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Precis: "The ' Illusion' of Homogeneous Japan and National Character: Discourse as a Tool to Transcend the ' Myth' vs. ' Reality' Binary" (2010) by Chris Burgess

Chris Burgess, in his paper, “The ‘Illusion’ of Homogeneous Japan and National Character: Discourse as a Tool to Transcend the ‘Myth’ vs. ‘Reality’ Binary” (2010) argues that rather than dismissing popular assumptions, perceptions, beliefs and discourses according to the homogeneous Japan myth, as well as, those based on the reality of the mixed or multicultural Japan, it would be more useful to examine their role in constructing and maintaining social reality and public policy in Japan. Part of the step is to define what discourses, myths and ideologies are and how they affect the conditions of the society, particularly on how discourses are not simply descriptive, rather they are prescriptive, and thus play a role in the shaping of the society. By examining the roles of Nihonjinron literature, sociological case study findings, and the application of discourses into the everyday lives of the people, Burgess directs the question away rom the 'myth vs reality' dichotomy to the extent of which such representations are shaped by and also shaping the people it is supposed to represent. As such, this paper is significant for future researchers and students of Japanese Studies, as well as, cultural studies, for it puts forward the various arguments of what makes a national character in the case of Japan, not only as a synthesis, but also as an analysis of its implications and applications to lived lives of the Japanese.

(October 18, 2018)

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