The 11th English Oratorical Contest for the University of Tokyo ESS Trophy

Honesty. Bravery. Loyalty. Samurais are often used to represent the virtues of classic Japanese culture. Many people still consider these moral codes as ideals, but could it be that some parts of samurai culture which we still adhere to actually cause detrimental effects in modern society?

 

Recently, I had the chance to do research on bullying in Japan and to talk to people who suffered from bullying. What intrigued me was that bullies try to ensure loyalty amongst themselves by attacking an anomaly who isn’t part of their “group” and shows some characteristic that makes him/her different from them. This made me wonder — has bullying evolved into a by-product of loyalty, one of the most important aspects of Japanese culture?

 

“Seken” is a word often used to contrast Japanese society with Western society. It is used to describe how Japanese people act in their communities. The doctrine of behaving in a “Seken” manner, to care for the wellbeing of others, was fundamental to turning Japan into a country with one of the most co-operative and humble people in the world. We have passed this concept, down from generation to generation, and it remains strong in today’s society.

 

However, as soon as a community has been established, people try to maintain good relationships within the group by excluding others from it. An example of this is bullying done by school-aged kids who have only been exposed to certain aspects of Seken. While most bullying in Western countries consists of physical and verbal attacks, Japanese students hurt others through exclusion to reassure loyalty to their group. This style of bullying can make anyone a victim, because instead of involving violence, it involves social isolation. Trying to stop it could make you the next victim. Even at such a young age, children are exposed to the ugly nature of Seken and are conditioned to follow the majority so as not to be separated.

 

Because of the strong unity which the culture of Seken brings, it can be exclusive and skeptical towards complete outsiders. The fear of people outside of familiar society is what fuels the xenophobic nature of Japanese society, which is apparent from its long history and current immigrant issues. Until the 19th century, Japan used to forbid foreign nationals from entering the country. In 2014, Japan accepted 11 refugees out of 5000 applicants, making it one of the least generous countries towards refugees. Even if the immigrants are harmless, people in Japan are afraid of “gaijin” joining their community. Although conservatism is becoming the trend of politics on a global scale, more people need to be open-minded and learn to be friendly towards foreigners if we want to successfully host the Olympics.

 

Furthermore, people are reluctant to voice their opinion because they don’t want to ruin the unity of the community by introducing conflicting ideas. As the Japanese people have lived in this world of “Seken” for a long time, they seemed to have acquired a new skill which nobody outside Japan can perform. They’ve managed to “read the air”. Now, it’s quite terrifying to imagine people reading Hiragana and Katakana flying in the air. The truth is: it’s not that literal. It’s a phrase to express that everyone else in the group thinks that you shouldn’t be doing what you’re doing. It’s like saying, “Look, it says in the air that you should stay quiet and do nothing.” I’m often told to “read the air” whenever I raise an opinion which conflicts with the majority’s. But why should this be seen as inappropriate? As the French novelist Victor Hugo once said, “There is one thing stronger than all the armies in the world, and that is an idea whose time has come.” Raising opinions and sharing ideas allow us to gain a broader perspective on many things, and that is one of the key elements in the modern world, in which many of us come from different backgrounds and have different views.

 

Something that is analogous to the Japanese culture of “Seken” is the Japanese education system. We value people who maintain the unity of a community by listening and compromising. Most of the classes are lecture-based, and the students do nothing but listen, study and memorize. As a student who recently came back from studying overseas, I was quite surprised at the lack of involvement in the classroom. We very rarely hold discussions on the topics we’re learning. If a person is left behind, he/she will stay left behind. Sure, they will learn how to listen, but will they learn how to express their opinions? In this world of 21st century where society develops exponentially fast, these people will be the ones who obey, not the ones who lead. It is a matter of time before computers replace these people.

 

Of course, it doesn’t mean that we should totally abolish this culture. Humility and loyalty has always been the strength of Japanese people, and the culture of “Seken” contributed to developing that morality. However, there are times when we need to change. This era of globalization and exponential development ask for openness. They ask for leadership. They ask for proactivity. Nowadays, the word “Samurai” is sometimes used to describe Japanese people who strives toward success, especially at an international level. However, these new generations of Samurai need to have a new strength alongside the the old. The age of traditional Samurais ended when fighting with swords and arrows on horsebacks became obsolete and ineffective. So, let’s make a change before it’s too late, because those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future.