When
writing this reaction paper I decided to focus on a specific topic because of
the variety of information that we were given to reflect and react upon. I
decided to focus on community and the neighborhood that we covered in class.
The first part that I want to discuss is the rural communities of Japan. These
communities are very tight knit. They are still very connected to the history
of Japan. Which to me was very interesting the strong hold on the old ways.
Especially when looking at the ie system which is still strong in the rural
areas of Japan. The villages have required meetings in which are comprised by
the heads of the households. I make the connection in the United States to a
sort of homeowners association in ones local neighborhood. There is also a
similarity in which everyone must pay monthly dues. These meetings concern
local events and contain discussions. This lends itself when events such as
natural disasters occur. We could see this in the video we watched. The
community needed to ban together and help each other out, because sometimes the
government can’t help you. This struck me being that I am from New Orleans and
observed the same behavior. It really is an amazing thing seeing a community
come together through tragedy.
The
urban environment is the next thing that I want to discuss. The urban environment
represents the modern Japan. Within the urban communities you interact with
more people, but the interactions are not forced. For instance people with the
urban areas have the liberty to avoid participation with local action groups.
Also, the ie system does not play as much of role within the urban areas, so
there is much more participation in groups by wives and children. The idea of
building a civil society is prized, which is an emphasis on volunteerism.
Festivals play a large roll in strengthening the local community as a whole.
The concept
of the Japanese neighborhood and community was oddly familiar to me in certain
ways as we covered the topic. There are many similarities that we as Americans
can relate to. The importance of family and the broader community as a whole
was something that I was raised to appreciate. So when I look at the Japanese
culture I can understand how they approach the topic in their everyday lives.
Overall the most interesting thing that I noticed while covering this material
was how close the communities truly are with Japan, that when the government
can’t help, they ban together and solve the issues themselves.
How are
American communities similar or different to Japanese communities?
Can we
learn something from how close the communities are?
I think that interactions within one's community can be influenced by the geography. I feel that people within more rural areas, like the midwest in the United States, have tight knit bonds because they rely on each other for business. I think that traditional ties within a community are more likely to fade when in an urban setting because of exposure to pop culture and a variety of different cultures.
ReplyDeleteI believe american communities are very different from Japanese communities. I believe here there is much less of a family feel within communities. I don't even know most of my neighbors. But that may only be my personal experience. I believe it various.
ReplyDeleteSome American communites are very close while others are not. It truly depends on where you are from or where you live. Close communites are a great aspect to have and I think their ought to be more in the United States because working together to make the community will work rather than attempting to make it work with only one person doing anything.
ReplyDeleteIt is interesting that you focused on community and neighbors because it is a contradictory concept in comparison to American culture, but also one that I overlooked in reflecting on the class.
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