NURUL AFIYAH
1211204088
English Education Department
Faculty of Education and Teacher
Training
BANDUNG
Cultural Differences
Between American and Japanese
Differences sometimes make missunderstanding in communication. Moreover, cultures
frequently become the wrongdoer. Why? Because people have their own habits and
mannerism to speak each other. If we discard the differences and speak as far
as we want, we will lose a ‘good’ relations with some people who do not like
the way we communicate with others. Here we are going to analyze how far the
differences between American and Japanese in speaking.
The ways of speaking between American and Japanes are so different that
they often cause culture shock to both Americans and Japanese who visit each
other's country. Most Japanese who come to the United States are at first time
shocked and have a problem with the American direct way of speaking.
Culture shock occurs because most Japanese cannot easily escape from the
formula "politeness = indirectness." Compared to the American way of
speaking, Japanese speak much more indirectly. They assumpt that the ideal way
of communicating is getting a message across by artfully speaking indirectly
and hinting at the issue. Being too direct is clumsy. Directness is
considered a form of impoliteness in Japan. Therefore, when we want to be
polite, we speak and act very indirectly. For example, we rarely say, "I'll
go to a bathroom," except when we are with close friends. Usually, we say,
"I'll go wash my hands." Especially when we are at the table or with
an important person, we say only, "Excuse me. I'll be back in a
minute" because we do not tend to remind other people of the bathroom,
which is considered a dirty place, even though it is actually clean. Also,
other Japanese can infer that we are going to a bathroom from this phrase. But
Americans cannot. They ask where we are going since they have no idea what we
are going to do: make a phone call? buy something? Yet, in this case, these
questions make Japanese frustrated, wondering why these Americans do not
understand our polite expression.
Basically, expressing our desire directly is not considered polite, and
culture shock happens to Japanese when Americans expect us to express our
feelings honestly. Concerning appetite, when we are guests, we dislike to say,
"I'm hungry." We put up with hunger until we are asked, "Aren't
you hungry?" Even when we answer the question, we want to stay polite, so
we never say, "Yes. Very much." Instead, even if we are starving, we
will say, "Uh..., yes, a little." An American host or hostess may
notice that we are reserved and ask us to feel at home, but their kindness
causes difficulty, especially to middle-aged or older Japanese because they
cannot easily find another way to express their respect for the Americans.
Japanese are shocked by American unreserved behavior because the American
way of speech is very direct. They do not hesitate to express what they want
since directness is honesty for them. They will say, "I'm hungry. Why
don't we go and eat something?" Japanese are surprised to see Americans in
the presence of guests say, "I'm hungry" or "Can I have another
glass of juice?" On the other hand, we can easily understand what they
want.
At the same time, Japanese are shocked because their way of being polite no
longer holds good in the United States. If we answer, "Uh..., yes. I'm
hungry but only a little," our host or hostess may postpone the meal.
Later, Americans around us might notice our stomach rumbling and wonder why we
did not tell the truth.
Similarly, Japanese may be surprised to hear Americans say "No"
often because Japanese tend not to say "No." We usually express our
reluctance to accept an offer by subtle facial and verbal expressions because
we want to avoid making people feel bad by refusing directly. For instance, a
Japanese student studying might say, "Um..., yes," when asked by an
American roommate if he may turn on the TV. Whereas the Japanese student thinks
his expression, "Um," fairly expresses his intention of refusing, but
his roommate turns it on. As a result, he has to study with the noise of the
TV. To make matters worse, he tells his neighbors that he had trouble doing his
assignments because his roommate was watching TV beside him. The American
roommate may be informed of this story by one of the neighbors. Then he may
well get angry since he asked and received permission to watch TV. Consequently,
Americans will think that Japanese are difficult to understand and the way we
speak is confusing. Thus, our intention to be polite and be accepted as nice
people works in the opposite direction. The fact that we are not thought of as
nice people depresses us so much. This depression may be one of the major
culture shocks to Japanese who come to the States.
The difference between American and Japanese ways of speaking can cause us
some bad experiences at first; however, once we get accustomed to the direct
speech of Americans, it is more convenient than the Japanese way. First, we can
say what we want. Second, we do not have to hesitate to tell the truth in order
to be polite. Finally, it frees us from unnecessary misunderstandings. The
third point makes us happy because it makes us feel we have adjusted ourselves
to American society at last. Compared to Americans trying to learn the Japanese
way of speech, we are supposed to have much less difficulty learning the
American way. At first, it might seem to be difficult, but in a few months, we
will find ourselves comfortable in the direct speech of the Americans and may
be in trouble when speaking with newcomers from Japan.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
ü Adelman, Mara B. 1982. Beyond Language Cross Cultural Communication (second edition). Prentice
Hall Regents. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey 07632.
