Diversity In Japanese Culture And Language

Author : John C. Maher
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1136160167
Total Pages : 332 pages
Book Rating : 4.65/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Diversity in Japanese Culture and Language written by John C. Maher and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2012-11-12 with total page 332 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is the first in-depth study of the "other" Japan - the diverse and complex culture that belies the conventional portrayal of Japan as a homogenous entity. Moving, fascinating and surprising, this book sets out the largely untold story of the cultural, ethnic and linguistic diversity found in Japan today, where members of marginal societal groups are ignored by the mainstream on the grounds of physical, ethnic, religious or other differences. Among them are the Ainu, Koreans, "Buraku", women, returnees and the deaf, for all of whom this work serves as a forum to give eloquent voice to their history and present situation. This unique study describes the existing plurality in Japan in order to start balancing the perspectives which currently exist in the non-Japanese literature about Japan; to challenge the myth of Japanese uniqueness by focusing on very common experiences that Japanese people share with peoples in other parts of the world; and above all, to counteract the common tendency to see complexity as a threat by illustrating the value to society as a whole of diversity and cultural plurality.

Author : John C. Maher
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1136160094
Total Pages : 331 pages
Book Rating : 4.97/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Diversity in Japanese Culture and Language written by John C. Maher and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2012-11-12 with total page 331 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is the first in-depth study of the "other" Japan - the diverse and complex culture that belies the conventional portrayal of Japan as a homogenous entity. Moving, fascinating and surprising, this book sets out the largely untold story of the cultural, ethnic and linguistic diversity found in Japan today, where members of marginal societal groups are ignored by the mainstream on the grounds of physical, ethnic, religious or other differences. Among them are the Ainu, Koreans, "Buraku", women, returnees and the deaf, for all of whom this work serves as a forum to give eloquent voice to their history and present situation. This unique study describes the existing plurality in Japan in order to start balancing the perspectives which currently exist in the non-Japanese literature about Japan; to challenge the myth of Japanese uniqueness by focusing on very common experiences that Japanese people share with peoples in other parts of the world; and above all, to counteract the common tendency to see complexity as a threat by illustrating the value to society as a whole of diversity and cultural plurality.

Author : Naoko Araki
Publisher : Springer
ISBN 13 : 9463510591
Total Pages : 6 pages
Book Rating : 4.92/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Diversity in Japanese Education written by Naoko Araki and published by Springer. This book was released on 2017-06-09 with total page 6 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: No one is born fully-formed: it is through self-experience in the world that we become what we are. – Paulo Freire Diversity in Japanese Education explores ‘self-experience’ of individual learners and educators in Japan. The word ‘diversity’ is not limited to one’s ethnic background. Here, diversity refers to one’s pedagogical experiences and life experiences; to the norms, beliefs and values that impact such relations. These experiences and relations are fluid as they are shaped and reshaped in global and glocal settings. They are also reflected in praxis of English language learning and teaching in Japan. The authors’ educational backgrounds vary but they all share the common ground of being educators in Japan. Through being involved in learning and/or teaching English language in Japan, they have witnessed and experienced ‘diversity’ in their own pedagogical context. The book focuses on shifting critical and reflexive eyes on qualitative studies of pedagogical experiences rather than presenting one ‘fixed’ view of Japanese education.

Author : Shigeko Okamoto
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
ISBN 13 : 1107072263
Total Pages : 353 pages
Book Rating : 4.68/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The Social Life of the Japanese Language written by Shigeko Okamoto and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2016-08-04 with total page 353 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book focuses on the historical construction of language norms and its relationship to actual language use in contemporary Japan.

Author : Ryoko Tsuneyoshi
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1136953647
Total Pages : 411 pages
Book Rating : 4.44/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Minorities and Education in Multicultural Japan written by Ryoko Tsuneyoshi and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2010-09-13 with total page 411 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume examines how Japan’s increasingly multicultural population has impacted on the lives of minority children and their peers at school, and how schools are responding to this trend in terms of providing minority children with opportunities and preparing them for the adult society. The contributors focus on interactions between individuals and among groups representing diverse cultural backgrounds, and explore how such interactions are changing the landscape of education in increasingly multicultural Japan. Drawing on detailed micro-level studies of schooling, the chapters reveal the ways in which these individuals and groups (long-existing minority groups, newcomers, and the ‘mainstream Japanese’) interact, and the significant consequences of such interactions on learning at school and the system of education as a whole. While the educational achievement of children of varying minority groups continues to reflect their places in the social hierarchy, the boundaries of individual and group categories are negotiated by mutual interactions and remain fluid and situational. Minorities and Education in Multicultural Japan provides important insights into bottom-up policy making processes and consciously brings together English and Japanese scholarship. As such, it will be an important resource for those interested in education and minority issues in Japan.

Author : Ikuko Nakane
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1317961889
Total Pages : 234 pages
Book Rating : 4.88/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Languages and Identities in a Transitional Japan written by Ikuko Nakane and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2015-08-20 with total page 234 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book explores the transition from the era of internationalization into the era of globalization of Japan by focusing on language and identity as its central themes. By taking an interdisciplinary approach covering education, cultural studies, linguistics and policy-making, the chapters in this book raise certain questions of what constitutes contemporary Japanese culture, Japanese identity and multilingualism and what they mean to local people, including those who do not reside in Japan but are engaged with Japan in some way within the global community. Topics include the role of technology in the spread of Japanese language and culture, hybrid language use in an urban context, the Japanese language as a lingua franca in China, and the identity construction of heritage Japanese language speakers in Australia. The authors do not limit themselves to examining only the Japanese language or the Japanese national/cultural identity, but also explore multilingual practices and multiple/fluid identities in "a transitional Japan." Overall, the book responds to the basic need for better accounts of language and identity of Japan, particularly in the context of increased migration and mobility.

Author : John C. Maher
Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 0192598538
Total Pages : 368 pages
Book Rating : 4.30/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Language Communities in Japan written by John C. Maher and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2022-01-21 with total page 368 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book offers a comprehensive sociolinguistic overview of the linguistic situation in Japan. Contemporary Japan displays rich linguistic diversity, particularly in urban areas, but the true extent of this diversity has often been overlooked. The contributors to this volume provide a new perspective, with detailed accounts of the wide range of languages spoken in different contexts and by different communities across the Japanese archipelago. Each chapter focuses on a specific language community, and systematically explores the history of the variety in Japanese culture and the current sociolinguistic situation. The first part explores the indigenous languages of Japan, including the multiple dialects of Japanese itself and the lesser-known Ryukyan and Ainu languages. Chapters in Part II look at community languages, ranging from the historic minority languages such as Korean and Chinese to the languages spoken by more recent migrant communities, such as Nepali, Filipino, and Persian. The final part examines languages of culture, politics, and modernization, from the use of English in international business and education contexts to the ongoing use of Latin and Sanskrit for religious purposes. The volume sheds new light on Japan's position as an important multilingual and multicultural society, and will be of interest to scholars and students not only of Japanese and sociolinguistics, but of Asian studies and migration studies more widely.

Author : Shigeko Okamoto
Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 0190290269
Total Pages : 320 pages
Book Rating : 4.69/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Japanese Language, Gender, and Ideology written by Shigeko Okamoto and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2004-10-28 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Japanese Language, Gender and Ideology is a collection of previously unpublished articles by established as well as promising young scholars in Japanese language and gender studies. The contributors to this edited volume argue that traditional views of language in Japan are cultural constructs created by policy makers and linguists, and that Japanese society in general, and language use in particular, are much more diverse and heterogeneous than previously understood. This volume brings together studies that substantially advance our understanding of the relationship between Japanese language and gender, with particular focus on examining local linguistic practices in relation to dominant ideologies. Topics studies include gender and politeness, the history of language policy, language and Japanese romance novels and fashion magazines, bar talk, dictionary definitions, and the use of first-person pronouns. The volume will substantially advance the agenda of this field, and will be of interest to sociolinguists, anthropologists, sociologists, and scholars of Japan and Japanese.

Author : Karen Colligan-Taylor
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9780300222661
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.61/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Living Japanese written by Karen Colligan-Taylor and published by . This book was released on 2016-02-26 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Living Japanese: Diversity in Language and Lifestyles (Ikita Nihongo: samazama na kotoba, samazama na seikatsu) draws students into the lives of thirty-three Japanese from ages seven to seventy-five. As students listen to diverse viewpoints on cultural and social issues, they will develop an extensive vocabulary and become accustomed to natural speech and linguistic differences. The workbook contains a transcription of all interviews, a cultural introduction to each topic, a complete vocabulary list, and grammar explanations. Furigana are provided in the transcriptions and notes to facilitate reading. Discussion questions encourage students to research the topics further, to think about and discuss recurrent themes, to speak or write about the topic in terms of their own culture or experience, and to seek out the views of native speakers. The online media and workbook will facilitate development of the five major skill areas delineated in the National Standards for Japanese Language Learning. Spontaneous interviews exploring twenty topics are available for online viewing, including: · Family, living environment, household crafts, architecture · Farming for health, eating habits in a fast-paced society · Issues faced by children, working women, and the elderly · Student life; views of marriage among young people · Anime, manga, revival of traditional arts · Ways of viewing and valuing nature, environmental education · Buddhist thought on the interrelatedness of all things · Japanese songs and their context · Childhood memories, including school life during World War II · Linguistic differences, Japanese Sign Language

Author : Michele Monserrati
Publisher : Transnational Italian Cultures
ISBN 13 : 1789621070
Total Pages : 264 pages
Book Rating : 4.75/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Searching for Japan written by Michele Monserrati and published by Transnational Italian Cultures. This book was released on 2020-03-27 with total page 264 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book pursues the specific case of Italian travel narratives in the Far East, through a focus on the experience of Japan in works by writers who visited the Land of the Rising Sun beginning in the Meiji period (1868-1912) and during the concomitant opening of Japan's relations with the West. Drawing from the fields of Postcolonial and Transnational Studies, analysis of these texts explores one central question: what does it mean to imagine Japanese culture as contributing to Italian culture? Each author shares in common an attempt to disrupt ideas about dichotomies and unbalanced power relationships between East and West. Proposing the notion of 'relational Orientalism, ' this book suggests that Italian travelogues to Japan, in many cases, pursued the goal of building imaginary transnational communities, predicated on commonalities and integration, by claiming what they perceived as 'Oriental' as their own. In contrast with a long history of Western representations of Japan as inferior and irrational, Searching for Japan identifies a positive overarching attitude toward the Far East country in modern Italian culture. Expanding the horizon of Italian transnational networks, normally situated within the Southern European region, this book reinstates the existence of an alternative Euro-Asian axis, operating across Italian history.