Tag: culture

Fallen Heroes

~ Sue ~ Leave a comment

Tune to the News channels, and you will probably find that some famous person has done something wrong. They disappoint their fans and followers, by doing something that destroys the image that they have built up. Which is not something exclusive to celebrities. Family members, friends or colleagues can also do something that changes your perception in them for the worse. And if that person is someone who inspires you, then it can also leave you questioning your values.

If someone has admirable qualities, should their less admirable achievements mask them? I am not sure. I think part of the problem is, that if you idolise a person, you put them on a pedestal. You hold them high, as you strive to follow their example, and get where you want to go in life. But when something ‘unsavoury’ comes to light, we change our entire perception of that person. It’s like they become a completely different person. But, it also effects us, as people. We see that our hero is flawed, and that person we strive to be like is not as perfect as we believed.

I guess, people should accept that nobody is perfect. We all have less favourable qualities and/or actions. It shouldn’t take away from our good qualities. Once we can recognise both the good and bad, in ourselves, we can appreciate the same in others. Success can be managed in so many different ways, and it is easy to hold people in high regard, if they are in a place you’d like to see your own life head. And whilst it is okay to be inspired by such people, don’t let them define who you are. You are your own person, and being that, you also have to be your own inspiration. You have to have the drive to continue on, without relying on idolising people to the point that we view them as a flawless. Everyone is flawed.

Foreign Interests

~ Sue ~ 1 Comment

How many times have you cursed the Anime and Manga fans who clog up book shops, or rolled your eyes at people pretending to be Japanese?

As annoying it is, to see people looking at different cultures and favour them over there own, looking at different cuture to your own is intriguing. And as the Western world becomes more Americanised, you have to look further afield to look at a completely different culture. After America, the other country whose culture is a huge influence, especially to the younger generations, is Japan.

Japan seems like a different world, when compared to the UK. Of course, not even Japan is immune from Americanisation, what with KFC becoming THE Christmas meal in Japan and McDonald’s appearing in every major town. There are still enough differences, to make studying the culture interesting. The big interest in everything Japanese is thought to have started in the late 80s/early 90s, when Japanese companies Nintendo and Sega took the forefront of computer game technology, and each sold millions of consoles around the world. After people got a taste of the cute characters, people started to purchase into Anime and manga, so much so, that almost every book shop in the UK now stores a Manga section bigger than that of the more traditional superhero comics. Then thanks to the popularity of Pokemon, Hello Kitty and singers like Qwen Steffani mimicking Japanese style, more and more people have confessed to being ‘Japanophiles’.

Whilst, you may get the idea that I don’t like Japan, this is not the case. I still play Pokemon on a regular basis, and I have read my fair share of manga. And although they have a harder working schedule than us in the UK, they also seem to enjoy their life a lot more. So, it has been suggested, that people see this positive outlook and try to mimic what they see to try and improve their quality of life. There is truth in that, if you pick up a new hobby that you enjoy, it will improve your quality of life, because of the simple fact that it makes you happier. And, it doesn’t matter who you are, if something makes someone happy, and it’s not harming anyone else, they should be able to do whatever it is.

As a person who will admit that she likes looking at the differences between here and Japan, I am going to recommend Tofugu for people to have a look at. It is a blog which looks at various parts of Japanese Culture, and may answer some of the questions you may have in your head.

Sayonara!