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Title: The Idea of Japan: Western Images, Western Myths by Ian Littlewood ISBN: 1-56663-117-3 Publisher: Ivan R. Dee Publisher Pub. Date: 01 September, 1996 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $26.00

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Average Customer Rating: 4 (2 reviews)

Rating: 4
Summary: Thought provoking
Comment: All too often, Japanology by Westerners degenerates into a glorification of the author's country as he/she trots out the usual arguments about how much Japan differs from his/her "normal" and idealised society. At last, here is a study which says "Hang on, maybe we're the ones we should be looking more closely at". Littlewood does an excellent job of showing just how political and prejudicial so many images of Japan are. And ignore the last part of the Kirkus review: calling Japan "demonstrably homogeneous"shows just how badly the reviewer missed Littlewood's point (or chose to ignore it) and subscribes to exactly the sort of steroetypes Littlewood has done such a good job of exposing. Littlewood shows us that he, unlike the Kirkus reviewer, does not feel the need to tar every Japanese with the same brush. His intuitive understanding of the Japanese that comes through, even though it is really Western images that he concentrates on, is a breath of fresh air for all those who have Japanese friends or partners and have been able to see the Japanese as individual human beings rather than cultural automatons. Most books on Japan I have read leave me with a sense of bitterness that the author has transmitted as if it's a final parting shot before heading back to the paradise of home. Finally here is a book that matches my experience in Japan: when you get to know a few Japanese people well, you realise just how misleading the stereotypes are. A bit more assured self analysis on both sides, as Littlewood has done, and we might not have the antagonistic relationship that seems to predominate these days.

Rating: 4
Summary: Something to make you think
Comment: All too often, foreign writers on Japan become annoying know-it-alls whose unshakeable belief in their own culture and value system leads to the analysis being littered with subtle references to how Japan's foibles reassure the writer of his/her own cultural superiority complex. In the Idea of Japan, Ian Littlewood has the guts to say that maybe it's not the Japanese that are strange or abnormal but that it is the way that Westerners have treated and written about Japan that is strange. As such, it is a refreshing break from much of the self-righteous Japanology that treats Japan as a deviation from Western norms. The Kirkus review does the book a disservice. It accuses the book of having no more depth than a reflecting pool. Yet it's own comments about Japan being "demonstrably homogeneous" clearly show how little the reviewer understands about diversity within Japanese society. And it is precisely here that Littlewood scores highest. The book resonates with an intuitative understanding of who the Japanese are, even though it is Western images, not the Japanese themselves, who are in the spotlight. His portrayal of the Japanese as individual human beings rather than as automatons following cultural programming will be particularly appealing to those long term residents in Japan who have made genuine friendships and relationships with Japanese people. As one such person, I welcome a book that makes me feel closer to my Japanese friends as a break from the myriads that just erect barriers. For any like minded person, this book is an easy and thought provoking read.