The Shadow of World War II in Modern Japan: Community and the "Victim's History": An exploration of the rewriting of history in Japanese pop culture and the importance of community.

Community

In discussing Japan, particularly from a Western viewpoint, one of the major topics is always “community.” Japan is seen as a largely collectivist society, with most social standards revolving around two concepts: the in-group and the out-group.
 
The in-group, in its most basic incarnation, involves the individual and his/her immediate family. The out-group, then, consists of everyone else. However, these concepts are not fixed and become malleable in any given situation. For example:
 
          Taro and his family (i.e. Taro’s in-group)  VS  Taro’s neighbors  (out-group)
BUT
          Taro’s family and neighbors (in-group) VS the people of the town nearby (out-group)
 
Another example:
 
          Hanako works as a secretary in a small office. She and her immediate coworkers are an in-group in contrast to the out-group members of      
          offices in her same company.

BUT
          Hanako’s entire company is an in-group VS other companies they do business with.
 
This in/out dynamic is extremely pervasive in Japanese society and affects most daily decisions, including what type of language is used in any given situation. Plain-form language can be used with peers and people of lower status (such as children), but polite-form language, or honorifics, must be used with people of higher status. Speaking and acting in Japan requires a diligent and constant monitoring of this aspect of community.
 
As one might guess, the group is prioritized over the individual. Whatever serves to benefit the group is always given precedence over what serves to benefit the individual. This mindset is not unique to Japan and shares traits with Confucian principles in both China and Korea. However, Japanese society, particularly business, focuses on this sense of community to a great degree. 
 
In the films Dragon Head, Grave of the Fireflies, and Barefoot Gen, evidence of the in-group/out-group dynamic will be readily obvious. Furthermore, examples of this concept will also be prevalent in the Godzilla franchise, particularly Godzilla Resurgence.
 
 

Further Reading

Culture’s Consequences: Comparing Values, Behaviors, Institutions, and Organizations Across Nations. Geert Hofstede. Second Edition, Thousand Oaks CA: Sage Publications, 2001.

“Differences in Individualistic and Collectivistic Tendencies among College Students in Japan and the United States” Emiko Kobayashi, Harold R. Kerbo, and Susan F. Sharp.
 

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