As someone who lives in Japan, I thought I'd give some background information about the pictures included in the article. They're (edit: the pictures AND the ca

As someone who lives in Japan, I thought I'd give some background information about the pictures included in the article. They're (edit: the pictures AND the captions) clearly chosen to give credence to the "Japanese salaryman"[1] who's always busy and "works to death."[2] I'll go over the pictures in order displayed in the article, using their captions as a guide. > Salarymen resting midmeal. A common theme in the selected pictures is that the people in them are relaxing and I think the implication is supposed to be that they're working 105-hour weeks and they're trying to grab rest where they can. This is not an unusual sight in Japan or America. You go out to eat with coworkers you like, then you sit back and chat. The Japanese image of someone who's really busy is someone who eats a lunch box or rice ball at his desk while working. Edit: They're sitting on the floor because they're in a Japanese-style restaurant, so it's easier to lean back on your elbows because there's no chair. > Staring into nothingness in Hakodate. This guy isn't staring off into nothingness because he's depressed or so tired he can't think; he's smoking. People tend to stare off into the distance if they're smoking alone and not using their phones or something. > Standing salarymen eating. Crowded cities mean strangely-shaped shops with little room for seating. Sushi and noodle bars lend themselves especially well to this kind of standing restaurant since both can be prepared quickly and eaten while standing. All kinds of people eat at these places, not just salarymen. One of the best udon restaurants in my neighborhood is like this. > Passed out on the train Looks like a special express, almost definitely not a bullet train given the decor. If you're riding one of those, you're probably traveling for at least an hour. You don't have to be working 105-hour weeks to want to take a nap on a trip where you have nothing to do for an hour. [1] The idea that there's a generic "Japanese salaryman" is ridiculous. The word itself just means someone who works in an office. Imagine if you gave a single label to every full-time employee in an office in America -- that's how it comes across when Western media uses it. [2] Another popular "exotic, overworked Japan" meme that comes up is the fact that there's a compound word (過労死, karoushi) for "death by overwork." This is no more exciting than the fact that you can say "death by overwork" in English.