ABSTRACT
There is plenty of access to information about Japan these days. It features abundantly in radio and television programmes, in newspaper articles and in splendid and spectacular films. Then there are exhibitions of Japanese art, live concerts, theatre, shows and demonstrations. There are also large numbers of Japanese people in most of the major cities of the world and they are usually happy to talk about and ‘explain’ their country. The image we receive is still one of industry and efficiency, even if the startling postwar economic success has now received a battering. We hear of the astounding, if sometimes shocking, achievements of the education system, but we can also see photographs of Japanese young people dressed up and even painted in bright and cheerful ways. For many foreigners, however, the Japanese people remain difficult to understand. How can this be?
