Japanese culture seminar

1.     Information on campus life at KGU

2.     Sightseeing bus tour in Kyoto including experience of Kimono

3.     Sightseeing Bus tour in Nara

4.     History of Japan

5.     Mind of Japanese, in comparison with Western people

6.     Structure of Kyo-Machiya and life of people in Kyoto

7.     History of Japanese Architecture

8.     Letters in Heian Era Style

9.     Tea Ceremony Experience

10.  Visit to Nishijin-Ori Factory

11.  Craft Experience at Kyoto Museum of Traditional Crafts

12.  Visit to Elementary and Junior High

13.  Weekend Homestay

Period	Name	Details
-300 BC	Jomon	The early Japanese were
300 BC-300	Yayoi	The introduction of rice agriculture evokes the development of a social hierarchy and hundreds of small courtiers that started to unify into larger countries
300-538	Kofun	Japan is for the first time more or less united; Kofun(tomb)
538-710	Asuka	538/552 introduction of Buddhism 645 the Taika reform is introduced. The Fujiwara era starts
710-783	Nara	710 Nara becomes the first permanent capital
794-1185	Heian	794 The capital moves to Heian (Kyoto)
1192-1333	Kamakura	1191 the Zen sect is introduced 1192 Minamoto Yoritomo is appointed shogun and establishes the Kamakura government 1274 and 1281 The Mongols try to invade Japan twice, but fail mainly because of bad weather conditions
1338-1573	Muromachi	1337 The emperor flees and establishes the Southern court in Yoshino 1392 unification of the southern and Northern courts 1542 Portuguese introduce firearms and Christianity to Japan
1573-1603	Azuchi Momoyama	1575 The Takeda clan is defeated in the batte of Nagashino  1590 Japan is reunited after the fall of Odawara (Hojo) 1592-98 Unsuccessful invasion of Korea
1603-1867	Edo	1603 Leyasu is appointed shogun and establishes the Tokugawa government in Edo (Tokyo) 1839 Almost complete isolation of Japan from the rest of the world
1868-1912	Meiji	1868 Meiji restoration 1889 The Meiji Constitution is promulgated 1894-1895 Sino-Japanese War 1904-05 Russo-Japanese War 1910 Annexion of Korea 1912 Death of emperor Meiji
1912- 1926	Taisho	1914-18 Japan joins allied forces in WW1 1923 The Great Kanto Earthquake devastates Tokyo and Yokohama
1926-1989	Showa	1931 Manchurian Incident 1937 Second Sino-Japanese War starts 1941 Pacific War starts 1945 Japan surrenders after two atomic bombs are dropped over Hiroshima and Nagasaki 1946 The new constitution is promulgated 1956 Japan becomes member of the UN

Aimai 暧昧: Ambiguity and the Japanese

Ambiguity, or Aimai, is defined as a state in which there is more than one intended meaning, resulting in obscurity, indistinctness, and uncertainty. To be ambiguous in Japanese is generally translated as aimaina, but people use this term with a wide range of meanings, including “vague, obscure, equivocal, dubious, doubtful, questionable, shady, noncommittal, indefinite, hazy, double, two-edged,” and so on (Oe, 1995 p. 187)

The Japanese are generally tolerant of ambiguity, so much so that it is considered by many to be characteristic of Japanese culture. Although the Japanese may not be conscious of aimai, Its use is regarded as a virtue in Japan, and the Japanese language puts more emphasis on ambiguity than most, for to express onself ambiguously and indirectly is expected in Japanese society. However, ambiguity can also cause of a good deal of confusion, not only in international communication but also among the Japanese themselves.

The origins of aimai

The geography of Japan is said to have had a great influence on the development of many of the country’s customs and cultural values

1.     暧昧Aimai: Ambiguity (9-16)

2.     Amae: dependent (19-21)

3.     天下Amakudari: descent from heaven (23-33)

4.     美学 bigaku: sense of beauty (23-40)

5.     武士道bushido: The way of the warrior (41-50)

6.     沉默：silence (51-59)

7.     男女关系：male and female relationship ( 61-70)

8.     道: Do spirit of Japan (71-80)

9.     顽张: gambari: patience and determination (81-94)

10.  义理：Giri: Japanese social obligation （95-101）

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egtitled.paint he right butou a ﷽﷽﷽﷽﷽﷽﷽﷽                            k                                                           跨文化之桥

在黑板上写下今天做什么

把一周的计划发下来

千回百转的一天。从上周就计划周末去看二条的城堡，早餐完毕收拾完宿舍，便俩人背上书包第一次完全不明方向的出了门儿。车站遇到能说一丢丢英文的日本小哥，然后

一大早上就计划

11/13
How are "Aimai" and "Kawaii" related
Many different forms of Kawaii
Many different meanings
Create harmony with the group

Kawaii-- cute, imperfect

Questions:
Will Kawaii culture stay around?
How is Kawaii useful to political matters?
Does everyone love Kawaii?
Pros & cons
Creates harmony/show off individuality/destress
miscommunication/ comes across as childish to other culture

Discomfort

Frustration
Structure
Ambiguity

Miscommunication

Discomfort

Frustration

Slows down communication