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Glad you posted this. I found the article from November to be quite moving. As someone who knows precious little about Japanese culture, it surprises me that so
by Overtonwindow 9y ago
Glad you posted this. I found the article from November to be quite moving. As someone who knows precious little about Japanese culture, it surprises me that someone would die alone - and then sit alone for a long time before discovery. I had always heard Japan was a very collectivist society. Does that play into this?
- SllX 9y agoA collectivist society doesn't necessarily mean a supportive community. Part of being part of a collective means trying not to cause problems for the whole, even if it means some self-sacrifice on your part. The nail that sticks out gets hammered down. Burdens also get left behind.
- URSpider94 9y agoMy opinion as a Westerner who has spent a lot of time in Japan: as in any crowded place, a key coping skill is the ability to ignore people who are in close proximity to you. When you’re riding on a train with people crammed up against every square inch of your body, you kind of zone out, avoid eye contact, and definitely don’t strike up a conversation. I get the strong sense that people who are alone can go though life with very few meaningful interactions, even with neighbors who live only a few centimeters away (note that the apartment in the story is 200 square feet, I’d bet that a lot of American homes have bathrooms bigger than that). Being collectivist means not taking up unnecessary psychic space in the lives of others.