Comparing Countries after Disasters: a Study of "National Character"
The Japanese and the Chinese often refer to a concept of 国民性 (roughly translated as "national character), which states that citizens (and long-time residents) of a particular country share certain similarities in behavior because they have been residing in that particular country for a long time. This concept tends to be much broader than that of "customs" used in the West to denote practices shared by people of a particular culture.
The Chinese and Japanese have such a strong faith in this concept of 国民性 that in attempts to find it out about other countries, their "research" often border racism in their incessant desires to generalize the patterns and trends of different people of one country into a formulaic one-fits-all stereotype. For example, just after meeting a few Indians in the company, some Japanese colleagues made no hesitation to talk about "those Indians ALWAYS do..."
But perhaps the one instance when this idea of 国民性 actually does make some sense (without too much tinge of racism) is comparing countries after going through major crises. Because the at times of disasters (whether man-made or caused by nature), humans no longer tend to act on their individual basis, choosing to create collective identity for emotional self-protection, often at the expense of sacrificing individual identities.
For instance, few days after the Quake in Japan, the American media is widely surprised to see that the level of security in the quake and tsunami zones have not a bit diminished, there has been no looting of stores, and no fighting over limited food, blankets, and other materials. Surely the American media would expect those sorts of things after witnessing post-Katrina New Orleans, where armed National Guardsmen in armored vehicles had to be brought in to maintain peace and order.
Surely, they can choose to call this stoic acceptance of reality, or even worse, plain lack of human character due to high tolerance for suffering, but either way, the surprise shown by the media undertones a sense of disbelief in the "collective-protection" aspect of Japanese 国民性. It will surely enhance the Japanese national image in America just as American individuality is so often praised in Japan.
But similar quality after disaster was also displayed in China after major earthquakes in Wenchuan in 2008 (which left 68,000 people dead, much more than this one in Japan), but the outpouring of international support seems to be much higher for the Japanese quake. The 国民性 in Japan, well-established already in the past, was further praised and focused upon because of the positive international image (or "soft power") Japan has.
Beside the whole man-made fiasco at the nuclear power plant, the discussion of the Japanese quake was completely focused on social conditions, where the Chinese quake in 2008 (as well as Hurricane Katrina) was all about the political reactions. Of course, the hostility of foreign countries toward the Chinese government plays a major role, but the highly "depoliticized" aspect of Japanese 国民性 (vs. love of politics in China and US) also play a major role.
Of course, even at such an appropriate time, such discussion of 国民性 is still highly imperfect and often times completely inappropriate. Just as there is the Japanese tendency to immerse themselves in meaningless entertainment in the midst of a disaster, the 国民性 here, if discussed, cannot be all positive. Ultimately, the human experience, even for all those still suffering from the Quake, is an individual one, and all sort of group-think, if occurred, can only last until normal conditions are restored...
The Chinese and Japanese have such a strong faith in this concept of 国民性 that in attempts to find it out about other countries, their "research" often border racism in their incessant desires to generalize the patterns and trends of different people of one country into a formulaic one-fits-all stereotype. For example, just after meeting a few Indians in the company, some Japanese colleagues made no hesitation to talk about "those Indians ALWAYS do..."
But perhaps the one instance when this idea of 国民性 actually does make some sense (without too much tinge of racism) is comparing countries after going through major crises. Because the at times of disasters (whether man-made or caused by nature), humans no longer tend to act on their individual basis, choosing to create collective identity for emotional self-protection, often at the expense of sacrificing individual identities.
For instance, few days after the Quake in Japan, the American media is widely surprised to see that the level of security in the quake and tsunami zones have not a bit diminished, there has been no looting of stores, and no fighting over limited food, blankets, and other materials. Surely the American media would expect those sorts of things after witnessing post-Katrina New Orleans, where armed National Guardsmen in armored vehicles had to be brought in to maintain peace and order.
Surely, they can choose to call this stoic acceptance of reality, or even worse, plain lack of human character due to high tolerance for suffering, but either way, the surprise shown by the media undertones a sense of disbelief in the "collective-protection" aspect of Japanese 国民性. It will surely enhance the Japanese national image in America just as American individuality is so often praised in Japan.
But similar quality after disaster was also displayed in China after major earthquakes in Wenchuan in 2008 (which left 68,000 people dead, much more than this one in Japan), but the outpouring of international support seems to be much higher for the Japanese quake. The 国民性 in Japan, well-established already in the past, was further praised and focused upon because of the positive international image (or "soft power") Japan has.
Beside the whole man-made fiasco at the nuclear power plant, the discussion of the Japanese quake was completely focused on social conditions, where the Chinese quake in 2008 (as well as Hurricane Katrina) was all about the political reactions. Of course, the hostility of foreign countries toward the Chinese government plays a major role, but the highly "depoliticized" aspect of Japanese 国民性 (vs. love of politics in China and US) also play a major role.
Of course, even at such an appropriate time, such discussion of 国民性 is still highly imperfect and often times completely inappropriate. Just as there is the Japanese tendency to immerse themselves in meaningless entertainment in the midst of a disaster, the 国民性 here, if discussed, cannot be all positive. Ultimately, the human experience, even for all those still suffering from the Quake, is an individual one, and all sort of group-think, if occurred, can only last until normal conditions are restored...
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