◆Mangyong Road
With the passing of the pandemic, various favorable factors such as the depreciation of the yen continue to emerge in favor of outbound travel, and the Japanese tourism market has ushered in a golden period as an international tourist destination. Of course, the number of tourists from China is also on the rise, and it is inevitable that there will be more opportunities for contact with Japanese people, so the old question arises: what should Japanese people pay attention to?
Without further ado, let's start with the linguistic expression. The Japanese generally think that the Chinese are loud, but some of our own justifications make people cry and laugh, for example, some say that the Chinese have good lung function, so the voice of speech is like Hong Zhong Dalu; some people say that speaking loudly is the advantage of the Chinese, that is called a sound like thunder, the first to grab people.
Of course, it is not without rational explanation of the sound of the Chinese voice, for example, some people point out the difference between Chinese and Japanese pronunciation from the pronunciation of Chinese and Japanese: one of the reasons why Chinese speak loudly is because the pronunciation system of Chinese is different from Japanese. The pronunciation of Japanese is flat, with no ups and downs, so Japanese people will feel very quiet, calm and elegant when they speak. The Chinese pronunciation has four different ups and downs, so the tone of each sentence will have ups and downs, giving people the feeling that the tone is rich in emotion.
All of the above, although the public says that the public is reasonable, but I still believe that the voice is not completely uncontrollable, and the key is that the awareness of following the local customs is not enough, which leads to the Chinese people being recognized as loud and impolite around the world. Of course, the so-called accumulation of habits is not incomprehensible, but the problem is that according to the author's view, the lack of awareness of respecting the customs of other countries is the crux of the problem. The loud voice is not obvious to everyone at home, but it becomes "harsh" abroad.
And then from the interpersonal point of view. There is an old Chinese saying that "meeting is three times familiar", which can quite represent the characteristics of interpersonal communication between Chinese people. On trains and planes and other means of transportation, it is common to see people who have never known each other chatting enthusiastically after a while, and there are many conversations such as "are you married", "do you have a house", "how much money do you earn a month" and so on, which involves personal privacy.
If you bring these habits to Japan and "meet and get acquainted" with the Japanese, it will scare the Japanese. Japanese people are introverts, and they never open their hearts to others easily, because it is not only a matter of personal privacy, but also a matter of not wanting to cause trouble and confusion to others, so Japanese people generally do not talk about their privacy, and they do not inquire about the privacy of others, even to friends and relatives.
Let's look at the differences in behavior and habits between Chinese and Japanese people. We know that the Japanese are a people who value team spirit. Then, their individual actions must first prioritize the collective good, pay attention to the consciousness of the herd, and avoid highlighting themselves, otherwise they will be alienated or even isolated by others. In China, however, individuals seldom confuse "public society" with their own "private life", which determines the difference in behavior and habits between the two countries from the source.
In a country with a large population, a small territory, and a relatively independent geographical location, it is necessary to fully consider the positions, feelings, and relationships of other people and organizations to which they belong, and emphasize mutual dependence and respect as the basis for words and deeds. In order to avoid friction and conflict, Japanese people pay attention to maintaining a certain distance from others in interpersonal interactions, which is the root of the Japanese sense of "between". It is this kind of "room" between people, this ambiguous expression of Japanese pride, that makes Japanese people feel like a fish in water when dealing with people-to-people relationships.
Chinese people are very different from Japanese people in terms of behavior and habits of interpersonal interaction, and it is precisely because of the lack of this "between" awareness that even Chinese who are not familiar with each other will pat their shoulders to show appreciation and affection, and it is not uncommon for good buddies to hook up and let the body get in close contact.
Investigating the reasons why Japanese people hate Chinese through this website can also reflect the difference between the words and deeds of the two countries. The Japanese have summed up several reasons for hating the Chinese, one is that the Chinese "Ulu drying clothes" (noisy); the second is that the Chinese do not love hygiene; the third is that the Chinese dress rusticly; and the fourth is that the Chinese do not follow the rules. Of course, there are other reasons that are beyond the scope of this article, so I will not go into details.
Let's start with the first one, which is the character trait of the Japanese people to speak softly, be quiet and comfortable, and not cause trouble to others, so Japanese people rarely talk on the phone in public, especially on the train, and do not laugh loudly so as not to disturb others. The Chinese people who came to Japan did their own thing, and they did not have the slightest concept of following the local customs, which naturally gave the Japanese the feeling that they were "noisy". Let's look at the second point, the Japanese are very hygienic, in public places, you can see the alcohol disinfectant sprayed at any time, etc., and when you have used a public place, you will take the initiative to put your used public items neatly and take away the garbage, and on the other hand, we can say that in all public places except your own home, you can see a mess everywhere. As for the third one, the Japanese pay attention to dressing up and paying attention to details, and it is very common for boys to trim their eyebrows, and girls, and even Obasan, almost do not wear makeup and do not go out. There are still a lot of Chinese people in the coming days who wear jeans with suits and formal travel shoes, and some ladies can be seen on the street without being raunchy, so it is no wonder that the Japanese look at Chinese and say "Aunt Dasha" (rustic). The unruly conduct of the last one is enough to see that Chinese people have been continuously criticized around the world since they went abroad. Especially in a country like Japan, where health can be called the world's first-class, Chinese people spit, litter, smoke everywhere and throw cigarette butts, get on the bus to grab seats, shop without queuing, and even fight abroad in the nest, this switch can only be the contemptuous eyes of the Japanese, if you don't respect yourself, don't blame others for disrespecting you. Of course, with the increase in the number of tourists traveling in Japan in recent years, I feel that the overall quality of the Chinese people is indeed improving significantly, but freezing three feet is not a day's cold, and it is really a long way to go to win the respect of the Japanese.
To sum up, if Chinese people want to truly understand the Japanese nation and understand the Japanese, I personally think that there are still two kinds of figures: one is the figure of self-proclaimed Japanese teachers handed down from ancient times, and the other is the figure of a local tyrant today. Then, with an open mind, students will learn to adapt to the culture that has been "Japanese-styled" from China, as well as Japan's own unique cultural customs, and truly follow the local customs. In this way, although it cannot immediately change the Japanese people's view of the Chinese, as long as our own quality and strength go up, this is just like when we were strong, Japan respected our teachers, and in modern times the West is strong, he immediately dropped his ass and followed the honor. I believe that the Japanese, who are comfortable with role change, will quickly adapt to the Chinese. At that time, it will be exchanged for the true respect of the Japanese, otherwise, it will only continue to be looked down upon. (The author is the vice president of the Japanese Chinese Writers Association)