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20th Century Japan
Rising Public Awareness
Today, when we think of Japan, we think of vast, densely populated cities in an affluent, developed country. Teeming masses of men in dark suits are packed, or rather pushed, into commuter trains by subway employees, en route from their tiny flats (known euphemistically as manshon, from the English mansion) to gleaming office towers of glass and steel, where they spend long hours planning international marketing strategies. Identically uniformed young men in huge factories, where they are employed for life, tend to the robots that dominate the production lines. Unsmiling teenagers sit in the serried rows of cram schools (juku) at noght, furiously taking notes on the facts that will help them pass entrance examinations to secondary schools and universities. Slim, well-dressed housewives shepherd their uniformed offspring to schools and kindergartens along busy city streets and shop for the latest fashions and sophisticated consumer goods in opulently appointed department stores. The standard and cost of living are extraordinarily high and Japanese have one of the highest life expectancies anywhere. Most of all, the Japanese agree on most things, subordinating themselves to collective goals to an extent unparalleled in any Western society.
And the truth is that today Japan is all these things and much, much more.
Japan is now a highly efficient, developed country, a world leader in finance and manufacturing. However, the country now grapples with the twin problems of having the fastest ageing population in the world as well as increasingly bored, dissatisfied and rebellious youth. At the same time, Japanese pop culture is being eagerly absorbed by youth everywhere. Japanese fashion (both street and haute couture), comics, drama serials and computer games now have an international following. The Japanese have also developed a fondness for Western things and only the recent economic woes of the country have stemmed the consumption of western culture somewhat. The same economic crises have also left a slightly uncertain mood amongst the Japanese on the future path of their society.