Order and Disorder in Japan

Ads, signage, pictures, scrawls, graffiti, basically any form of visual communication. We see and experience them passively and actively, being entertained, informed, or even annoyed and complacent in our attitudes towards such images.

In fact warnings, instructions and street signs offer a clear indication of the strict sense of order in Japan, something that to foreigners might find a bit overwhelming. While being told of what you can do and can't do might sound something like what a 5 year old would be subjugated to, but still it remains a cheap and effective means of creating order.  In this post, I would like to focus on signage in particular since the letters and the warning images that we Japanese often take for granted in fact are rather confronting.

at Osaka Station (JR)

It's unimaginable how much the Japanese are bombarded with the phrases “DO NOT” and “FOLLOW THE RULES”. Although they could be common in all countries, in Japan, signs saying that are everywhere; to the point of it being a visual dog's breakfast. For example, I see this part of Japanese culture everyday at a train station. In the following picture, you can see printed sets of footprints on the platform, so that people know how to line up. Also the women-only cars that pervade the notorious rush-hour commute are a form of constraint and thus enforced by pretty pink (text heavy..) signage

If you go down the stairs on the left side, soon you will be aware of this warning.

Words are usually powerful enough to fulfill all of what people want to say when it comes to signage. However, in order to get peoples' attention more effectively, some managers seem to create unique signs by means of including images and pictures. After I took above pictures, I accidentally encountered quite an interesting thing at Umeda on my way home. There were some small pictures of Torii (Japanese:鳥居 A gateway, commonly found at Shinto shrines) around a hedge in front of a convenience store. They appeared pretty odd because no one would Torii to be there, and they were also too small to spot from a distance.

In Kyoto, where I was born, Torii are often used to discourage those who urinate in the street, as Torii is a very sacred symbol from the ancient times. So the pictures there naturally reminded me of it, and I thought it would never be possible to do that on a busy street. Soon I decided to stop by the store and asked an employee about who put them and for what. Then, he answered laughing, “That is the store manager’s idea. He put them there last week expecting it would decrease the amount of litter.” “I think there has been less litter these days, it could be just imagination, though.” After I interviewed him, I carefully looked at the area around Torii pictures again; unfortunately it was still dirty with cigarette butts.

While you can see various order/rules, by the same token, you might see a part of disorder such as lack of manners in Japan. For example, illegally parked bicycles. I went to Kyobashi to see how many bicycles that have been carelessly left on sidewalk despite the countless signs warning against that. Nothing but utter chaos.

No Parking (Japanese: 駐車/駐輪禁止)

So why do people not follow the rules? Meanwhile Japan seems to be regarded as the most policed and orderly nation. I suppose that Japanese people are not interested in 'the concept of the rule'; that is, the 'rules are to be obeyed, neither to be changed nor to be challenged.' Takao Aoki, who wrote about the difference of the rules between Japan and America, mentions this in his book.

“Most Japanese think that the rules are created by governors and by virtue they endeavour to make the best under the given regulations. One of the biggest problems is lack of principles. Because people do not have their principles, it is relatively difficult for them to keep following the rules especially when they feel inconvenienced by them. So they do not try to change it nor challenge it.” (Aoki, T. Zurui!? Naze Oubeijin ha Heiki de Ru-ru wo Kaeru noka, 2009, Discover)

Jiro Shirasu, who contributed to the constitution of Japan after the war, also criticizes the absence of independence among Japanese people. “I am really unpleasant when I hear the word, taking well-mannered action in Japanese (Original: 筋を通す). Although that is a matter of course, Japanese people applaud each other. This indicates that they are lack of principles in daily lives.” (Shirasu, J. Principle no Nai Nihon, 2006, Shincho) I think the point here is not that people should change it if they do not like it, but to make it simple and clear why they decide to follow the rules.

 You are sometimes required to turn off your cell phone in a certain car for patients with heart disease especially who use pacemakers (otherwise railroad workers will rush to caution you against using it), although mobile phones now have less negative effects on pacemakers.

Looking through warnings and instructions in the street, you can see both "the requiring side" and "the required side". Then Japan could be completely a well-ordered society as you consider it from the view of those who ask others for obey, and some non-Japanese might think much of Japanese order. 

However, considering the amount of regulation and orders that's present in everyday life here in Japan, it is no surprise that being humans (and not robots) there is a tendancy, while subconscious, to rebel. This sounds very contradictory but I feel reflects the current state of Japanese society well. As reflected in my last post (about the Underbelly of Japan), that for all the rules, traditions and dogma that has been so intertwined with the Japanese historically, modern Japanese society is not surprisingly grappling with herself in which direction to follow. And unfortunately there's no rulebook for shaping society.

References

Aoki, T. 2009, Zurui!? Naze Oubeijin ha Heiki de Ru-ru wo Kaeru noka (Japanese) [Is it unfair? Why do western people often change the rules?], Discover twenty one, Tokyo, Japan.
Shirasu, J. 2006, Principle no Nai Nihon (Japanese) [Lack of Principle in Japan], Shinchosha, Tokyo, Japan
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The other interesting signage that I have met as follows..

If you park without permission, you will be charged one million yen (≈12500$) for parking fee.

When I was writing the draft of this post, I accidentally saw the odd name of network popping out as the lowest list.

. "It's you again!? (Japanese: またお前か!?)"