Life in Japan in the Time of Corona (Or why rona will be big in Japan for a while yet)

I just went to a new little soba (buckwheat noodle) shop in my neighborhood here outside of Kyoto and had a tasty and cheap bowl of nishin (Pacific herring) noodles with a green apple sour cocktail to wash it down. Only after ordering did I notice that the master (chef & owner) had his mask hanging off his chin as he cooked, bustled about the open kitchen, and breathed all over my food.

I would not have gone in had I noticed him first.

Which got to me thinking, why would a small business owner struggling under safety restrictions engage in such self-destructive behaviour? To step back further, why is a supposedly law-abiding society like Japan having such a hard time shaking off Corona?

(Warning - This article contains a lot of anecdotal evidence, but that doesn't mean it is totally invalid, just needing clarification & confirmation.)

1 It's a class (and hierarchy) thing

Who do I mostly see drooping masks over their chin here? A LOT of construction and service workers. In other words, blue collar workers at the low end of the socio-economic spectrum. People who have little to lose. I remember Bourdieu commenting on how lower class people engage in self-destructive behaviour more on average because they have little to lose. Japanese laborers seem to be embodying this trend.

On the other hand, I also see bosses and managers mask drooping as they command about bowing and masked underlings. It could be the rules don't apply to them when in a position of power at the top of the hierarchy.

Not that a virus cares about these things...

2 It's a social thing

Japanese are inherently social, but their sociablity is often outsourced to a paying contact - the girl at the snack bar, the master at the noodle shop. As I ate my soba, a local woman at the counter talked up a storm with the waitress. Many Japanese talk less with their family than coworkers or shop staff, so shutting down eating and drinking establishments is anathema to their social identity.

So stay at home orders feel like social suicide to many Japanese. No wonder they went on with the Olympics, and hordes of maskless young people throng in McDs and parks, and push up the daily Corona stats...

3 It's a macho manchild thing

Predominantly, the maskless faces I see in the streets are male. Ian Buruma's A Japanese Mirror adroitly dissects the Japanese male psyche, which is split between the swaggering machismo of the samurai (a la Yukio Mishima) and the co-dependence of a spoiled son from a hahmono, or suffering mother tragedy story, which were big in the 1950's. That was when Japan needed armies of manchildren to do what they were told and staff its companies and rebuild the nation.

Now, no one is telling them what to do, so their masks hang low...

4 It's a technocratic thing

Now that Japan is estimated to be 50% vaccinated, I am seeing older people loosening their masks. I live on the Tokaido, the old road between Kyoto and Yedo, and many of the largely senior citizen hikers that trudge past my house reliving the old glory days of the samurai have dropped masks altogether as they chat amiably as they walk.

This implies that we may see a rise in vaccinated people being infected. Time to watch those numbers...

I went out for beers under the ancient Sanjo Bridge in Kyoto the other day, and talking with a fellow professor who teaches at Kyoto University, we concluded Japan is only half way through the Corona epidemic. In short, we expected the epidemic to last 2 more years, even though we were sure we'd be sent back to classrooms long before that.

By the way, the soba was worth it. I'm fully vaccinated, I just hope I didn't bring home a side order of master's rona breath for my unvaccinated child.

Outsourcing Privacy Invasion: Japan's neoliberal ID check app

Here is an example of Japanese style neoliberalism. Tokyo has introduced an app for scanning the mandated ID cards of foreign residents.

With this move, the state retreats from its former duties (ie checking foreigner status, regulating employment) while foisting the responsibility for these on businesses and individuals with the warning "Business owners who employ illegals can be held liable."

The state also abrogates its duty to protect foreigner rights by making the employers do the checking and thus them commit any invasion of privacy.

Insidious and insipid at the same time.

SHUKKOU – The first step in Japanese socialization

 

I had to walk my son to school this morning as he's still getting used to the new direction. It was eye-opening. You can see that the walk to school en masse in uniforms in the morning is really the start of Japanese socialization. Meet up at the appointed time, wearing the appointed clothes (unless you have special permission, like the kid in jeans because of a field trip), and with the same people every day Monday to Friday. There is a huge sense of belonging, of solidarity there.

 

As a foreigner, I have a knee jerk reaction against group proceedings. The hundred kids who flood the road in similar white shirt, blue vest, blue skirt or shorts depending on gender, and bright yellow hat and rucksack remind me of an invading army winding its way through the street on its way to a massacre or bivouac.

 

The foreign is tempted to see the masse movement as a loss of identity and individuality. Nothing could be further from the case. Every one goes together in the same direction in their own way. There are the gangly older kids leading the pack, each with some sort of individualized marker (glasses, a hanging strap, jutting hair). The fidgety younger kids can easily pick each other out of the crowd based on movement, sound, tidiness of attire, etc, despite the added barrier of facemasks. The proceeding is in fact a sensitization to individual differences, of all the little conscious and unconscious movements and signals that mark who we are.

 

I thoroughly enjoyed my walk amidst the throng today, and they seemed to enjoy my funny dances, matching mask and shirt, and the weird English (Gimme a break!) I taught them. More than that, I got to see my introverted son chatting easily to kids he knew and who knew him.

 

I think my wife saw today's walk as an imposition, a duty she had to invoke, and was ready to fight to make me go. Instead, it was a great joy for me to peer into the workings of Japanese socialization, as well as the increasing socialization of my boy.

Women Scorned: Public Apology in Japanese & US Court Cases

We from English speaking lands tend to think of Japan as an alternate world where alien rules of conduct apply. Such is not the case. Japanese society is structured around group dynamics like any other, dynamics which exist in any country, but whose socio-cultural triggering conditions are different.

This week, two events with different details but similar characteristics show this universality of group dynamics, be they Japanese or foreign, especially in the context of public displays of regret or contrition.

First, in Japan the CEO of the 'Hare no Hi' (Beautiful Day) corporation, Shinozaki Yoichi, has been the centre of media attention and popular ire. Hare no Hi supplies kimonos for Seijin no Hi (Coming of Age Day), a once-in-a-lifetime public event where young people are recognized as adults, dress up, go to their city or town hall, hear speeches from local authorities, then feast and drink to celebrate the transition of becoming shakaijin (members of society).

Hare no Hi and similar companies take reservations years in advance to ensure the kimono of their clients' dreams on that special day. Every detail is chosen by customers, who also pay thousands of dollars for the privilege.

This year, Hare no Hi reneged on its obligations, leaving hundreds of young people without the necessary garments on their special day. According to Shinosaki's lawyer, this case involves upwards of 1600 customers, with a loss of 630, 000, 000 yen that might reach 1, 000, 000, 000 yen (NHK).

Women especially were hard hit, as they had paid thousands for furisode, long sleeved kimonos that signal their single status, thus symbolizing also the movement towards the next steps of marriage and starting a family. The furisode kimono is highly connected to female identity in Japanese society.

On the surface, then, this is a uniquely Japanese 'kimono scandal' that would leave North Americans, with their comparatively inexpensive high school grads, shaking their heads in disbelief. Yet in Japan, it is a clear-cut case of a company and its CEO neglecting to fulfil its societal duty.

In keeping with this judgment, Japanese media have framed the Hare no Hi president in ways that emphasize his dubious morality and blatant greed. An interview with his 'friend' quoted Shinozaki as saying, "First of all, think about yourself first before the customer." Japan is known for its 'service seishin', or spirit of hospitality towards the customer, and the CEO's words, although perfectly acceptable in a neoliberal context such as America, portrays Shinozaki's betrayal of Japanese cultural values. This has the effect of framing the CEO as the villain of this mediated narrative. 

Additionally, in the past few days the CEO has reappeared and talked with the press. On this morning's news, an interview with the CEO was shown and discussed. The points of emphasis were two:

1) The CEO laughed as reporters asked him about his hobby of singing, and whether he did so while in hiding from the outrage that blew up during the event.

2) The interview was performed as the CEO walked 3 km between stations, then back again.

First, the emphasis on Shinozaki's laughter paints him as callous and out of synch with public opinion. Having been a former police translator, I can attest that the formal expression of sadness or regret is highly significant in Japan. On the level of everyday life practice, most Japanese pride themselves on having tatemae, an unresponsive front or face presented to the world. There are times on life where this facade is dropped and (from a western perspective) excessive displays of emotion are expected. When women read a letter to parents at their wedding, or when an athlete talks about winning a particularly arduous event, tears are a welcome sight. Similarly, when being interviewed or interrogated about a transgression, tearful displays of regret are expected, even demanded, and met with outrage if not given. Guilt is decided as a result of this questioning; in Japan, the innocent man breaks down in tears, while the guilty bluffs or laughs. This is, generally speaking, the opposite of western patterns of response, where an innocent person is rightfully outraged, and the guilty are expected to hang their head in shame.

NHK coverage of Shinozaki's conference oddly used the same quote from a 19 year old woman who hadn't received her furisode kimono. The woman is quoted as saying, 「謝罪していましたが誠意が見えず、不信感を持ちました」, which translates as "He apologized but I can't see any sincerity, I still feel distrust or suspicion." The repetition of this quote by the NHK, whether intentional or not, testifies to the resonance of the sentiment and the Japanese expectation of convincing shows of sincere emotions such as regret. Added to this, the focus on Shinozaki's long walk paints him as an oddball, one who doesn't ride the train like all other labourers, and thus is even further left behind Japanese society.

The importance of public apology is not limited to Japan. In their examination of apologies in courtrooms, Rachlinski et al (2013) note, 

Because they are so common and so critical to harmonious social life, apologies can serve many different social functions. Generally speaking, apologies tend to play the role of a social palliative, mending relationships between the wrongdoer and the aggrieved party or the community.  Effective apologies convince the victim or victims that the wrongdoer’s conduct should not be taken as evidence that the wrongdoer is as blameworthy as the conduct otherwise might imply.  Apologies are intended to convince the recipient that the transgressor’s actions reflect a less malevolent mental state or that the transgressor’s long-term proclivities are not as destructive as his or her exhibited behavior would suggest. A successful apology restores at least some of a transgressor’s status as a trustworthy individual (1195)

Meanwhile, in the US, the trial against former US Olympic coach Dr Larry Nassar for his sexual abuse of patients has focused on victim's statements and demands for apology and shows of remorse or contrition. Coverage of the trial in Guardian (Grahamn 2018) also reveals that performative aspect of the event and the expectations of public apology, as well as repercussions when they are not met. The article focuses on the judge, Rosemarie Aquilina, when she reads aloud the defendant's letter requesting mercy, a staged performance with a prop like the aforementioned Japanese wedding letter, ending in the cliche “Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.” The article notes,

"That line drew an audible gasp in the courtroom, and when she had finished reading out loud Aquilina tossed the letter aside in disgust. When Nassar refused to admit he was guilty in the final minutes before he was sentenced, stammering meekly “I’ve said my plea”, the judge handed down the maximum term – 40 to 175 years." (Grahamn 2018)

The 'audible gasp' is the manifestation of public shock, while Aquilina's tossing aside of the letter is a theatrical response to both the insincerity of its existence and the sentiments expressed within it. The final refusal to admit guilt is the confirmation of Nassar's lack of sincere emotion, which justifies his long prison sentence. This is the natural outcome when a sincere apology is not offered, for as Rachlinski et al (2013) explain,

The power of an apology to restore status makes it tempting for wrongdoers to offer insincere apologies. Appreciating the potential power of an apology, a wrongdoer might apologize disingenuously to gain some advantage. Apologies often consist of what economists call “cheap talk.” That is, apologies can be costless utterances for the transgressor that hold out the promise of restored status. An apology might need to be costly to transgressors in order to show that they are willing to pay a price to prove they are worthy of trust, particularly if the underlying conduct is egregious. Some conduct is so severe that a meaningful apology is simply impossible. In many circum- stances, however, merely stating an apology can benefit the wrong- doer, making it tempting to offer a feigned apology. People understand this well and react negatively to apologies that they perceive as insincere.  An insincere apology can suggest that the wrong-doer is willing to attempt to deceive the victim, thereby adding insult to injury. Alternatively, an insincere apology suggests that thewrongdoer does not truly understand what it is that he or she did wrong. Statements like, “I am sorry you feel that way,” hardly even qualify as apologies and might suggest that the speaker is affirmatively stating that he or she is not remorseful, especially if said in a sarcastic tone. Either way, an insincere apology makes the wrongdoer and the misconduct seem worse. In effect, attempting to apologize raises the stakes for the wrongdoer, making both redemption and reprobation more likely. (1196-1197)

Indeed, the reports of Shinozaki's inappropriate laughter and long walks clearly depict such a 'malevolent mental state', and fulfil their intention of framing the CEO as not a 'trustworthy individual.' In Nassar's case, these are signified by his letter, an obviously insincere response to the victim's statements he objected to hearing. Indeed, Nassar's actions decided his crimes, but his letter helped fashion his own punishment.

Although Nassar's crimes are unforgivable, especially in comparison with those of Shinozaki, the failure of both men to offer symbolic acts of contrition and regret explain the length of Nassar's sentence to some degree, just as it explains the condemnation of Shinozaki by Japan's media and the court of public opinion that feeds on it. Judge Aquilina's treatment of Nassar's letter and her choice of a maximum sentence signal the legal price of Nasar's transgressions, both against women's bodies, lives, and society itself, especially when no remorse is shown by the transgressor. Unless Shinosaki can offer some acceptable show of regret to his victims, he too may face harsh penalties, and justifiably so.

The point in common of these two cases is that violence done against vulnerable women, whether physical or economic, and which might previously have been overlooked in patriarchal society, is now becoming a socially unpardonable crime. In the US, the Nassar allegations surfaced amid the #metoo movement, a long overdue calling out of male sexual violence, abuse of power, and predation against women that has seen powerful men toppled from their positions in entertainment, but which has not progressed in other fields such as politics. In Japan, which is arguably more patriarchal than America, nevertheless Hare no Hi's neglect has shed light on the social consequences of unscrupulously profiting off of women, betraying their trust, and not showing acceptable forms of remorse.


Sources


NHK News Web. (2018). ”Haregi trouble: Shachou ga kaiken shi chinsha." [Finest Clothes Trouble: CEO holds press conference, gives apology].
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/news/html/20180126/k10011304361000.html?utm_int=detail_contents_news-related_001

Grahamn, Bryan. (2018).  "'I was molested by Dr Larry Nassar': how the gymnastics sexual abuse scandal unfolded."

Rachlinski, J et al. (2013). "Contrition in the Courtroom: Do Apologies Affect Adjudication?"  Cornell Law Faculty Publications. Paper 604.