok, frankly I don’t give a……

[Placid Dingo]

Tatamae, not Tatami. The opposite is honne (one's sincere feelings)

In a way the Japanese do things the healthy way by really embracing the duality of public and private face instead of denying it totally.

[Jenne]

Tatamae, not Tatami. The opposite is honne (one's sincere feelings)

In a way the Japanese do things the healthy way by really embracing the duality of public and private face instead of denying it totally.

Their suicide rates speak to the opposite of this, but I take your point nonetheless.

[Placid Dingo]

Yeah, point taken.

I'd say healthy to a point, perhaps, but it certainly is a contributing factor to the ridiculous social pressures Japanese face. There's a number of other issues at hand as well though.

[Jasper]

I am under the impression that, far from doing things the healthy way, the Japanese are, as a whole, completely out of  their minds.  It's what has always stood out to me about Japanese culture.

[Cramulus]

Khara, I don't have anything to add, but these might keep you warm with how cool you are

[Placid Dingo]

I'd have to disagree with the 'completely out of their minds'.

There's a lot of subtle cultural stuff you have to work out before you 'get' Japan, but once you do, you can let go of the 'wacky wacky wacky' kind of portreyal that we get in the west.

That's not to say that everything is fine and dandy. Male/female roles are still what we'd call outdated. MEntal ealth is largely misunderstood. Social pressure, especially in high school has a devistating impact. But as far as the Honne/Tatamae concept goes, it's not the kind of social imprisonment that it's tempting to portrey it as.

[Doktor Howl]

I'd have to disagree with the 'completely out of their minds'.

There's a lot of subtle cultural stuff you have to work out before you 'get' Japan, but once you do, you can let go of the 'wacky wacky wacky' kind of portreyal that we get in the west.

That's not to say that everything is fine and dandy. Male/female roles are still what we'd call outdated. MEntal ealth is largely misunderstood. Social pressure, especially in high school has a devistating impact. But as far as the Honne/Tatamae concept goes, it's not the kind of social imprisonment that it's tempting to portrey it as.

Then what is it?

[Cramulus]

it's not that japanese people are themselves crazy, (well...)
it's that their norms and values and cultural narratives are SO ALIEN to us westerners that it seems BATSHIT INSANE OUT OF THEIR MINDS

    

[Freeky]

True, they do have different norms. But how different can they be, when CLEARLY there is mad science happening in that last pic?

[ThatGreenGentleman]

AHAHAHAHA! i can see the guy's whitey tighteys in the last pic!