I create an incident at a party
I was at a party last night in Usa. Aside from myself and two other friends (Eion and Chris), everyone else at the party was Japanese.
Chris and I were talking to a friend at the party, and the subject of movies came up. She asked us what we thought about, "Last Samurai". As you'll recall from my post on "Last Samurai" a couple months ago, the movie is very popular in Japan and still a frequent subject of conversation months later.
As you may also recall from my post, I had some problems with the view of Japanese history presented in the movie. And I mentioned that in the conversation. I felt the "Last Samurai" downplayed the achievements of the Meiji restoration, and presented a romanticized version of the Samurai class system. She admitted that the Meiji restoration was an improvement for the lower classes in Japan, but remarked that the point of the movie was to honor the Samurai spirit.
I've heard this defense of the movie before, and I'm not quite sure what is meant by "Samurai spirit". Certainly the Samurai rebellion depicted in the movie, and all the bloodshed it caused seems a little pointless if it is just in defense of some elusive "Samurai spirit". So I said I thought all the killing was pointless then, but she corrected me. "The point isn't whether they killed or didn't kill. The point is the Samurai spirit." To illustrate her point, she brought up the scene where Watanabe Ken's son has been wounded in the fight by the bridge. "Even though he knows he is going to loose, he doesn't give up but charges ahead at the enemy and fights till the end. That's the Samurai spirit."
"So then is kamikaze an example of Samurai spirit?" I asked. This was dangerous ground, I knew. Every guide book I've ever read on Japan warns to avoid bringing up sensitive or embarrassing areas of Japanese history when talking with Japanese people. But every now and again I like to push the envelope.
At the end of World War II, as an invasion of mainland Japan became imminent, desperate Japanese fighter pilots would sacrifice themselves by crashing their planes into American warships. This was called kamikaze.The name literally means "divine wind", and is in reference to an incident in Japanese history when a strong wind prevented the Mongol ships from reaching Japan.
Most Americans are familiar with the former meaning, but not the latter. For many Japanese people, it is the reverse. So she thought I was talking about the Mongol invasion. "No, no, no, this doesn't have anything to do with that," she said. She assumed that I wasn't really understanding the conversation, and made an appeal to the large group for someone to translate for her. "Someone tell him this doesn't have anything to do with kamikaze ," she said.
"Hold on," someone else said, "there are two meanings to the word kamikaze aren't there?" The conversation was batted around the group for a while, and eventually she realized what I was talking about. And was outraged at the comparison.
But, in the time it had taken to clear this up, and perhaps also because of her excitement, she forgot which foreigner she had been arguing with (not kidding). She turned on Chris and started chewing him out.
Chris, who had really only been half following the conversation, had no idea what was going. It was very funny to just watch his eyes get bigger and more confused as she scolded him in rapid Japanese. Eventually he just threw up his hands and said, "Look, I know how to introduce myself in Japanese, and that's about it. I'm not part of this conversation."
Chris later said to me he half thought things would turn into a fight at that point. I think this is an exaggeration. She was talking fast, and she had raised her voice, but she was no where close to decking one of us. But anyway, you can infer from Chris' comment that it was an emotionally intense moment.
At this point the conversation again went back into the larger group, and as everyone was talking to each other in rapid Japanese, I lost track of what was being said. Eventually when the conversation had run its course, the girl turned to me and said calmly, "We've all decided you are wrong." And how can you argue with that?
Afterwards we had a much calmer conversation. Some of the other Japanese people explained to me that Japanese people are very shy about their own country, and very self-conscious about how foreigners view Japan. So they become uncomfortable when these subjects are brought up. And we had a nice conversation about foreign conceptions of Japan.
I should add though, before I wrap up this entry, that I do not believe sensitivity to outside criticism is a phenomenon unique to Japan. Remember the outrage last year about France's criticism of the U.S.? Anyone following right wing commentators would have thought France was the enemy. (And apparently a lot of people did, judging from the protests of French restaurants, which, by the way, was broadcast on Japanese TV, and really made all us ex-patriot very proud to be Americans. Big shout out here to everyone who bravely protested French restaurants last year. Thanks a lot guys.)
Actually, right wing commentators also get upset when other Americans criticize America. If I were ever to write a guide book about America, I'd be sure to warn, "No matter who you are, and no matter what your reason is, make sure you never ever criticize America."

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