Katawa Shoujo Forums

They should just ban spoken language in the media then, since tone can imply anything while using words completely unrelated.

Juno wrote:They should just ban spoken language in the media then, since tone can imply anything while using words completely unrelated.

Good, then we can all learn sign language and talk to Shizune with out the annoying Wahahaha's ringing in our ears.
One of my favorite saying that applies to both verbal and non-verbal communications; "An insult is like poison, it can not harm you if you do not swallow it.".

Shizune's rather efficient when it comes to making the tone of her words understood, though. Even with Misha translating.

Bara wrote:Good, then we can all learn sign language and talk to Shizune with out the annoying Wahahaha's ringing in our ears.
One of my favorite saying that applies to both verbal and non-verbal communications; "An insult is like poison, it can not harm you if you do not swallow it.".

But I like her laugh...

I don't think the people over there are that bad when it comes to dealing with foreign things. Look on English-speaking forums, the large ones always have a ton of racism and narrow-mindedness in them. But there are a lot more people that aren't (or at least aren't in a significant amount) racist, they just seem less vocal.

Not calling them racist, I'm just giving a not-very-well thought-out example.

It's pretty obvious that most Japanese racism isn't western-directed to begin with. Just look at how they treat Koreans. Then again, I've never seen Zainichi treatment firsthand, so...

ContinualNaba wrote:It's pretty obvious that most Japanese racism isn't western-directed to begin with. Just look at how they treat Koreans. Then again, I've never seen Zainichi treatment firsthand, so...

Historically, Japan has been very xenophobic. I remember learning this past semester about some sources describing both sides of first contact with the Europeans. The European account was positive, while the Japanese were heathens, the women were described as very beautiful. The Japanese account describes the European explorers as uglier than demons. With Japan more exposed to the world than ever, this has probably lessened, but I still get the feeling that some of these attitudes remain in modern Japanese society.

If some scurvy dogs stuck on a boat for weeks went ashore on my village beach I'd probably deem them as ugly as a sin too.

Offensensitivity is pretty variable and subjective; nobody has yet pointed out the use of "Japs" in this very thread, though it wasn't used as a slur. Japanese/Japs is probably similar to gaikokujin/gaijin (foreign-country person vs. foreign person).

I don't think I've ever heard Japs being used outside of a war comic. Hell, even World at War just referred to the Imperial Japanese offensive as 'Tojo'.

Come to think of it, I've never heard Chink, Gook or Yellowman inside my country, either. At least, not by anyone older than 10. But, once again, it's probably due to all the racist quota being satisfied on the native Maori.

G3n0c1de wrote:

ContinualNaba wrote:It's pretty obvious that most Japanese racism isn't western-directed to begin with. Just look at how they treat Koreans. Then again, I've never seen Zainichi treatment firsthand, so...

Historically, Japan has been very xenophobic....With Japan more exposed to the world than ever, this has probably lessened, but I still get the feeling that some of these attitudes remain in modern Japanese society.

I agree that many Japanese people have been/still are very xenophobic, and I find it kinda funny to look for it in my daily life. Race plays a big part in how you're treated here in a very subtle way. One example is if you look even remotely Asian, you are expected to know fluent Japanese and know all the rules and manners. If you are not Asian, you are treated as a small illiterate child that needs your hand held as they walk you across the street. Although it is funny to watch them shit bricks when they realize that you can speak Japanese.

I've never really encountered overt racism in Japan (Or at least in the Osaka area I'm living in). I've never heard any Japanese people talking about me behind my back or ever try to give me a hard time. Not to pigeon hole the Japanese but from what I've seen modern Japanese tend to ether:
1.) Love Western things and all things western. Want to learn English and talk with you but they are too shy.
2.) Couldn't care less about the west. And don't want anything to do with the hassle of dealing with foreigners.

Age isn't really that big a factor, although the more educated someone is, the more likely they are to be interested in the west. I love working as an English teacher in the primary schools because little kids are so open to foreigners. Unlike the teenagers and adults in that you have to twist their arm to get them to have a conversation with you.

Juno wrote:If some scurvy dogs stuck on a boat for weeks went ashore on my village beach I'd probably deem them as ugly as a sin too.

Especially thinking that Japanese people had a more high personale hygiene than most European of that times sailor or not.
Sadly something we (European) lost after the fall of Rome until more recent times, no wonder that a culture that devote a lot of their free times to bath find them Ugly Foreign Demon (even Ancient Egyptian clean themself more than the common Medieval/Renaissence man).

oh, but nowadays most people who would actually have anything to do with Japanese people, are rather clean. I think so

I still find Japan quite closed to the world. it's like a toy factory of a rich kid- they produce toys. Tons and really really awesome. But only the kid is getting to play them. unless some skilled thieves or other rich people also knowledgeable about the kid's life, get to bring one of the many, overlooked by the kid toys, and translate it for all the poor kids.

"Hey, how about we take our VNs, games and other stuff to USA or Europe?"
"Huh? Hell no, they are retards."


Hm... actually I could see the majority of the European/ American society go "WTF is this shit?" if there were VNs, anime games, more anime in shops.
Like, 99.9% of the people I deal with, don't have and don't want to have a slightest idea of what cool stuff we just managed to get translated from them Japanese.

Smoku wrote:oh, but nowadays most people who would actually have anything to do with Japanese people, are rather clean. I think so .

I think that they are firmly "First Impression" beliver and we (as Westerns) Never Lived It Down.

A Simple Fox wrote:

G3n0c1de wrote:

ContinualNaba wrote:It's pretty obvious that most Japanese racism isn't western-directed to begin with. Just look at how they treat Koreans. Then again, I've never seen Zainichi treatment firsthand, so...

Historically, Japan has been very xenophobic....With Japan more exposed to the world than ever, this has probably lessened, but I still get the feeling that some of these attitudes remain in modern Japanese society.

I agree that many Japanese people have been/still are very xenophobic, and I find it kinda funny to look for it in my daily life. Race plays a big part in how you're treated here in a very subtle way. One example is if you look even remotely Asian, you are expected to know fluent Japanese and know all the rules and manners. If you are not Asian, you are treated as a small illiterate child that needs your hand held as they walk you across the street. Although it is funny to watch them shit bricks when they realize that you can speak Japanese.

I've never really encountered overt racism in Japan (Or at least in the Osaka area I'm living in). I've never heard any Japanese people talking about me behind my back or ever try to give me a hard time. Not to pigeon hole the Japanese but from what I've seen modern Japanese tend to ether:
1.) Love Western things and all things western. Want to learn English and talk with you but they are too shy.
2.) Couldn't care less about the west. And don't want anything to do with the hassle of dealing with foreigners.

Age isn't really that big a factor, although the more educated someone is, the more likely they are to be interested in the west. I love working as an English teacher in the primary schools because little kids are so open to foreigners. Unlike the teenagers and adults in that you have to twist their arm to get them to have a conversation with you.

Did you enroll in the JET programme, by any chance?

ElisaMasah wrote:

Smoku wrote:oh, but nowadays most people who would actually have anything to do with Japanese people, are rather clean. I think so .

I think that they are firmly "First Impression" beliver and we (as Westerns) Never Lived It Down.

I don't think they'd bother with a memory like that. Commodore Perry's Cannons, on the other hand...

This discussion soon became not overly related to KS, and hasn't really wafted any closer to being so, so I'm going to lock this in accordance with the rules.

That said I do appreciate the fact that all the discussion here has been civil and thought-out given the topic.