Warning! Top 5 Reasons Not to Let Your Daughter go to America
One of my Japanese friends has a dream of being a nurse in America and as one might understand her friends and family will miss her if she goes. So in an attempt to get her to stay she was given the following book 娘を留学させてはいけない:
To be fair and honest, my kanji ability is seriously lacking to even attempt to read this book, but from what I have been told this book is called, “Don’t Let Your Daughter Study Abroad” and the book is more specifically talking about in regards to America, and is written by Takahashi Mitsuko. Want to know why?
Before I go on, just to be clear, the USA is commonly referred to as “America” in Japan and while I realize that America includes a lot more than the USA from here on out just for the time being, America = USA. Also, if at some point I stereotype Japan/Japanese people it is just what I have witnessed from my personal experiences and of course I realize that all people are different whether Japanese, American or any other.
Apparently there are 5 main reasons not to let your daughter go to America (number 5 is the last photo):
Here are some translations of the 5 main points along with a one sentence summary from what I could gather from my friend. If I made any mistakes please let me know, I am far from perfect.
- Worthless English– The English you learn in Japan is not “real” English and Americans will not understand you.
- Brutal Host Family–Your host family will most likely suck and cause some problems.
- Culture and Customs are different–You will have many misunderstandings with catastrophic consequences.
- Studying Abroad is Dangerous–No country is as safe as Japan, especially America.
- The Sweet Trap of Studying Abroad–Not really sure where this one is going…
Anyway, has anyone actually seen this or read it before? At first I thought it was a satire but my friend insisted that is really meant to deter families from letting their Japanese daughter go to America to study abroad. I was told that the most shocking thing to her that she got from the book was that Americans think Asians are monkeys.
She also told me there was a part about how horrible prom is. I thought the direction she was going was what happens after prom, but instead Takahashi apparently writes about how no guys will want to take you to prom because American guys do not like Asian girls. You know, because I never see ANY or know Americans with Japanese girlfriends here in Japan or in the states for that matter.
Also Takahashi does not leave out the fact America is a “racist” country but ever so conveniently leaves out anything about discrimination foreigners face here in Japan. I am not even sure if she (or many Japanese people) even realize that foreigners in Japan face discrimination because only such a small percentage of people living in Japan are foreigners so discrimination isn’t a widespread issue as it is in America, which has been going through civil rights movements for decades now. I mean as far as I know, there aren’t even racial discrimination laws in Japan. But at the same time, how can she not complain about the discrimination that women face in Japan (maybe she does or maybe she just sees this as natural)? Besides, is it not discrimination that Takahashi writes a book that says don’t let your daughter go to America because America has a lot of discrimination?
I really do not know for sure, since I didn’t (cannot) read the book, but if I had to guess I think the author is just bitter from a bad experience; however, that is a risk anyone takes going to a new and foreign place, whether it is America, Japan, England, China, or another country, there is a chance you may not like. I have participated in two study abroad programs, one in France and one in Japan, both of which I was lucky enough to have wonderful experiences, but I did have some friends in both cases that had horrible experiences. Of course in any country there are good things and bad things and all kinds of races and ethnicities have good people and bad people. I am not trying to say that there is nothing bad about America or Americans because we do have our own problems, but I was shocked to find such a book in Japan–but maybe I shouldn’t be.
Also it worries me being a teacher in Japan and knowing how easily my students conform and how gullible they are concerning something they do not know about, for example a foreign country. My students and a lot of Japanese friends are usually completely shocked when I tell them that I do not know anyone that owns a gun nor have I ever seen one besides on a police officer because that is opposite to what they see in Hollywood movies and TV shows. I mean one of my coworkers (a 60 year old man) insisted and told my students that I must be rich because I am Jewish. Too often these kind of stereotypes are seen as truths in Japan to the point where I would not be surprised if there is not word for “stereotype” in Japanese.
While Takahashi might bring up some valid points and I am sure some things are true, such as American guys calling almost every women “beautiful” (I will admit I have told every girl I liked that she is beautiful–but it is kind of circular logic in that because I thought they were beautiful, that is part of why I liked them), it makes me wonder how many people believe word for word what she says.
I actually didn’t mean to go on for that long, but it just kind of happened. If anyone reads this book both my friend and I are really interested in what you think about it, especially if you are American.
A Chinese Family That Loves Japanese Stuff
20 Billion Tweets
First Errand Failure
Doorway Monster
Thousands Line Up For Hayabusa Exhibit
Tokyo Sky Tree Beer
Karuizawa Cosplay
Japan Facing a Farmville Invasion
3D Camcorder
Japanese Kid Takes Solo Bullet Train Trip
Spiny Softshell Turtle in Japan
Summer 2010 Beef Bowl Price War
I chose ‘American guys’ because in reality, mine and most other American males stated intentions when it comes to Japan is to have sex with every single Japanese female I can and by force if I have to. This is the unadulterated truth of the situation.
If the daughters of Japan come to America it makes it even easier for myself and my brethren to defile Japanese women. So if I was them I’d be most worried about Nanban defiling their daughters.
/roll eyes.
Give me a fucking break, your society isn’t producing enough children as it is. How in the hell do you think Japanese society is going to continue without new children? These kind of ideas remind me of hearing about how some indignant samurai used to carry white umbrellas with them during the time electricity was proliferating in Tokyo and elsewhere in Japan in order to avoid the unpure Western rays that were emanating from the lines.
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I think that’s not an excuse of immorality, that makes a you a typical trash example of Americans which is the reason why many people hate Americans.
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What’s immoral about anything shazzb0t said?
And what’s with your anti-American sentiment? You do yourself and other foreigners a disservice with that crap.
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Hey buddy, I was kidding.
I am far more respectful of Japan and Japanese than a lot of the foreigners I met in Tokyo.
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Karisu – who’s the foreigner?
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The fellow with the creative name of “…”
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Who are the foreigners, then? Don’t you find it a little bit US-centric to come onto a Japanese blog and refer to all non-US citizens as “foreigners”? The reason I hate the word “gaijin” is not because it means “outside person” but because Japanese use it to describe everybody who’s not Japanese – as being “gaijin” was a nationality of its own.
You’re committing the very same crime.
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What? Umm, by the very definition, anyone who is not American would be a foreigner to me. I don’t see how the word was used improperly or used in any offensive way whatsoever. If it somehow came across as such it certainly was not intended.
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Doesn’t change the fact that you North Americans are scum!
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Haha. Sounds like someone has a small man complex. Good luck getting some skin sick man.
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I’m American…sure I may be scum, but Canadians? Ok, that’s just going too far.
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BTW, I’m the first “…”, I’m not the “…” who said “Doesn’t change the fact that you North Americans are scum!”.
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Yeah right -.-
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‘Hey’
Thats cool man, I was just kidding about what I said. Just so you understand.
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u know wat u know nothin about americanz so fuke u we americans r better then u cauze we dont judge people we have cooler things in american! i bet u dont even know wat horses r!!
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Not most. All. It’s written in our secret Guys Teaching in Japan Rule Book.
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Shazzbot, keep in mind that your sarcasm may not be recognized as such by non-native English speakers that read this blog! Be careful to not exacerbate the situation.
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Already explained that and the dude continued to insist that I and other Americans were scum. Can’t really do much more about the situation.
I am also aware of the fact that non-native English speakers read this blog.
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Funny how both scum and cream float to the top….
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I love Chu-cream! Say, OT, want to go get some Chu-cream with me? Haha.
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Well, then this is a good chance to start learning sarcasm.
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Haha, thats the way to think!
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ignorance is bliss…
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You are telling me. The less Japanese women know about me…. well.. haha. you get the point. Bliss.. oh yeahhhhhh.
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So true…
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I’ve heard stories of so many Japanese going to study abroad but end up sticking together in cliques and get by with little English improvement, party all the time, and then go back and breeze past the entrance exams for colleges as a kikoku-shijo
So reading just the book title (and the first section title), I thought it was a book to give the warning, “letting your kid study aborad might end up letting her party away those precious years of youth!”
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Yeah, exchange students making cliques happens everywhere with all kinds of people. I noticed it through both of my experiences and really tried to avoid making too many American friends while studying abroad, but at the same time, sometimes you need somebody who can relate to you and understand where you are coming from. You just have to be careful not to miss out on the whole point of studying abroad!
If only they were all like you
Though I hear at least some colleges are getting tougher, I heard the whole reason people go overseas was to miss the point and let money (travel expenses) do the hard work instead of studying for college.
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That is the most important thing about studying abroad. Yet, not everyone goes abroad to actually study and get what you, and I got out of it. I would guess that would be the same with the Japanese that go to America. Some of them want to study some want to go for fun/other reasons.
Either way I was waiting to find out about a book like this, I knew it had to exist. Thanks Evan.
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I wonder if this woman had some sort of really, really doinky experience studying abroad. I wonder if she actually has been abroad.
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Haha. Total doinkery going on in this book, do not read it! Haha.
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“Worthless English– The English you learn in Japan is not “real” English and Americans will not understand you.”
Umm… isn’t that the #1 reason people have for going abroad?? You know, because if you actually want to speak English properly you have to *gasp* talk to native speakers in a natural setting and *double gasp* maybe make mistakes along the way?
And cultural misunderstandings… pfft, well on the plus side you could sell this book as a joke and you wouldn’t even really have to change the titles any. ;P
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Actually, i will have to think it is also “real” because if they didn’t have real English being studied there, where is the future of japan?
Moreover, not that English is not looking good in America, they use so many slang words sometimes I don’t even understand. It would also not be wise to study in USA, I’d prefer studying on a country that doesn’t have a 30-35% drop out rate (just in high school).
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Easy blud! When me an’ a couple bredrin cotch down, spittin’ ’bout all the fit birds in our endz, we all using standard London dialect. Innit?
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wicked my yout, definitely lundun style
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Every English speaking country has it’s own version of English. If you’re looking for a country that speaks textbook English, good luck.
American English is as good as any English to learn.
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I’m surprised there isn’t a Number 6: Being Treated Like a Terrorist When Applying for a Student Visa.
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I don’t know about USA but:
- in England, asians happened to be thrown eggs at night
- in France, Japanese female students are releuctant to leave
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Out of all of those, the only thing I can see as a possible problem for the student is a lack of English ability.
If they aren’t at a near conversational level by the time they get here, they will have a very hard time getting by. Unlike in Japan for Americans where it isn’t incredibly hard to find people that speak English, good luck finding people that can speak Japanese, particularly if your not in a major U.S. city.
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James, America is a perfectly acceptable name for the U.S.A.
It can be considered an abbreviation of the name since, unlike any other country, the name “America” is actually in the U.S.’s name.
I personally tend to call the U.S. America myself, as does almost every other American I know.
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But Canadians hate that.
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Why? You’re Canadian or North Americans.
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I’m not Canadian. The U.S. is also a part of North America, d’uh? Ever heard of South or Central America? Hint: It’s not Texas.
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I never said I wasn’t North American as well. And I assumed you were Canadian because you were speaking for them. In that case replace “You’re” with “They’re”.
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Oh just shut up!
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Uh… the “shut up” comment is not written by me… maybe time I registered or something.
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Karisu:
I didn’t write this post: note the byline.
I use the name “America” for the United States. I know Canadians like to whine about it, but “America” is the name the entire world knows the USA by.
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Sorry James, Didn’t even realize there was an Evan posting on the site! Sorry for the confusion. I do usually read the byline, not quite sure why I forgot this time.
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I forgive you, don’t worry it is my first post that isn’t a photo.
Anyway, I put that bit in just because I have seen some people all but freak out about that and have personally had a few people correct me in that America is a lot more than the USA. Anyway, it is not that big of a deal. America is more or less the USA anyway.
I don’t know many Canadians (myself included) that “whine” about it. It is true, though, that within Canada it would sound very strange to hear someone say “I’m going to America next week.” We generally refer to “the US” or “the States”.
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I spent some time studying in Central America, one of the Americas, and have since adopted the terms “the U.S.” or “the States” to be clear about which country I am talking about. Also, both terms have less syllables than the word “America”, so I can save precious mental and lingual energy when answering so many times the question “Where are you from?”
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(Totally off topic)
America. It’s a meaningless name based on the name of some Italian who wasn’t as lucky as Columbus was.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amerigo_Vespucci
How about asking the Hopi, Inuit, Crow, Maya, etc what we should call that large land-mass in the northern hemisphere.
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James didn’t write the article.
Karisu, you may be surprised to find that many people consider themselves Americans that you have not considered. Cubans, for instance. America is not technically another name for the U.S., that is an lazy abbreviation, albeit one many of us fall prey to.
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It is no a perfectly acceptable name. America is the whole continent of North, Central and South America. U.S People calling themselves american is as stupid as chinese calling their country “asia”
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“No country is as safe as Japan”
Sharking – think it was invented in japan
No woman is safe wearing skirts
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haha, that is a great point, but all jokes aside, IMHO Japan kind of dominates the USA when it comes to safety.
Where else can you pass out on the streets in a big city (think Shinjuku) and wake up without being completely robbed? Or even put your stuff done on a seat in McDonalds or Starbucks, go make an order and then come back to all your things. Or even have a forgotten wallet on the train, with money still instead, turned into the train station.
Of this things might not always happen but they do happen a lot more here in Japan than they would in any other country in the world.
that last bit should be, *All of these things…* sorry, not awake yet.
Despite the book, I think many Japanese young people want to go to the U.S.A., which still represents Freedom and liberty. I am not sure if their dream come true, but I am sure that studying abroad, one way or another, will broaden and deepen their perspective on human beings and the world.
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“Also Takahashi does not leave out the fact America is a “racist” country but ever so conveniently leaves out anything about discrimination foreigners face here in Japan”
It sounds odd or even unfair , isn’t it?
The reaction is the same when a foreigner mentions discriminations he/she faces here in Japan, conveniently leaving out anything about discrimination in his/her home country.
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Reasonably true, that.
However, I think awareness is another matter. However much they neglect to mention the discrimination in their own country, I would think most people that are of the inclination to travel overseas would be aware of any number of cases of discrimination in their country of origin.
As James mentioned, the small number of immigrants and aboriginal people in Japan means that discrimination cases rarely become big news, and so a good deal of people know very little about it, even people that are fairly well educated and wouldn’t themselves behave discriminately.
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I agree that a good deal of Japanese people are not aware of discrimination foreigners faces. So I think it is necessary to have the well-planned education about it that fits with the present Japanese culture.
(I am against the hateful style some human right activists in Japan take over this issue.)
Probably it is also true that most people from overseas would be aware of cases of discriminations in their country of origin, which make it more odd that they conveniently leave our their story of the home land. I think the Japanese want to learn from the way they have tackled the issue and that is a very useful and effective way to widen Japanese perspective.
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Except most of us aren’t writing books to try and convince an already isolated country to stay within the box and preying on already installed fears of the outside world.
Right. Most of Japanese aren’t writing books to try and convince the Japanese to stay within Japan;the
book is an exception.
BTW, anybody can write English equivalent that you shouldn’t let your kid study in Japan if s/he collects the the stories of failures and craps in Japan the expats tell on the Internet as one of the reviewers says.
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You are missing the point. This Japanese person DID write the book. I am not saying anything about random people making comments or even that I never complain about the discrimination here and leave out American discrimination that takes place (bc of course I do that sometimes, who doesn’t?), but specifically this person wrote a book that seems to take advantage of some fears of foreign countries and trying to make money off them, as if there are no problems here in Japan and women are treated wonderful here.
A good point.
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Yes, a very good point of view!
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I don’t think the States in particular represent “freedom and liberty” to Japanese. I think “kaigai” in general carries those associations. “Not Japan” represents freedom and liberty.
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Well “kaigai” is also associated with,for instance China and Korea, Russia but the Japanase do not associate them with freedom and liberty.
A travel abroad(kaigai ryokou) in general represents a bit of free time, liberated from a routine business for the Japanese.
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Awesome! Where can I find one here in the Bay Area?
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didnt japan wanted more tourist? xD lol
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There are two reviews on amazon (Japan) if you’re interested in finding out more. It has one 4 star and one 1 start review.
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And the sales ranking is 421,866, and the publisher seems obscure…Yeah, I don’t think many people are actually buying this book…
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The First Review;
The book follows the suit of the popular book “you shouldn’t…”but it left the sicking feelings on me rather than fresh knowledge.
The content is about the consequence of studying abroad unprepared;for instance, the case in which the parents cannot communicate with their grandchild in Japanese because their daughter married a foreigner, etc.
Aren’t they the cases due to the lack of effort on the part of individuals concerned ?
The author says it is true story but it is left to the readership whether to trust the author. It might be that the author just edited the stories of failures on the net.
I have some doubts on this book because the author seems to have a prejudice about homosexual and s/he has no citations and so on.
The book does not show the solution to the problems but
you might lead the success learning from those cases of failures .
The Second Review.
I echo with the author in that studying abroad is hard with a lot of troulbles. The book lists the miserable cases of studying abroad, but I have a feeling that they are extreme and unlucky cases. In any case we’ve got to be prepared well for the study abroad.
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It’s cut from the same cloth of the “Gaijin Ura Hanzai File” magazine released back in Februrary.
Many Japanese will go to the US (notice they don’t label other countries, such as Canada, in the same light) and have a variety of experiences. Some will do well, others won’t. This book only appeals to the uninformed who won’t know better.
Of course, similar things can happen anywhere. Most Japanese learn English from Americans, so going to New Zealand or Australia could cause problems with pronunciation. Naturally a motivated person will overcome this. Crime in the US is down, but a Japanese could be a victim to crime anywhere abroad. Just ask the J tourist who’s being held hostage in Iran!
There are a number of US guys that chase J girls in the US, but they’re a minority. Also, that’s one of the reasons WHY J girls go abroad in the first place.
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Books like this shouldn’t surprise anyone, think about the overall fear propagated in Japanese society by national TV networks like NHK with their weekly warning show about traveling in the Gaikoku, shows on regular networks that feature reenactments of Japanese tourists being cheated or robbed overseas, other books or Manga like my husband is a gaijin which work to stress the difference between Japanese and foriegners or Roppongi English featured on this site look at how they portray foreigners there. What’s the overall goal? Simple to use pop culture to reinforce that Japan is a unique country where you can remain safe and happy far from the evils of the outside world, that Japan is so different and special it is not worth getting involved outside of it. If you think about the scare tactics are the same of a cult trying to keep it’s members, don’t leave you’ll only get hurt.
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As an American, I’d say that the biggest problem would be host families being of bad quality. My friend has a boy from Hamburg staying at his house and he doesn’t even try to be nice to him, mostly because he never agreed to have a german exchange student at his house, but also because he doesn’t like people messing with his house, or his stuff.
A lot of Americans are like this.
If I were Japanese and I wanted to go to an America-esque country, I’d go to Ireland. It’s all the drunkenness and racism that America has, but with leprechauns- as far as stereotypes go. Besides, most Americans have Irish descent in them.
Also, I’m appalled at the statement that American guys don’t like Asians. Most of the girls I saw while visiting Japan -and most of the Asian American girls I know – are ridiculously hot. maybe they didn’t want to go to prom with asians because they didn’t want their date to get stolen. Or, more likely, they didn’t like the author, because the author seems to be a xenophobic bitch.
Anyway, that’s just my two cents.
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The author clearly has some issues about not being asked out by American boys. Asian girls are extremely popular in the uSA, because usually they’re hot, and secondly, they’re not fat like 67% of Americans.
The “Japan is a safe country” myth is pretty disgusting, especially when it comes to women’s safety. Japanese women know just how pathetic this country’s laws and police are when it comes to protecting women from stalkers and rapists.
Japan’s REPORTED crime statistics are relatively low, because so many women don’t bother to report crimes, because the police will ignore them, or blame the victim, and disuade them from filing a report. No report means no crime… and Japan stays “safe”.
At least in America, a woman usually has the upper hand in the legal system. Maybe the book should explain that. If a woman is stalked in the USA, and she goes to the campus authorities, they will usually DO something. If she gets attacked and goes to the police, they will actually get off their asses and try to arrest the guy.
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Great points, and that was my first thought about the author prob was either ugly or a b*tch so nobody asked her out.
As far as the safety stuff in general I would agree, but I have a feeling many crimes are not reported in the USA as well (maybe not as many as in Japan). In any case, as a man living and traveling around Japan for about 3 years now, I have never once felt unsafe whilst I have definitely had a few unpleasant experiences in the US. I guess also it really comes down to how you define “safety” and for who.
The really funny thing about this is my Japanese ex-girlfriends father bought her THAT exact book when she was deciding to come to America with me! HAHA!
In reality that book is writting by Japanese MEN who couldn’t meet any American women when they came to the US and therefore decided to cock-block an entire country through their bull-shit stories.
Bastards.
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HAHA!! That wouldn’t surprise me if it really were written by some Japanese dudes!
“Japanese ex-girlfriends”<<<Wow! Typical example.
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This is just more sensationalist claptrap put out to extract a few yen from ignorant people by playing into their fears.
Rather than look at whether the content has any validity (which obviously it does not), one should be looking at the fact that such books are published at all in Japan and what it says about their indifference toward maligning other cultures. If such a book were published in the U.S. about Japan, there’d be an uproar about racism and it’d be withdrawn from the market.
Of course such books are going to attack the U.S. and not other English-speaking countries because it’s the number one destination for most exchange students and home stays. By making the U.S. the target, more books will be sold, but also, given the (general) Japanese perception that one other western country isn’t remarkably dissimilar from another (we’re all gaijin, aren’t we?), it both attracts the widest possible audience and manages to splatter fear about visiting all western countries by association.
And people really need to give this “America” thing a rest. The U.S. is called “America” whether you like it or not. It’s not called “North America”, “Central America”, or “South America.” It’s not taking away from any other places by being referred to in that way and the hypersensitivity that goes into getting worked up about this point displays a massive insecurity on the part of those trying to make hay from it. It’s like those absurd political correctness arguments people get into. It’s incredibly petty.
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What should Japanese parents worry about when sending their daughters to study in America?
They should worry that their daughters might become independent and learn to think for themselves, instead of being gullible and believing all the trash the people around them spew out about a place they’ve never lived!
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I haven’t read the book either, but guessing from the table contents your summary of the first point seems misleading to me. Let me translate the titles:
Part 1 Worthless English – It is an illusion that one becomes able to speak fluent English simply by studying abroad
-the people who cannot go out of a language school
-the story of studying abroad people are hiding
-various kinds of language schools
-unimproved English
-you won’t be able to speak like a native
-the English language without taste (I guess she is talking about slangs)
-not graduating from a university
-(I cannot read it. maybe “complicated English”.)
(there must be someone who can translate Japanese way better than me. Correct me if I’m wrong!)
So I think it is most likely that she is actually talking about the English you learn in a foreign country (U.S.?) and not “in Japan”. It should also be noted that her criticism here at least seems to be directed against the illusion which Japanese people have rather than the U.S itself.
I personally think her point is valid, since so many Japanese students (especially teenagers) tend to think that one can master fluent English simply by going abroad. The English schools like Nova and related publishing industry often encourage this kind of illusion by emphasizing the positive aspects of studying abroad, and it can be misleading.
I think sometimes some negative information is needed, not in order to discourage students from studying abroad, but to make them prepare for the possible disillusionment. I know some students who are unnecessarily embittered by the experience of studying abroad mainly because of their naivete. So this book might work at least as an antidote.
Personally I enjoyed my study in Europe a great deal, partly because I didn’t idealize the whole thing so much beforehand. I experienced some cases of discrimination of course, and I know some (Japanese and European) friends who had bad experience with host families, but it didn’t shock or embitter me. I knew that that kind of thing happens anywhere.
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And here is a (incomplete) translation of the titles of the second chapter:
Part 2 The cruel story of host family – Not every host family is kind to you
-the purpose of host family is money
-mysterious (?) host family
-a foreign student used as a maid
-ill-natured host family
-(I couldn’t read it)
-(I couldn’t read it)
-members of host family who can speak fluent Japanese
-(I couldn’t read it. something concerning 留守番).
-(I couldnt read it)
I guess there must be some problems (what does she mean by “mysterious”? I’m not sure), but it seems to me that your summary of the second point “Your host family will most likely suck and cause some problems” is not accurate either, since what she says here is that “not every” host family is kind to you. She isn’t generalizing.
Of course it is possible that she actually use the phrase like “most likely” in the book. I haven’t read it so I cannot tell. Again, correct me if I’m wrong.
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I found Mitsuko Takahashi’s website (I http://www13.ocn.ne.jp/~expert/).
It seems that she studied in the U.S. highschool and worked as a English teacher and a interpreter. The interething thing is that she also seems to have worked as a coordinator for Japanese students studying abroad (http://www13.ocn.ne.jp/~expert/faq.html#A-19).
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There is also a FAQ section in her website.
I found a question concerning studying abroad which some might find interesting. I quote:
*海外の高校や大学に留学をしたほうが上達しますか？
言うまでもなく、留学で大きな成果を上げたひとはたくさんいますが、 TOEFLで最低530点くらい(iBTなら６５くらい）(TOEICなら７００以上）はないと苦労します。 ただし、人によりますし、 かなりのリスクやマイナスもあるので、 それを考慮してから決めることをお勧めします。
リスク、マイナス点のいくつかは、
* 英語に関しては簡単な日常的やり取り以外は
思ったほど上達しない。
* ストレスから思いがけない病気になる。
* ホストファミリーやルームメイトが
期待通りではない場合がある。
* 単位習得や卒業に思ったより年数がかかり、
費用やその他の予定がくるう。
* 人種差別やセクハラなどのトラブルに対して
適切な処理ができない。
* 法律や学則、地域のしきたりを知らないために
問題を起こす。
* 長い夏休みは行くところがない。
* 休みごとに帰国すると、気持ちがだらけてしまい、
初志貫徹できない。
* その他。
長い海外生活をせずに高いレベルに達したひともたくさんいます。
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Based on these points from her FAQ, I’m more willing to believe that her publisher was hellbent on sensationalizing her book to sell more copies. I don’t know how prevalent that is in the industry, but this checklist seems pretty rational to me.
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Just so you know, my one sentence summaries are just what I inferred from what my friend told me. I did not even try to translate the sub points as it is way beyond me. Thank you for trying to translate them though and for finding her website. Wish I could read Japanese!
>my one sentence summaries are just what I inferred from what my friend told me
Yes, you state that clearly in your article, but I still cannot help thinking that you are being a little unfair to the author by judging the book solely based on the opinion of your friend (which can be as biased as anybody else’s).
There is not a single quote in your article which is directly taken from the book (I think you could quote some passages in spite of your lack of Japanese ability, since you have a friend who actually read the book), so the only thing given to the readers as a basis for judgement is your inference. Is it really fair?
Nobody here seems to have read the book. I think we cannot really discuss whether the book is racist or not, unless you bring up some passages as an evidence.
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Actually, we can see for ourselves some of the pages, and someone posted text from her website here in the comments.
As a Japanese reader I can confirm the gist was properly conveyed.
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>we can see for ourselves some of the pages
True. But the pages are hard to read even for a Japanese like me. And I think many of the readers couldn’t have read it without my translation (I don’t think the comments posted above are based on what is written on the pages).
Besides, I think he (Evans) should have posted a proper translation of the pages if he really had an intention of giving it as an evidence.
>someone posted text from her website here in the comments
Do you mean me (tarukin)? I posted it because I though it might be helpful. I’m talking about the post by Evans.
>As a Japanese reader I can confirm the gist was properly conveyed.
I understand. Finally someone who actually read the book.
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oops. His name was not Evans but Evan.
I’m really sorry for making stupid mistakes…
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One reason they have missed is what happens when the person returns to Japan. Less of a problem for women than men, but “studied abraod” sometimes means “couldn’t get into a Japanese college and is work shy”. This is more often true of the lazy sons of well off families. It can also be said of a certain type of “ojosan”.
For the women there can be a sense of disatisfaction on returning to Japan and the inequality here.
There is also another big hole in this, the k-hole, it is not unheard of for young women to experiment drug culture abroad and come back slightly damaged.
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“Don’t Let Your Daughter Study Abroad”LOL
the inaka family refuse …Even Tokyo
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One reason:
Because of posts/books just like this: GENERALISATION.
Who are we talking about here?
The well to do? The middle class? The poor?
Those from cities like Tokyo/Nagoya/Kyoto/Osaka? or Country folk?
Religious differences?
What part of the States are they going? NY? LA? SF? Seattle? Surely we’re not talking about some butt-fuck college in the South?
Or dies it really matter? Shouldn’t the Japanese people also need to experience what it’s like outside of Japan, if they’ve never been anywhere else?
And who the hell gives a shite?
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I used to date the author of this book back when I was an exchange student in Seattle. She is obviously still angry about that time I donkey punched her. Oh well…
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I chose “American Guys”
Why? Because so many guys think asian girls are easy and would always flirt with them to get them into bed. There are even some that would do everything to get a japanese beauty into bed.
For example the first poster wrote:
“Give me a fucking break, your society isn’t producing enough children as it is. How in the hell do you think Japanese society is going to continue without new children?”
Other countries are facing the same problem. So thats a bad excuse besides getting a girl pregnant is a stupid thing to do (if you don’t plan to marry her). That way lots of children will be born and they will never know their father..if she lived in the same country as you, you’d have to pay child support.
Sorry about my little rant..my english isn’t good enough.
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Your English is fine
, and it sounds like you have personal experience? There are some weirdos who are like that, unfortunately.
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Personal Experience? Not really but it happend to a friend of mine (she got pregnant from a guy that promised her heaven on earth).
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yoshihiro_Hattori
enough said
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Probably because he was in Louisiana. Nobody should ever go to the south. Not even Americans.
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… and the Wiki article states two more Japanese students were shot and killed in California under analogous circumstances, and another (apparently) non-Japanese student was similarly killed in Michigan.
the point is…?
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As a photographer, Evan, I would have hoped you could provide better-quality images. I cannot read the one you show of the contents. Can you redo it in a bigger format?
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sorry about that, actually, my friend took them from her ketai and sent them to me.
Ah, keitai cameras – barely worth the name, so now I see why it’s so illegible.
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in my experience #6 should be; “Don’t let your daughter study abroad because when she comes back she will realise Japan isn’t the paradise she was brought up to believe it to be, furthermore her countrymen and women will treat her like scum for having the audacity of going and experiencing something of the rest of the world and she will be stuck in a rut of never again being accepted (or possibly wanting to be accepted!) in her “home” nation”.
in my experience there are a LOT of girls in this situation now, at least in Tokyo. most of them spend their time pining to escape Japan. i do think in some ways they are digging their own holes by fantasising about escaping (again) but i can’t blame them because for most living abroad must be a hell of an eye-opener, a hugely significant life experience, as well as being bloody good fun, shock horror! unfortunately inflexible Japanese society is unwilling to accept them back and they are left in a kind of limbo.
even worse than this, though, is those girls (as well as boys) who got their overseas experience living abroad when Papa san was transferred to the USA/UK/Europe/etc by the company in order to contribute to Japan’s success during the bubble years. Now, back in Japan they are treated like dirt whereas Japan could not have become the economic powerhouse it did become without those who lived and worked (and studied) abroad
*sigh*
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This comment is a perfect description of one of our friends. She returned here about the same time we arrived, and after several fairly miserable years has just got a Green Card and is back off to the states in the New Year. Of course there’s no guarantee that this will revolutionise her life, but she already has a job interview for a better position over there than anything she’s done here in the past few years.
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quote: Worthless English– The English you learn in Japan is not “real” English and Americans will not understand you.
student: “Hello. My name is Yumi. I am an exchange student from Japan. How are you?”
American #1: “S’up, ho? You dissin’ me? Word!”
American #2: “Buenos dias, senorita!”
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Heh.
I know you’re joking, but I’ve never heard anyone speak like that (in person) in real life.
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American #3: “Y’all from Jah-pan? Why, ain’t that nice! And I thawt y’all were frum Koh-reah!”
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American #3 is right. Except I’d change Korea to China.
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I am rather offended by the unintelligence of people displayed here. I want to become an exchange student and go to Japan, but clearly, we are considered ignorant there. Those people who said things like “Is your mother a geisha” are the fools that exist in every country. I would hate to be judged on that, for I know those things, simple as they are. The idiots who said that should not have had the opportunity to do something so honorable, if they could not even get off their butts and study the culture they were going to into. For the Japanese girls topic and crime, that is exactly what is said here. My father was hesitant on letting me become an exchange student, because crime for white blonde hair blue eyed girls is high in Japan. The same for Japanese girls here. But please, do not judge all of us for those fools in each of our countries. No stereotyping? Is that not just what happened? I was stereotyped with the ignoramus piece of crap that said vaginas are sideways. Vulgar and cruel and rude, yet I was grouped with that person. But there is not stereotyping? Also, for the misunderstandings and cultural differences, yes, you’re right. There are differences. That is the point of studying abroad, to LEARN about the differences. To preserve your own culture, but have the knowledge to understand the rest. For the boys here? You are right. Boys are perverted, no matter where you are. You just must understand this, and know that they go after the girls they think they can have. You must be have the strength to walk away and make it clear you are not interested in them that way. Girls here are lectured on that. There are good guys too, but they are the ones who do not try to get into your pants. Men everywhere can be sick and rude. American guys too. There are temptations no matter where you go. You HAVE to be strong enough to resist all negative ones: drugs, bad guys, bad people. JUST AS IN EVERY COUNTRY. Please, Americans and Japanese, please do not base your opinions on those extreme cases of each other that do not have happy endings. There will always be something in your countries past you do not like. Again, please, Americans and Japanese, please do not base your opinions on those extreme cases of each other that do not have happy endings.
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Umm… I don’t think anyone with even an iota of intelligence actually basis their opinions on people on broad sweeping generalizations. And if they do, they’re just people you need to avoid.
Also, paragraphs are your friend.
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lol. Thanks for the FYI. But it does sound as such when reading the work.
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Hey just stumbled across this while browsing this site. Just gotta say you get low life scum in all walks of life regardless of country. Although i dont understand why a book like this was written, I live in London and can understand why so many people have such a low opinion of America. I think someone should write a book entitled 5 reasons to study in England.
1) You want to learn English? Why not study it in the birthplace of the language? Of course you get street slang but most people here will polish their dialect if someone who doesnt speak english asks them about something.
2) Although this contradicts my earlier statements, most people in England are very welcoming to all walks of life. Truly a multicultural society but still get the occasional cocks.
3) Most of the crime here ( London ) seems to be gang related so if your a jap student and not keen on joining a gang then you should be alright. Furthermore the police here are very good at what they do. Thats why soo many people here hate the “fuzz” just becuase they are soo on top of most things.
4) Some of the best educational institutions in the world are located in “ol blighty”.
5) Its England dude!!! EVERYONE should visit this place
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Points 1 to 5 are valid, though can’t say much about Point 3, but you forgot Point 6 that counters them all: at the moment the US$ is being used to clean latrines with, and the Pound is so high it costs a thousand yen to ride the Tube (yeah, I know that’s only the bog-standard four quid fare and there are a ton of cheaper ways, but it’s still the one that the media here in Japan pointed out).
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believe it or not, not every american guy is into japanese girls- especially not in high school (at least, not at high schools that don’t have anime clubs ^^). ALL of the japanese girls that i know who studied abroad in high school _didn’t_ find a boyfriend during their stay and so they ended up going to prom alone (including my host mother!! she is quite bitter about it, too, haha ^^;).
This could be saying more about the type of japanese girl who studies abroad in high school VS the university study abroad type, though.
also, this may be hard to believe for guys who are interested in asia, but i have many asian girl friends who have been turned down by (white) guys they like because the guys “weren’t into asians”. ;_; there are still many people who refuse to date outside their race in the world.
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The review published above astonishes me a little.
It is the right of the author to speak about the contents of another book critically.
This criticism is, however, incomplete and also blue-eyed.
Why?
A good criticism also asks me for my own faults.
It is only little helpful to ignore one’s own fault or to ignore or play down one’s own weaknesses.
After all, faults of one’s own could be the reason for such a book.
For example:
The possession of firearms in the USA is object of a critical film from within the USA.
Why doesn’t the author mention this?
So the facts are generally known.
Why does he refer to his relatives instead?
With his thoughts, I think that the author describes only half of the situation.
He didn’t had the courage (or the time) for a complete criticism.
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this is more like an editorial, NOT a review. i did not even read the book, as i stated, so it obviously cannot be a review.
Fuck it! Fuck it all!
Let’s just fuck and say fuck it!
Didn’t John Lennon say something to that end? And look how he ended up in America, with a Japanese wife!
Peace out, y’all
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Send all of your beautiful Japanese daughters here. Every American guy deserves a nice Japanese girl. What choices do we have? Fat, self-centered and lazy that’s what. Ask my mother-in-law if America is bad for Japanese girls.
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They just need to watch out for the NIGGERS.
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Oh yeah those dreadful slaves!
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what’s wrong with you people!!, you all speak like retards, what should this topic mater is a waste of time, if Japaneses cant speak English is their fucking problem dont you think,they sholdn’t consider to come to America in the first place. My English is not perfect, but WTF, I speak 3 languages, if they want to be treated nice they should consider central America or south America.
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American #4: KAWAIII DESSSUUU!!!! (Anime Nerd)
American #5: I’m very good. How about you? (Perfect Grammatical American English from an Iowa resident)
It depends on where you live. In Iowa we speak perfect grammatical English, have a low cost of living, and a really low crime rate. We get tons of Japanese/Korean/Chinese exchange students here.
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Michigan has the most correct form of English.
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I have a copy of this book, right here in front of me. Haven’t read it yet since it just arrived today, but from skimming through it, yeah, Takahashi is quite one-sided and full of bile about the States.
One point that irked me was this paragraph (on page 129 for anyone looking):
「しばらくして私は同じ町に住む日本人と黒人の夫婦から招待を受けた。日本人女性はとし子さんという名前だった。ご主人は郵便配達の仕事をしているジョー。２人ともこんな良い人がいるんだろうか、というほど善人だった。とし子さんは結婚して１度も日本人に会ったことがなく、ちらし寿司やみそ汁を作って歓迎してくれた。ジョーも優しくてユーモアがあり２人は幸せそうだった。」
I know, she’s describing the couple very positively and only has nice things to say. I accept that. I know she’s not being negative.
…but why is yobisute acceptable for the black guy? (Not “American” guy, “black” guy. Toshiko is Toshiko-san, twice, but Joe is just Joe. No honorific.
Ponta, enlighten me please…!
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The author should have put san after Joe when she put san after Toshiko.
But I guess it has nothing to do with the fact that Joe was a “black” guy.
We can think of various reasons.
Japanese put san after the name when you show respect,the distance from him/her but sometimes drop san when you feel really close to him/her.
When the Japanese translate English at school or in the movies, you don’t put san after the English name. For instance,
Play it, Sam. Play “As Time Goes By.”
「弾いてサム、「時の過ぎ行くままに」を。
“Louis, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.”
「ルイス、これが美しい友情の始まりだな。」
“You see, George, you really have had a wonderful life.”
「ジョージ、君は素晴らしい人生を歩んできたんだよ。」
“Remember what Johnny Dillinger said about guys like you and him. He said you were just rushing toward death.”
「ジョン・デリンジャーがお前のような奴のことを何て言ったか憶えているか？死に急いでる奴って言ったんだ。」
http://www.geocities.co.jp/Hollywood/5710/quote.html
Perhaps the author didn’t put san after English name out of habit.
That’s all I can think of for now.
But in the context above I am sure that the author didn’t mean to degrade Joe.
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