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Behind the Mask: On Sexual Demons, Sacred Mothers, Transvestites, Gangsters, Drifters and other Japanese Cultural Heroes
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(showing 1-30)
Surprisingly bland. Outdated. More judgmental and less insightful than the author's other books on Japan, with some glaring, repeated factual errors.
Aug 30, 2014
Marija S.
rated it
it was amazing
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
history-politics-culture,
solid-read
A gem of a book I accidentally stumbled upon. Ian Buruma knows what he is writing about (small wonder since he had been living in Japan for seven years) and has very insightful and sharp remarks about the Japanese society and some of its particularities (the cult of mother, the worship of immaculate beauty that reaches its peak in destruction, etc.) which are usually omitted or sugarcoated in other works representing the country/nation/mentality.
The only downside I can find with the book is unsy ...more
The only downside I can find with the book is unsy ...more
I don't know how beneficial it was for me to read this. First of all, it is likely dated since it was written in the 80s, almost 30 years ago. I felt really offended through most of it, because it focused on such grotesque aspects of Japanese culture and insisted they were the socially acceptable norm. I don't know how true that is, but I would never assume such things of the Japanese people that I meet. Overall, the book had some interesting insights into why certain aspects of Japanese society
...more
Down to earth analysis of some of Japanese 'types' of people as they appear in the arts or pop culture. Nevertheless, be careful reading it as it is 30 years old and some aspects of society of course have changed. But for a general overview of Japanese aesthetics and construction of characters, it is still a good read.
Ian Buruma's 'Japanese Mirror: Heroes and Villains in Japanese Culture' opens by exploring Japan's eighth-century foundational myth. This story is then extrapolated to explain certain notions which are ingrained in Japanese culture. Buruma identifies three traits threaded throughout Japanese cultural practices and memory: jealousy (coupled with its projection of personal deficiencies and damaging capacity for incorrect assumptions), pollution (physical or mental degradation, and society's innate
...more
3.5 Sterne
Ian Buruma schreibt sehr humorvoll und zugänglich und zeigt sehr interessante gesellschaftliche Zusammenhänge oft anhand von Popkultur auf. Leider ist "Japan hinter dem Lächeln" nun zwischen 30 und 40 Jahren alt und bezieht sich hauptsächlich auf die japanische Gesellschaft in den 80er Jahren des Wirtschaftswunders. Vieles ist daher stark überholt und wichtige soziale Entwicklungen sowie popkulturelle Phänomene fehlen für eine zeitgemäße Charakterisierung Japans (insbesondere der demog ...more
Ian Buruma schreibt sehr humorvoll und zugänglich und zeigt sehr interessante gesellschaftliche Zusammenhänge oft anhand von Popkultur auf. Leider ist "Japan hinter dem Lächeln" nun zwischen 30 und 40 Jahren alt und bezieht sich hauptsächlich auf die japanische Gesellschaft in den 80er Jahren des Wirtschaftswunders. Vieles ist daher stark überholt und wichtige soziale Entwicklungen sowie popkulturelle Phänomene fehlen für eine zeitgemäße Charakterisierung Japans (insbesondere der demog ...more
What makes them tick? Interesting.
Buruma tells the uniqueness of Japan. How it is developed from ancient empire time through modern era nowadays.
Aug 17, 2014
Lyn Elliott
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
anyone interested in Japanese culture
Shelves:
japan
Ian Buruma's preface to the 2012 re-issue of this book, first published in 1983, points out that the popular culture he wrote about in the early 1980s will have changed greatly 30 years later, and will be unfamiliar to many young Japanese. But the background to the cultural elements he described go back to the emergence of Shintoism, 11th century literary tradition, 18th century visual arts and theatre traditions, as he aims to give some idea of Japanese nationl identity, of 'Japanesness' (p x)
...more
Ian Buruma's nonfiction tends to be wonderful, and this book is no exception.
In one sense, this is an attempt to do something fairly standard: understand a people and their culture through the stories they tell about themselves. In another sense, this is an extremely unique work, however, in that not only does each chapter stand alone as genuinely insightful film or fiction criticism but together the essays constitute a nearly complete, nuanced and sensitive account of what one might call a "pr ...more
In one sense, this is an attempt to do something fairly standard: understand a people and their culture through the stories they tell about themselves. In another sense, this is an extremely unique work, however, in that not only does each chapter stand alone as genuinely insightful film or fiction criticism but together the essays constitute a nearly complete, nuanced and sensitive account of what one might call a "pr ...more
Ian Buruma is a great writer: his book "Bad Elements" on dissidents in the Chinese-speaking world contains enough witty little hooks for at least four indie-chart-topping singles.
"Behind the Mask" is one of his earlier works and is a bit dated now (I think it was written in the early-mid '80s). His deliberately weird method of romanizing certain Japanese words was probably meant for businessmen and those only tangentially interested in Japan who he figured would otherwise never figure out how to ...more
"Behind the Mask" is one of his earlier works and is a bit dated now (I think it was written in the early-mid '80s). His deliberately weird method of romanizing certain Japanese words was probably meant for businessmen and those only tangentially interested in Japan who he figured would otherwise never figure out how to ...more
Yet another book about Japan, but I totally loved it! There are enough tidbits in here about things that sound crazy from the perspective of a Westerner, but make sense in the Japanese way of thinking.... I always say this. This book was really heavy on examples from film, but it was well-written, by a guy who totally knew what he was talking about. This is a classic in the people-not-from-Japan-trying-to-explain-Japan genre. Loved it. Essential for otaku.
Burma's culture study of Japan felt very dated, very hypocritical, and very boring at times. I had to power through almost all of this, and though I did learn something every page, every chapter seemed to contradict what the previous chapter had said. Because of this, and the strange vibes I was getting from the book, I wasn't really sure how much I could trust of what I was reading. I still don't know, and this much time put into a book should not make me feel that way accidentally.
This book is a very interesting insight into the soul of Japanese culture. The book was written in the 80th and the author did not revise the new edition. He believes that to understand today’s modern Japan the reader needs to explore the history of the country. Japan has strong links with its past. The history is a mirror that reflects modern Japanese society and through the past you come to understand this unique country.
In the hermit's cave where I live I'd never heard of Buruma. I certainly have now. An utterly brilliant book by a man with the brain the size of a small planet. I will be actively seeking his work out which rarely say about anyone.
Others have given extensive glowing reviews all justified. it's about Japan or how Japan and the world sees itself. Not complex,just brilliant.
Others have given extensive glowing reviews all justified. it's about Japan or how Japan and the world sees itself. Not complex,just brilliant.
Buruma has a clear-eyed and yet wry and ironical tone when discussing Japan that can be very refreshing or grate on the nerves, depending on what mood the reader is in. However, he is always entertaining, never simplistic, and rarely judgmental (at least not in any traditional sense). Fun and illuminating read.
One of the first books I got into with respect to Japanese sub-culture. Buruma is a very good writer/journalist. The thing is he doesn't have the Donald Richie cool. Yet, I learned a lot from this book.
There's a glitch in Goodreads. I haven't read this one yet ("A Japanese Mirror"), though I did read and review Buruma's "Behind the Mask."
CORRECTION: These are actually the same book, under two different titles. (So now I have two copies.)
CORRECTION: These are actually the same book, under two different titles. (So now I have two copies.)
Essential reading for anyone studying the Japanese language or culture. I would love to see a second edition of this book published, but I wouldn't say that this book has become dated.
one of my favorite books on Japan
After living in Japan for a couple years I thought this book would be interesting. I found myself pretty bored with it.
If you have the slightest interest in Japanese film, this book's more or less a must. Unless you don't want to. Like, it's a free country, you know?
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Ian Buruma is a British-Dutch writer and academic, much of whose work focuses on the culture of Asia, particularly that of 20th-century Japan, where he lived and worked for many years.
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