"A Year in Search of Wa"

[Mulboyne]

"Japanland: A Year in Search of Wa" by Karin Muller

Looking to gain a competitive edge in her judo practice and maybe a fresh perspective on "meaning" in her own life, documentary filmmaker Karin Muller commits to living in Japan for a year to deepen her appreciation for such Eastern ideals as ritual and tradition. What she's after—more than understanding tea-serving etiquette or the historical importance of the shogun—is wa: a transcendent state of harmony, of flow, of being in the zone. With only her Western perspective to guide her, though, she discovers in sometimes awkward, sometimes awesomely funny interactions just how maddeningly complicated it is being Japanese.

I haven't read this but I can't say I like the title much. Muller also turned her book into a 4 hour documentary which looks like it aired last month in the US on public television.

[Greji]

"Japanland: A Year in Search of Wa" by Karin Muller-snip-
I haven't read this but I can't say I like the title much. Muller also turned her book into a [url=http://www.mountaintimes.com/mtweekly/2005/1208/japanland.php3][b]4 hour documentary which looks like it aired last month in the US on public television[/i].

I can save you the effort! Wa appears only three times in Japanese society. These are found in "Ware ware wa"

[Socratesabroad]

On first glance, the book - and subsequent documentary - did suggest caution. Come on, a year in Japan and she's 1) mastered the lingo and 2) fully comprehended Japanese culture?

But according to Mitsubishi Electric, "Muller speaks Japanese" and the documentary's popping up on public television.

Could be another "Dave Barry Does Japan", which hit the mark so many times it was scary (and whose explanation of kanji still makes me snicker as I think about it today).

Anyone read/seen this Japanland thing?

[Neo-Rio]

I can save you the effort! Wa appears only three times in Japanese society. These are found in "Ware ware wa"

Give this man a beer.
I've asked Japanese people about this mystical wa only for them to look at me funny and ask what the hell I'm talking about.

Chalk wa up there with ninja, samurai, and geisha please.

[AssKissinger]

I never met a person who went overseas looking for something or with preconceived ideas of what it might be like who wasn't disappointed. There's nothing more depressing than a gaijin looking for the 'real' Japan.

[jingai]

I thought the same about this book/movie until I saw part of it on PBS. Muller's Japanese is good enough to meet with people and the folks that she interviews range from Osaka's homeless to a rural pottery maker, yama-bushi recreators and a real character who makes food for tourists and sends it to them via zip lines in the mountains.

This is not your stereotyped Japan and the author gets access by being respectful and asking to do labor herself. It's worth watching and well done, and I'm pretty harshly critical of most attempts like this. I hope I get to see the other episodes.

Dave Barry does Japan was hillarious, and his ignorance of Japan made it all the more funny. My Japanese roomate loved it too.

[72hw]

Caught the first part of the documentary on PBS last night here in Los Angeles. The arguably annoying 'innocent gaijin' narration aside, I was suprised how much I ended up enjoying it. Interested to see what the remaining 3 hours have in store.

[Molokidan]

I don't argue that it might be interesting, but honestly...

...anyone who goes to Japan to 'find their meaning in life,' (with the exception of accidentally meeting a soul mate or two aside)...is in for a big surprise.

[Mulboyne]

RealCities: Author to tourists - See the authentic Japan

Q. Americans get such jarringly different images of Japan: Urban neon and strange fads - versus tradition and tranquility. Samurai simplicity and honor - versus chain-smoking businessmen crammed into subway cars. Which are the valid impressions?
A. All of them. I originally thought the film would have judo as it backbone, with some kind of fantastic ending. That didn't work out. What instead fascinated me was seeing the contradictions - pockets of ancient Japan that survive and thrive in an incredibly sophisticated economy.
You see the sidewalks, neon signs and cars in Tokyo, a more Western city than any I've ever seen. Yet also in Tokyo, you'll find some 40 sumo stables - a step 300 years in the past, where people are living in a feudal lifestyle. You see the same in Kyoto, where a geisha lives a feudal lifestyle. There are over 100 such pockets throughout Japan...more...

There's nothing more depressing than a gaijin looking for the 'real' Japan.

OK, it's an old article...

SMH: In search of the real Japan

...As corny as it sounds, I wanted a definitive answer to this: "What is real Japanese culture - computers and video games, or samurai and geisha girls?" I thought Tokyo could help me with that...more...

[electrocat]

I don't argue that it might be interesting, but honestly...

...anyone who goes to Japan to 'find their meaning in life,' (with the exception of accidentally meeting a soul mate or two aside)...is in for a big surprise.

i caught only the last 30 minutes on PBS and she kept talking about pilgramige and about temples... so finding their meaning in life could have been a religious experience she was looking for. I did find the parts i saw pretty interesting. She was helping with the preparation for a budhhist cereomony, doing some fishing on a small fishing boat, and playing crochet with 70 year old women who ran like they were 30 years old.

[Molokidan]

i caught only the last 30 minutes on PBS and she kept talking about pilgramige and about temples... so finding their meaning in life could have been a religious experience she was looking for. I did find the parts i saw pretty interesting. She was helping with the preparation for a budhhist cereomony, doing some fishing on a small fishing boat, and playing crochet with 70 year old women who ran like they were 30 years old.

I did flip through this on my visit to the bookstore a few days ago, and it seemed like it had some good anecdotal stories in it.

At least in the novel, she doesn't come out as pompous as the title made her seem. Just another FG having a fun time in Japan. I didn't read the ENTIRE book, though...

Also: Whether or not that game is based on croquet or not, in Japan it's called 'Gateball.' I should know...when I lived in the country, my family's backyard had been converted into a wide-scaled gateball emporium. Nothing like waking up early every on weekends to geriatrics shouting profanities at each other.

[Mulboyne]