Blog #5

                “Bushido” is “the ethics that were formed among the samurai” (41).  The samurai are known (at least in Western culture) as legendary ancient warriors; a more accurate way to describe them would be as private police.  They were “self-defense groups to protect private manors and maintain public order” (41), and they were always high in social ranking, so it is not surprising that their “code” would be adopted by the whole of Japanese culture as a moral and ethical guideline.  Bushido “involved not only martial spirit and skill with weapons, but also absolute loyalty to one’s lord, a strong sense of personal honor, devotion to duty, and the courage, if required, to sacrifice one’s life in battle or ritual” (41-42). 

Giri is one’s “social obligation”, and is based in “bushido”.  It ties back to the idea of community being more important than the self.  Defined as “1) moral principles or duty 2) rules one has to obey in social relationships, and 3) behavior one is obliged to follow or that must be done against ones will” (95), “giri” would help with community cohesion by forcing all the individuals in the community to obey a set of rules that help the community work together without offense.
                “Ie” is defined as “a network of households related through their respective heads, comprising of main houses, branch houses, and the branches of branch houses traced down through generations” (119), but it is more than just the physical household and the members that live within it.  An ancient social order that places a single male at the head of a community, “ie” was the basis for most of Japanese government until modern times.  The father is in charge of the household, which includes not only immediate family but servants, servants’ family, and extended family.  The household passes through male offspring, although (surprisingly), the parentage of the successor is not as important as it would be in Western culture.  In ancient Western culture, step-sons or adopted sons could not succeed their father (step-father or adoptive father) as head of a household.  In Japan, however, the ability of the successor is more important than their parentage; although a family’s line might not be “direct” in the Western sense (father to son, all connected by blood), it is able to be traced through centuries.

“Omiai” is the system of arranged marriage in Japan.  It is based off of ancient ideals of tying communities closer together through family alignment.  It is still, to some degree, used today, although not in the same manner as it was in the past.  Today, young women are not so much forced into a marriage they wouldn’t naturally chose, but rather, screen potential husbands by the same criteria that their parents might have in the past, choosing a partner based on social-economic information instead of emotional attachment.  The “omiai” system is endorsed by Japanese government, as the list below describes:

·         “Through omiai, people can learn in detail about a large number of prospective partners”

·         “It costs less money finding a marriage partner through omiai than using a marriage agency”

·         “Women who do not want to marry an eldest son and live with their husband’s family can find other suitable partners”

·         “Omiai includes parents in the process of selection, thus avoiding later conflict”

·         “People can determine whether or not a prospective partner meets their standards and can get to know something of one another’s character and sense of values through tsurisho [a document that families interested in marriage exchange]”

·         “People do not have to suffer many of the negative consequences of dating, such as finding opportunities to meet others or suffering face-to-face rejection.  Japanese people are often very busy and do not have the time or energy to meet and date a variety of prospective partners, so omiai provides a meaning of overcoming this obstacle” (166-167)