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Ivy Lana Lee Vice Captain
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 Posted: Wed Jun 09, 2010 10:44 am
I'm curious to hear from others who have lived in Japan and whether or not they've had any discussions of this nature.
When I went to Japan, I had a couple of discussions with people about homosexuality. The overall impression I get is that it's something that can be kind of funny for people in the entertainment world to do, but if you're a normal person, you're supposed to get married and have kids and that's all there is to it.
My host sister said that she didn't necessarily have feelings about it one way or another, but her mother would be VERY angry if one of her daughters turned out to be homosexual and would probably treat other people she knew differently if they were homosexual.
I got into a discussion with a TA from my Japanese class in Japan, and she said, "Oh, yeah, I knew a girl who talked like that." I thought that was very interesting; it implies that Japanese homosexuals have a different style of speech from everyone else.
How about you all? Anyone else have experiences with this? I'm interested in your experiences and opinions. ^_^
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Posted: Wed Jun 09, 2010 10:50 am
I don't know yet... haven't been... yet!
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Posted: Tue Jun 29, 2010 12:25 am
I haven't really heard much about homosexuality from my Japanese friends. It's not a topic that ever really came up. Although entertainment-wise there is a popular subculture which you can see in anime/manga and in stage productions. There are actually all female troopes in which those who are always in male roles always dress and act and talk as a Japanese male, even in public spaces. Likewise in traditional kabuki and Noh Drama troopes (usually all male troopes) train their younger boys to be places in female roles, though these are not for the public area.
This seems strange to westerns most often but it is the group mentality of the Japanese to devote themselves to one line of work for their lives, whether in business or entertainment. It is considered rare (or at least devastating, somewhat of a cultural taboo) to be fired or laid off from a career position.
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Posted: Tue Jun 29, 2010 9:39 am
It makes sense to me. in very cultural there are acceptable norms, that to "outsiders" see strange. As (mature) individuals we should give every person that we meet/ come in contact with a chance to show us something new and to learn from it.
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Ivy Lana Lee Vice Captain
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Posted: Tue Jun 29, 2010 11:00 am
Actually, there is a story behind why men play the female roles in Kabuki.
Originally, during the era of the Shogun, Kyoto was famous for its female dancers. The Shogun, however, found this to be morally reprehensible, as prostitution was also rampant, so he shut it down. In its place, stage performances came up. However, there was still a big problem with prostitution among the women in the plays, and the problem with this was that the noble classes were rapidly getting into very heavy debt with the, er, pimps, I guess.
The Shogun became alarmed at the shift of power from the nobles to the merchant class. Soon, he forbade women from taking part in the plays. Young boys were cast in the female roles.... and STILL there was a problem with prostitution, except now it was among the young boys in the productions. sweatdrop
Finally, it was forbidden for anyone but middle aged men to participate in the plays. The problem may have continued, but what else was there to be done about it, really? rofl
This is what I was told, anyway. I'll have to do some further research to see if it's really true....
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Posted: Thu Jul 01, 2010 7:30 pm
I've heard the same story about the role of the gender bending in Kabuki. I'm not sure, but Takurazuka (the all-female theater) may be a modern answer to that rather than out of necessity as it was in Kabuki. I have some friends who are utterly in love with the actresses lol
To me it seems homosexuality is another one of those touchy subjects that gets swept under the rug and out of sight most of the time. Despite its rampant popularity in popular media (the yaoi subculture comes to mind- it's just as huge among Japanese girls as Americans, although from what i've heard, the girls are very careful to smuggle their doujin away lest they be discovered and embarrassed to be involved) the actual issue may be handled much like any other societal deviance- very quietly, within the family.
It kind of reminds me of Hikkikomori, the people who lock themselves up in their rooms and refuse to re-enter society. In America such an issue doesn't seem like it could possibly be a problem- just bust down the door and force the person out. If the parents won't do it, the school or government might even get involved. But it is a serious issue in Japan because such problems are considered family business only, and if the family decides the person in question should work the issue out for themselves, the behavior can drag on excessively.
Not to compare homosexuality to being a hikkikomori- more just the attitude that any problems should be dealt with as quietly and privately as possible.
Anything else i could tell you wouldn't be from personal experience, but from what i've read in comics and the like.
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Posted: Fri Jul 09, 2010 9:32 pm
Ah, Homosexuality. Why Must America mainly be against it? I Am acctully a fan of Yaoi and Yuri. I don't get why people are against it. Its the way homo people are. They were made that way, and they're perfect like that. And lots of people, including wedding people, they're pretty much against it which is greatly annoying. I was (and still am) the good girl. I don't really like people who are racist, popular (u know what i mean), and are against homosexuals. They are just annoying and they just want attention like stars, and Justin Bieber *shudders*
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