Sexuality

In this Chapter, White mentioned that there are some differences of thinking about sexuality in both countries: United States and Japan. Especially I was interested in the sexual behavior among young people. She insisted that in America children of all social classes tend to be involved in having the sexual activity, that is to say, it is easy for young people in United States have the chance of a sexual experience equally. On the other hand, in Japan, there is a social-class distinction in sexual activity. For example, some young people who do not go on to college tend to begin to have the sexual activity earlier than other young people who are in middle social class and study in college. I am not sure that the situation in United States is true or not, but in my opinions the situation in Japan is somewhat true. In case of Japan, young people in middle social classes always feel the pleasure that they have to go to a higher school and they need to have future career in their mind, so it is difficult for them to involve in the sexual behavior. Of course the parents of middle social classes always watch the behavior of their children, because they want their children to go to the high class college and they consider that the college has a strong connection with the future career. Then the parents think that the sexual activity has a bad influence upon their children and these behaviors interrupt the concentration about career. This is one of the reasons that some adults consider the sexual behavior is taboo. I think it is natural for young people to become have interest in sexuality, so the important things is to keep their balance of the sexual interests but to prohibit it.

Friendship

In this chapter, White mentioned the various things about friendships in America and in Japan. I was interested in two points about Delinquency. First, one of the delinquencies was using alcohol. According to the report in this book, most of these young people who were habitual drinkers came from middle-class homes, but they were alone at home for many hours of the week. In other words these young people had somewhat education, but they tended to turn to delinquency, because they lack of the control by their parents and they spent a lot of time with their friends then they were influenced by the peer pressures. I agree with this opinion. I’m sure that people in adolescence need to spend their time to some extent with their family, because young people can’t do self-control. Parents have to lead to the young people. In my case, my parent was such a strict and they tried to lead me, so I escaped becoming the habitual drinkers and avoided losing control of myself. Second, there was prostitution as one of the delinquency. White insisted the reason why some schoolgirls did prostitution was to be eager for a thrill and pocket money. I disagreed with this mention. In Japan, sometime we can see these school-girls. In fact, in my high school two girls did it. They seemed not to be in trouble with money and they were not the character that they were eager for a thrill. These two girls were quiet and reserved. However they seemed to lack of something. Maybe I’m sure it was the attention of family. They were ignored by their family, so they must have been lonely and they tried to get attention from their parents with doing prostitution.
I believe that there is strong connection between the delinquency and the relationship of family. Even though children hate that family’s intervention, family needs to pay attention about friendships of their children. At least, I appreciate now that my parent did it.

Material Child
Market Research and Trendsetting
This Chapter 5“Materialism” is main theme in this book. There are a lot of aspects of materialism. Especially I would like to focus on the topic of the way of marketing. White mentioned about marketing industry, Hakuhodo and Dynax, tried to get close to teens themselves. I was interested in the methods that these industries used in order to getting information. Dynax gave telephone party to teens. In this telephone party teens could share their personal problems and issues. Teen calls Dynax and then they record their questions. Other young people call Dynax, they listen to these questions and they give some comments to these questions. Dynax checked these questions and answers, and then they could understand what young people want. I was surprised to find the way that Dynax did. This book was written about 10 years ago, so this method was allowed. However now the situation has changed, internet and cellular phone have become popular. Almost of all young people have each cellular phone and they can use the internet. Marketing industry takes advantage of this situation, they try to get close to young people more and more. For example, there is a fashion show named “TOKYO GIRLS COLLECTION”. In this fashion show audience can buy the item on the spot through the internet of cellar phone which the fashion model in front of the audience is wearing. The data that what kind of clothes audiences buy is totaled, and then marketing industry refer to this data and make the decision about what young people want. Marketing industry give young people feedback about what people want. Thus the trend is formed. I’m sure that materialism is made by both of young people and marketing industry.

School

In chapter 4, White said that there were a lot of differences between American teens and Japanese teens in their school. Especially I am interested in the difference of the way to define the self with others. I think that defining the self with others may relate to the matter of bullying. She mentioned that there was the distinction between private values on the one hand and correct social performance on the other. American teen was aware of this distinction and they were disillusioned about it, because they considered that this correct social performance was one of social code which was created and demanded by adults. American teens try to find their place along their mind. While Japanese teens were aware of this distinction in their peers and they considered that they could not ignore it. Japanese teens realized that there was a distinction between public and private, ideal and real, inside and outside, and that this distinction was one of the products of adult hypocrisy. Japanese teens try to find their place in their peer and they make an effort to become someone that surrounding people request them to be. In my case, I had same experience. I remember that sometime I was distressed with the distinction, but I could manage to accept it. However there were some classmates who could not accept it. They could not be careful in their choice of performances according to circumstances. Their performance was always same between public and private, they could not behave right with each situation. Then they were isolated from friends, and they were bullied by classmates. Now I think that they were just honest because they did not change the way of behaving with each situations and they just tried to define the self by their own. However Japanese teens tend to dislike their friends behaving differently with them. I think that this situation is not good, and they have to define the self in their view, not in friends or adults view. School should focus their concentration on this point that Japanese teens try to respect each other’s the way of thinking.

FAMILY:


In chapter 3, White says about working mothers. She gives some examples of working mothers in Japan. She insists that it is difficult for working mothers to coordinate of home, work and children, but in Japan they are expected to manage about household chores. I think that this expectation make feel a lot of women nervous to have children. White says that if working mothers have a teenage daughter, they give a daughter regular chores. On the other hand, if working mothers have a son, they don’t ask a son to help because they think that it is important for a boy to get a good education. There are a big difference to treat the way between a boy and a girl. I think that it is too strange and unfair. In my case, I have only sisters and my mother isn’t working mothers, so I can’t understand that situation. However this situation has been changing, a lot of working mothers consider that it is necessary for a girl to study hard and to go to high-level university, so working mothers has more responsibility of coordinating of home, work and children by her. In Japan, almost all fathers do not help his wife do household and the education of children. On my experience, my father has never helped my mother and I helped my mother do household. When I went to back home and I found that my mother was out in the kitchen, it was habitual for me to do help with my mother in the kitchen. My sisters and I was educated to do so. My father insisted that a girl have to help her mother and to learn about housework. Thanks to my parents, I don’t have a problem doing housework, but I think that it was strange that my father didn’t help my mother and now I think that it is natural that father cooperate with his wife in doing housework and the education of children and this make it easy for women to have children.

はじめまして！　
わたしのなまえは、げんだともみ　です。
わせだだいがくのいちねんせいです。
わたしのしゅみは、きものをあつめること、ハイキングやキャンプすること、
バスケットボールをすること、ともだちとパティーすることです。
わたしは、とうきょうにひとりですんでいます。
とってもたのしいです。
しょうらいはせいぶつがくについてもっとふかくべんきょうしたいです。

Hi !
My name is Tomomi Genda.
I'm a freshman in Waseda University.
My hobby is collecting KIMONO(Japanese traditional clothes) ,
hiking, camping, playing basketball and drinking!!
Now,　I live in Tokyo by myself. I enjoy it!!
In the future, I want to study in biology.