1/25/10 -Session 7 - Pitelka - Japan: Postwar Growth and Crisis

I found the 3 phases of reform in Japan post WW2 very interesting. I am impressed with the different factions that worked on the new constitution for Japan. I had never heard of the activist Beate Sirota, who was largely responsible for womens right to vote in Japan. I was interested to learn about the LDP- liberal democratic party which is truly a far right conservative Japanese party. Two of the predominant values of this party, I closely associate with the Japanese people, deference to authority and pro-business. It was really interesting to hear some of my collagues share thier personal experiences while living or teaching in Japan, and how the generational gap between 'traditional values' and the younger generation struggles with 'modernity'.

I agree that the United States is in need of a model for automobiles that is similar to the one that Japan has created.
We, for so long, have been this country of "big" stuff, which, culturally, is something that is hard to let go of.
It is interesting to me Japan's view on immigrants and their prejudice against people (less white Americans, correct?) It would seem that although America is not like this against foreigners (or not ALL like this), we have a hard time using ideas from other nations to implement to help our economy and our environment.
Why is Japan so closed off to immigrants? And, why, with America's melting pot, can we not "figure it out"?

I'm really sorry I haven't seen any of Hayao Miyazaki's films yet. I mean to soon. I was struck by the presence of strong, young female protagonists. Reminded me of my work in grad school on Greek folktales, which often feature young, clever heroines and which seem surprising given the traditional pretty patriarchal culture. They seem to be an inversion of the norms in the general culture perhaps giving expression to what is more suppressed in the real world. They also seem to perhaps reflect a national identity of underdog, the way Greece sees itself in relation to the world. I wonder if any of this is similar to Japan and Miyazaki's films...? If I ever get back to my comp lit studies, it would be worth exploring!

I would love to use his films in my classroom, too. Perhaps as an extension to the persuasive essays my students do on contemporary issues, like the environment, showing how such an issue could be addressed in a creative way through the powerful medium of film.

I wonder if Japan will also serve as a model on how to care for a growing retired population. With a birthrate that fails to keep up with its retirees, how will they afford to care for them? I know Prof Pitelka mentioned opening up the country to immigration, but how realistic can/will this transition take place? Maybe we should pay more attention to this growing phenomenon - unlike how we failed to pay attention to their economic/real estate bubble which was a precursor to the devastating recession we just went through/are still going through.

Princess Mononoke would be a great video to show, simply because it does present the other side to the environmental argument, namely that even though we harm the environment through industrialization, we cannot ignore the benefits of it. We have to be able to figure out how to still retain the benefits of technology without ignoring the impact on the world that sustains us. It is nice to have movies that show both sides.

You would probably have to send letters home for approval to show it in class. I don't know what it is rated, but it is a pretty bloody movie at times.

Just checked it up. It is rated PG-13.

His movies also shows how connected Japanese popular culture still is to a lot of the shinto belief systems, namely the living spirits. You see that in many of his movies like My Neighbor Totoro and Castle in the Sky.

Prof Pitelka did mention the idea of opening up immigration to help their dwindling population. In Scandinavia, mothers get money from the government each month as long as they continue to take their children to doctor's visits regulary and care for their children. They are offering this type of program in Japan two...amounting to about $2400 a year for 6 years. Perhaps they should try increasing this amount to help entice the "parasites" into having children.[Edit by="ktarvyd on Feb 5, 5:19:34 PM"][/Edit]

I am interested in learning more about the growing number of Japanese teenagers who never leave their rooms. Professor Pitelka mentioned this subculture of teens who decide to stay at home with their parents and seem to be waited on by their moms and dads. I assume the teens lock themselves away to immerse themselves in video games and technology. Parents here in our district have expressed these same behaviors in their own high school children, but the American parents I have spoken to are not in support of this. And does that mean the Japanese parents support their own children as "hermits"? Or are they struggling with this too?