What Can We Gain Through Cultural Exchange

The world today is undergoing rapid globalization. People, supplies and financial capital move freely around the world in spite of geographical distances, borders, cultural and religious differences. Japanese factories are relocated abroad to take advantage of a cheaper labor force and lower tariffs. Even agricultural production is going abroad. As Japanese activities are concentrated in Tokyo, depopulation in rural areas is becoming an increasingly serious problem. What can we expect will remain in this country in the future? Culture is one of the keys to recreating a country eroding from globalization. Having mixed with many other different cultures, Japanese culture has not remained pure. Japan has always been eager to digest and assimilate foreign cultures. Since the middle of the 19th century the Japanese have admired and emulated the lifestyle and culture of the United States and Western Europe. For business to prosper, companies changed their written names from Kanji to English. Many young couples held their weddings in churches although they were not Christians. They took to using desks and chairs and sleeping on beds rather than on futons and tatami mats. Most people no longer wear traditional Japanese clothes but have adopted western clothing, which is both functional and convenient. And so, western culture is assimilated into Japanese culture. Frank Boas’s theory of cultural relativism states that there is neither relative superiority nor inferiority among cultures. Yet in the past, the Japanese have at times despised certain cultures. Today high-rise buildings similar in appearance are constructed at the center of big cities around the world. As a result of westernization, it is hard to find old traditional buildings in Tokyo, as they were demolished and replaced by new and indistinguishable high-rises. This trend of development has homogenized the cities of the world. Modernization of the urban fabric is more pronounced in East Asian countries than in southern nations such as India, quite possibly due to differing religions.