Weddings
Do you think having a massive wedding like Korea or UAE is a good idea? Eloping? Having it in a foreign location like Hawaii?
I don't really like the idea of having a mass wedding. To me that seems very impersonal. A wedding should be about celebrating the love between two people, not two-thousand people. I have no problem with eloping, or having a foreign wedding. Personally I think the big fancy weddings that are popular in Japan and America are too much. I'd much rather have a small personal ceremony with family and a few close friends. Otherwise it becomes way too complicated, and ends up being annoying rather than fun.
What is your ideal wedding?
Well, this is not something I really sit down and think about. But as I said before, I'd like it to be something small, with only a few people, and very personal. Nothing fancy, but it probably won't matter what I want anyway. It's all about what the bride wants!
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Homework 5
Superstitions
1. Do you think its important to talk about superstitions? Why?
I think superstitions are important to talk about because they give us some idea of the cultural background of a country. Also, superstitions can sometimes be connected with taboo aspects of culture and they show us who we are supposed to act during certain situations (like passing food from chopstick to chopstick, or leaving chopsticks in the bowl).
2. Is communication affected by superstitions?
I think communication can be affected by superstitions. Superstitions can sometimes can sometimes keep us from talking about certain subjects, such as death. They can also cause communication to breakdown if, for example, we do something inappropriate thats related to a superstition. Even if superstitions don't make logical sense, people tend to believe in them strongly, so doing something against someone's superstitious beliefs can cause a very strong reaction.
3. Do you believe in Japanese superstitions? What do they mean to you?
Since I'm not Japanese I don't really believe in Japanese superstitions. I don't really think I believe in American superstitions either. Although sometimes I do notice myself thinking about superstitious things. I remember recently I thought it was strange when I saw a Japanese person opening an umbrella inside a building (in America this is considered bad luck). Even though I don't believe in that kind of thing, just seeing someone do it was a little shocking to me.
1. Do you think its important to talk about superstitions? Why?
I think superstitions are important to talk about because they give us some idea of the cultural background of a country. Also, superstitions can sometimes be connected with taboo aspects of culture and they show us who we are supposed to act during certain situations (like passing food from chopstick to chopstick, or leaving chopsticks in the bowl).
2. Is communication affected by superstitions?
I think communication can be affected by superstitions. Superstitions can sometimes can sometimes keep us from talking about certain subjects, such as death. They can also cause communication to breakdown if, for example, we do something inappropriate thats related to a superstition. Even if superstitions don't make logical sense, people tend to believe in them strongly, so doing something against someone's superstitious beliefs can cause a very strong reaction.
3. Do you believe in Japanese superstitions? What do they mean to you?
Since I'm not Japanese I don't really believe in Japanese superstitions. I don't really think I believe in American superstitions either. Although sometimes I do notice myself thinking about superstitious things. I remember recently I thought it was strange when I saw a Japanese person opening an umbrella inside a building (in America this is considered bad luck). Even though I don't believe in that kind of thing, just seeing someone do it was a little shocking to me.
Homework 4
Well since I know what all these proverbs really mean I suppose I should say something about my experience with time in Japan. Something strange that I have noticed since starting to work here. It is said that time is very important to most Japanese. Trains are always on time. Meetings , parties etc always start AND END on time. Schedules are always full. But why is it that whenever I make arrangements to meet with (Japanese) friends they're always a few minutes late? It doesn't bother me, but it seems to be different from what I would expect. Also (and this is something that I really don't understand) why do almost all university classes start 5-10min late? At university in America, if we had to wait too long for the professor to show up, we would just leave, but I have seen students wait for as much as 15 minutes for the professor to get there. I guess it just puzzles me sometimes how the Japanese are very strict about time sometimes, but very loose about time at other times.
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