Japan Culture Series 22: Otogibanashi

Now in raising a child in Japan my wife and I have been exposed to various Japanese children's stories and books. This has led to our exposure to Otogibanashi, or Japanese Folk Tales. Each story can reveal the influences on the Japanese people from Shintoism, Buddhism, Confucianism, as well as other traditional thoughts. Often it is thought that a nations folk stories for children are meant to teach morals and values important to those people. What are the main differences between Japanese and Western stories?

If you read some of the Otogibanashi from the previously linked website, you will see some of these common themes: importance of the group, strong value of nature, and ideal morals to be practiced. For instance Japanese stories often focus on modesty as opposed to pride, inward beauty as opposed to outward beauty, dependence as opposed to independence, and acceptance as opposed to rejection. These values from the Otogibanashi reinforce what children learn from Japanese society as being either acceptable or unacceptable. If you are into reading manga or watching anime you will most certainly notice many Japanese cultural motifs that may influence you whether you notice it or not! This kind of cultural soft power has influenced many people around the world to be highly favorable toward Japan and to actually move here.

Although some of the values in folk tales are favorable, some of them are not. No matter which country we live in, we must be discerning of what exactly is being taught to our children. For instance, in America the mainstream entertainment industry specifically geared toward children always seems to influence thought based upon some kind of agenda. Often times those values are the opposite of Biblical values, and are therefore governed by the ways of the world. As is in the case of any type of media we consume, we must be highly discerning as to what is being taught to our children. Does it line up with Biblical values? Are you willing to see if your influences line up to the word of God? Please pray for us as we seek to find a balance between what is acceptable and what is unacceptable for raising children in this culture.