World Lit--Japan

"Entrance exam competition heats up"

Considered a "landmark book, playing a pivotal role in defining discussions of modernity in..." Japanese literature. Composed by Japanese writer, Karatani Kojin. "In his analysis, such familiar terms as "origin, modern, literature, " and "the state" reveal themselves to be ideological constructs." Seems a must read. Preview of text is available on Google books, along with overview and book reviews.

This article talks about Daisuke Takahashi and both his failures and his accomplishments. He is a Japanese ice skater who recent took the bronze medal in the Olympics. The years 2008-2009 weren't his best of times because of injuries and low placing at different competitions. His recent win at the Olympics has been the highlight of his career and things are looking much better for him now. He is now known as the first man to earn an Olympic medal for Japan.

Hollywood blockbusters took over the movie industry in the 20th century, but Kitano Takeshi became the leading Japanese film director. He rose in the international movie world and lead the Japanese movie industry to a new heights in the current decade. In this century, Hollywood has created many remakes of original Japanese horror movies. Popular ones include The Ring (Ringu 1998), Tinseltown (2002), and The Grudge (Juon 2003)

This page discusses the fall and rebirth of the Japanese film industry in modern times. The industry fell in the nineties, where Japan faced the biggest drop ever. The rebirth was due to increased funding from television companies and others, as well as the rise of talented new directors and actors, the opening of multiplex theaters, and the decline in quality of a lot of Hollywood films.

This article talks about the opening of the new "New People" building that was just recently established (the end of 2009) in Japantown, San Francisco. This building holds all the recent Pop Culture in Japan, from art, to fashion, to music, and even to food.

This article is written by a woman named Kallie Szczepanski and she is a woman who has spent more than five years living there. The article is about the current Emperor of Japan, who in their culture and government, is extremely key. It talks about his job and what he does in his everyday life dealing with certain issues.

This article talks about how universities in Japan are allowing many seniors without any job offers to stay another year in school with a cheaper tuition. Many students feel it is better to stay another year in college while looking for job opportunities.

Although the Emperor is only the symbol of the state, he is still very significant because he essentially represents Japan. The real power comes from the branches of government though, and that is what this article states and explains.

This website has numerous speeches and statements by Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama about different situations that deal with the Japanese government.

This article has to do with the government & some of the changes that were going on during the 1990s with the government and political parties.

This page link is about the history of Japanese music. It speaks of the most prominent musical artists of a few time periods before the present. The info pertaining to these artists refers to their backgrounds and how they started and became popular. It also mentions a few of the most popular styles of music during those periods.

Japanese musics past 1990 has lessened the the focus on traditional orchestrations of imi uta, and other older types of Japanese music. The country and its emerging musicians from younger generations have developed more technologically produced work, like the digitally composed genre dubbed "J-Pop", which combines catchy, computerized rhythms with lyrics applicable to other aspects of entertainment in Japan, like the production of anime.

This blog is all about the modern fashion trends in Japan. The fashion industry is rapidly growing in Japan, and is even developing new trends faster than the U.S. When searching this site, I thought I was viewing "Huate Couture", but I was actually surprised that they were pictures of real people and not just fashion models/designers. This blog updates the newest trends each day, and according to the blog, men are starting to wear heels.

This sheds some light on the Rock scene in Japan. You would never have thought that in Japan people listen to rock. This site offers some background info on when and how Japanese Rock started and how it developed over the years.

Shows the groups that had to be formed to give women the chance to get jobs.

This is a websight about the shifts made in the Japan work life and so on and so forth

This is about a mans experience in the Japanse work life and how hard it was.

Shows how even women in japan have problems with finding work.

Contrasting the other article on modern Japanese music, there are some musical traditionalists who honor the cultural styles that were prevalent decades before. However, instead of using the same instruments passed down several generations, there seems to be an emergence of Western, orchestral and symphonic instruments being thrown into the ensemble, offering a richer sound that has been prized at annual music festivals. This is an expression of tradition being honored, but also "upgraded" with the assimilation of other voices in the music.

This article describes the biggest fashion trends/and styles in Tokyo. The two most popular styles in Tokyo are "Lolita Goth" and "Harajuku". Through this article I found out that stores in Japan sell the clothes that the teens are creating and renovating, compared to the US where brands market to sell their designs. Fashion in Japan does not have to do with what brand you are wearing, but how you express yourself differently than other people.