Some recent person at Kotaku posted something (http://kotaku.com/5484581/japan-its-not-funny-anymore) about Japan's culture/environment/something and how it bothers him or her. While reading the blog one could tell it's really just a rage-rant by a very typical foreigner living in Japan, although for whatever reason I found it kind of amusing to read. There are some points I disagree with (although I found his anime rant really entertaining, its pretty interesting of him to make that his first point and shortest point since he probably knows a lot of people will disagree with him on that point, yet also wants to emphasize that anime isn't the important part of his rant). There are also points which I would understand his frustrations. But I think what shines out in his rant, and what is seen in a lot of aspects, is how much society is influencing an otherwise independent individual.
Of course this isn't a new topic at all. Books are always being written on this kind of theme. But I still think its interesting to wonder about, when the individuals stop making up society, and society starts making up the individual. What I think is most significant, and probably most problematic, is that most of the time individuals don't seem to know they're being affected. In a blatant example, communism is the concept of society overtaking the individual, yet (at least in the past) people are so hateful towards communism that they begin to have a collective, societal mind against the concept of communism as well. Which is communism against communism! Well, probably not quite the most accurate way to term it, but I think the image is there. "Communism is a bad thing where government/society tells you what your position is and what you should do. So, you should think Communism is a bad thing! Or else you will be labeled as a Communist and be slandered!"
I think I used a particularly outdated example but I feel that the irony was worth looking into. Consequently I also don't think I haven't been completely immune to society's influence. Well, its not only impossible to be immune, but its a necessity to be brought up with society and have some of its thoughts instilled into one's minds. The whole "genetics vs. environment" is pretty much based on this issue. Yet again, there seems to be some limit where society just seems to be controlling its individuals too much, everyone wants to think the same way, and when people don't think the same way they all want to either exile them or force them to think the same way. This phenomenon is probably stronger in some places than in others. I can probably be pretty thankful that my environment isn't strongly like that, so that I can still have some liberties without people forcing me (too much) into doing this or that.
Its also worth noting that some people may just integrate and play along with society much more easily than others. Perhaps this ranter couldn't quite accept, or integrate, into the environment around him so that's what made him frustrated. And yet there's also the thought of not wanting to be integrated into that kind of environment (which is probably what he is thinking) that is also stopping him, and also making him so critical. Japan, I think, is not really the one to blame, although he just happens to live in it, people just happen to idolize it, so it just happens to be a hot topic he can write about (even though kotaku is a gaming news site, and the topic of hating Japan is not really that related). I think its just the mindlessness he hates, the "oh everyone is doing it so lets all do it" which is prevalent not only in Japan but anywhere you go in the world. A lot of people want people to start thinking for themselves. To stop blindly listening to what other people say. Yet also not to just blindly ignore what other people say either. I think they want people to make judgements on their own, and come to their conclusions because of that.
Yet, the only people who agree with these kinds of people, are the people who already think like that. And in a way that's a societal group in itself, promoting that kind of thought with others. It's just a constant paradox circle, that keeps going and is ending up nowhere. Just like this rant. I really have no idea what I was talking about. Something about society, I think. :V
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