INTERMISSION: Japan Has Layers

I am always searching for new ways to describe Japan to others. My explanations are usually anecdotal, but I have stumbled across an archetype that has been very useful for not only providing a common referent to others, but also helping me personally find an emotional and intellectual handle for what I am experiencing.

You may have seen the 2001 animated movie Shrek with voice actors Mike Myers and Eddie Murphie. Here is an excerpt from the script I found on the Internet Movie Script Database:

SHREK
Written by William Steig & Ted Elliott

Donkey and Shrek are now walking through the field heading away from DuLoc. Shrek is munching on an onion.

DONKEY: Let me get this straight. You're gonna go fight a dragon and rescue a princess just so Farquaad will give you back a swamp which you only don't have because he filled it full of freaks in the first place. Is that about right?

SHREK: You know, maybe there's a good reason donkeys shouldn't talk.

DONKEY: I don't get it. Why don't you just pull some of that ogre stuff on him? Throttle him, lay siege to his fortress, grinds his bones to make your bread, the whole ogre trip.

SHREK: Oh, I know what. Maybe I could have decapitated an entire village and put their heads on a pike, gotten a knife, cut open their spleen and drink their fluids. Does that sound good to you?

DONKEY: Uh, no, not really, no.

SHREK: For your information, there's a lot more to ogres than people think.

DONKEY: Example?

SHREK: Example? Okay, um, ogres are like onions. (he holds out his onion)

DONKEY: (sniffs the onion) They stink?

SHREK: Yes - - No!

DONKEY: They make you cry?

SHREK: No!

DONKEY: You leave them in the sun, they get all brown, start sproutin' little white hairs.

SHREK: No! Layers! Onions have layers. Ogres have layers! Onions have layers. You get it? We both have layers. (he heaves a sigh and then walks off)

DONKEY: (trailing after Shrek) Oh, you both have layers. Oh. {Sniffs} You know, not everybody likes onions. Cake! Everybody loves cakes! Cakes have layers.

SHREK: I don't care... what everyone likes. Ogres are not like cakes.

DONKEY: You know what else everybody likes? Parfaits. Have you ever met a person, you say, "Let's get some parfait," they say, "Hell no, I don't like no parfait"? Parfaits are delicious.

SHREK: No! You dense, irritating, miniature beast of burden! Ogres are like onions! End of story. Bye-bye. See ya later.

DONKEY: Parfaits may be the most delicious thing on the whole damn planet.

SHREK: You know, I think I preferred your humming.

DONKEY: Do you have a tissue or something? I'm making a mess. Just the word parfait make me start slobbering.

# # #

The illustration works like this: Japan has layers. Japanese culture, Japanese people, everything. They all have layers.

Many people come to Japan and avoid "going deeper." They tend to isolate themselves and complain about how this or that is different where they come from. In my experience they tend to be arrogant, bitter people and no fun at all. I suppose everyone has a reason. For myself, I found that the trauma of experiencing what heretofore had been the domain of books and Internet articles had made me a bit gun shy of trying new things.

I have always enjoyed animated films and Shrek especially for it's the depth of story and character. In working through some of the high context attributes of Japanese culture it was natural to think of the issues in terms of layers.

By high context I mean that because so much is culturally ingrained - and I mean everything from gender roles to going shopping - behavior, responsibilities, expectations are simply understood from the situation and therefore there is no need for questions or explanations. By contrast American culture is low context. Questions and explanations are a part of life.

Well, once I started thinking about layers...

People can look at situations as onions or parfaits. Life hands us an onion instead of a parfait. Sometimes we have to eat our veggies, but there's always room for dessert!

Since applying the Shrek illustration to living in Japan I have come to realize I actually have the power to choose parfaits over onions. I can make the deliberate decision whether or not I will have a bad time or a good time, whether I will despise or cherish, whether I will shrink back or lay hold of the day in faith and courage.

I'm already starting to slobber...