Monday, April 13, 2015
Sushi and Baseball
Early Summer depicts a Japan in transition. Defeated and occupied by the Americans, the Japanese both cling to their traditional ways and embrace new ideas from their occupiers. How does the movie show this transition? Does this movie make a judgment about the new American influence? Is there a political slant, however subtle, in this film? What does this movie think about baseball, hot dogs, and apple pie?
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Early Summer shows Japan in transition in many different ways throughout the movies. This transition from their older more cultural ways to this new Americanized different culture and tradition. This movie shows the transition in many different ways one of which is the dress that is shown when they are out of the house. Whenever an adult exits or enters the house they are wearing an average suit and tie, but when they return to the house they are almost instantly shown changing into their traditional robes. Similarly when they are in the house with their family they are shown sitting on the ground on their knees but when they sit at restaurants or out of the house they are shown sitting on chairs around an average table. The film little judgment about the transition, it shows that as it becomes more American it also becomes more serious and business like. The involvement of the American occupation shows the change of focus in the culture. It shifts from being more about family to being more about being successful and having money. I think there is a very mild political slant being that America you need to work harder and there is more stain to be successful while in China culture revolves more around family. I think it shows that the stereotypical America, baseball, hot dogs, and apple pie, is real. I think that the film says that people should strive for what America has to offer.
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ReplyDeleteYasujiro Ozu’s 1951 film Early Summer captures the dichotomy between traditional Japanese values and American culture, as post-war Japan incorporated elements of American culture into their everyday lives. This changing of the Japanese way of life was relevant seeing as following WWII, Japan was exposed to a new culture while under American occupation; the film is a reflection of the society it was created in, intentionally or not. The broader theme of significant transition appears throughout the storyline of the film, for instance in the conflicts between the deference shown to the older generation versus the independence of the youth, or in Noriko’s personal choice for a husband versus the wants of the entire family. The younger generations in Early Summer greatly contrast their elders. The younger generation is portrayed as disrespectful, independent, and consumeristic, which is exhibited in the children’s treatment of their family members, running away, and desperate want for toys. All of these traits are often associated with American society. In contrast, the grandparents in Early Summer are extremely relaxed and content with life, enjoying its small moments. Furthermore, Noriko is presented as an independent woman who is capable of making choices independent of her family. This change in Japanese culture was most likely influenced by America, as independence is what our country was founded upon and American woman had more marital liberties at the time. In the film, the American initiated transition is further assimilated with the Japanese way of life through seemingly insignificant American items such as clothing and chairs. These items certainly removed an aspect of authentication from the Japanese household and added an American presence. I believe that in his creation, Ozu clearly illustrates the fundamental changing of Japanese society, showing both the positives and negatives of American influence during their occupation. After watching the film, I understood the loss of deep rooted Japanese values, yet I also felt excited for the growing sense of individualism within their society.
ReplyDeleteThe movie is set during an overall period of change, and shows Japan’s transition after the war. Japan social order was much like the European feudal system in the middle ages up until the mid-19th century when they opened trade, and had to modernize quickly, as they were cut off from the rest of the world. This is why respect and tradition are still quite important in Japan because it’s hard to shake off such important traditions. The three generations portrayed have a lot of differences. Most obviously is the difference in clothing. When Koichi is at work, he wears a suit but wears Japanese clothes at home. You can clearly see the difference in how generations observe traditions, as the grandparents wear traditional clothing, their children wear a mix and the grandchildren wear baseball caps. Noriko also wears western clothing, symbolizing how she moves away from her family’s ideals. The audience can also notice the different way the family members connect with each other. The way to raise children has completely changed. The children do not respect their elders and speak their minds. Minoru (like an ordinary boy of his age) is obsessed with toys and trains and, often rudely, demands them. One character says to Koichi, “Children should not be hit”, showing that there’s been a really clear change in values. The grandparents have expectations of Noriko which she does not abide by, going against a culture of obedience. We also see a change in gender roles. The grandparents have a traditional relationship, with the past the father working a job and the mother working around the house. Noriko works a job in the city and is initially well into her twenties and unmarried, uncommon for the place and era. Noriko’s marriage is against her parent’s wishes and what she wantsnot what they want. Women’s rights in Japan changed a lot during the occupation because of the heavy western influence. Still, through all the cultural change, the short marriage scene at the end shows that traditions still thrive. It is eventually accepted by the grandparents that times are changing and their children and grandchildren will live in a different time, but in the same way that they themselves had to adapt as young people. We can also see a shift in financial values. The main concern of the grandparents is the welfare of their family and their children and grandchildren being happy. Koichi and Fumiko want Noriko to be happy also, but Koichi’s conflict is starting his business. Minoru just wants more train track. The late 40s/early 50s saw the breakdown of the Japanese economic boom that had made them previously a world-power. The women can’t buy cake or sashimi because it’s expensive. WWII had a lot of countries in disrepair, particularly the economic kind. By making this movie, Ozu had an opportunity to speak about culture, and portrays the mix as positive, with nice traditions existing with the elderly and new, more progressive ways of life being started by the younger generations. Noriko and her friend like Audrey Hepburn and know a significant amount about American culture than their parents would. If he wanted to, Ozu could have made a film showing the negative effects of American influence but I felt eh movie didn’t take a side, but let the viewer decide for themselves.
ReplyDeletePost World War II occupation and reconstruction of Japan by the Americans was, from the American point of view at least, was a very big success. We were able to put in place a new infrastructure and generally get Japan back on its feet. This does not change the fact that we had just dropped two nuclear bombs on major cities killing hundreds of thousands of innocent human beings. In Early Summer, we can see a lot of American influence in the way the characters dress when going out. For example, Noriko’s brother wears a suit and tie to work and a kimono when he gets home. Additionally, the two young boys wear baseball caps around and are generally portrayed as your typical American boys playing with trains and not being perfect and polite like the rest of Japanese society. Additionally, it shows the contrast between the fast paced lifestyle of the west clashing with the slow Japanese lifestyle. You see this in particular when the grandfather is going to the store to buy bird seed and he stops to allow a train go by and it zips by him as if the only thing that matters is where it is going next while the grandfather sits on the curb and watches the clouds. I think that this is a very powerful scene to show that while Ozu is willing to accept these new American aspects into society, he is not ready to condone them or abandon traditional Japanese values.
ReplyDeleteWhile Yasujirō Ozu’s 1951 Japanese film “Early Summer” clearly depicts the way in which the Japanese maintain traditional values while simultaneously accepting new American ideals, it seems to shed a negative light on these new ideals by suggesting that they only impede the livelihood, happiness, and culture of Japanese people. This notion is quite evident throughout the entire film, and is demonstrated through various objects and concepts representing American prosperity. Perhaps the most obvious manifestation of this notion takes place with the portrayal of the role of trains in Japanese society. While trains are undoubtedly a sign of progress, business, prosperity, and thus happiness in the United States, they quite simply inhibit the Japanese values of appreciating the fleetingness of nature, living in peace and serenity, and spending time with family. This is first seen towards the beginning of the film, when an extreme long shot of the serene nature, with a hill covered with trees overlooking the settlement in the valley, is interrupted by the passage of a fast and noisy train, ruining the slow mood of the film which is integral to the Japanese understanding of living a slow and peaceful life. Evidently, American ideals quite clearly impede the Japanese values of respecting the beauty of nature. This notion reappears in the latter half of the film when Noriko’s father leaves to purchase bread or some other daily food item and is forced to wait on a bench when suddenly cut-off by a closing railroad gate with an English warning sign, as a train approaches and passes. The shot is immediately followed by the father watching the cloud patterns in the sky, again representing the peaceful, slow, and beautiful state of nature. This juxtaposition suggests that the train is an anomaly to this abovementioned state of nature, and additionally impedes the father, who simply wants to buy some bread for his family. This notion is also prevalent towards the middle of the film, when Noriko’s brother’s children constantly obsess over saving money to purchase more tracks for an electric train set, an exemplary toy for American children whose country is benefitting from prosperity due to transportation innovations, but not the type of toy which would represent traditional Japanese values. The children complain constantly for new tracks and even disrespect their father (Noriko’s brother) after utter disappointment that their father has purchased bread instead of train tracks. They throw the bread and earn the anger of their father, who is enraged at their lack of respect for their elders and their food, two very traditional Japanese values. Again, the train set which represents American prosperity impedes inculcation of Japanese values in the new generation. Aside from trains, even the changing attitude of women as they adopt American values impedes the propagation of Japanese values and is viewed negatively. While an elderly member of Noriko’s family tells her it is time for her to get married, indicating such an expectation in Japanese society, she is in constant debate with her “modernized” friends who are arguing whether it is better to be single or married. In accord with American values of spontaneity and speed (which have characterized the United States’ historical decisions and the way many citizens act, and were quite appropriate during the era the US was going through as opposed to Japan), Noriko quickly agrees to marry a man who is significantly older and already has children, without much thought. This decision angers her family, who feel she has betrayed Japanese values of thoughtfulness in decision making, and also at the fact that she will move to another city, away from the extended family with which Japanese couples are expected to stay. Clearly, adoption of American ideals, again, impedes propagation of Japanese traditions in quite a negative light.
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