Description


This article is from the American misconceptions about Japan FAQ, by Tanaka Tomoyuki ez074520@dilbert.ucdavis.edu with numerous contributions by others.

Abstract (American misconceptions about Japan)

Americans and Japanese have basically friendly images of each other.
according to a TIME article, 59% of US adults think of
Japanese as "friendly", and 64% of Japanese adults think of
Americans as "friendly" (see below for details).

Japan and the USA are important trade partners and political
allies. we have no need to worry about massive deterioration of
mutual trust in the near future.

with that said, I have noticed the following things that concern
me greatly:
--- disparity: Americans view Japanese much more negatively than Japanese view Americans.
--- American myths and propaganda: the negative American images of Japan are largely manufactured by exaggerated and
inaccurate US media coverages of Japan.

in this article, I'll attempt to do the following:
--- describe the disparity mentioned above.
--- expose the nature of the American propaganda.
--- debunk some of the American myths.

my point is not that these "myths" are completely groundless.
they are not. most of these have some basis (although tenuous).
for example, much imitation of American culture does go on in
Japan, and suicide rate is slightly higher in Japan than in the
USA. my point is that they are grossly overemphasized in the
USA to the point it is reasonable to call them "myths".

"Is this < soc.culture.japan-bashing> ?"

from time to time on < soc.culture.japan> , people post
articles saying,"I want to read about Japanese culture, not
about how much you guys hate Japan!
Is this < soc.culture.japan-bashing> ?"

this whole FAQ file is a response to that question.