There's More to Being Cute Than Being Cute

The prevalence of cute things, ways of dress, and behavior is impossible to overlook when living in Japan. In my research for a paper on keitai denwa use and personalization, I came across an interesting theory on the culture of kawaii ("cute") in Japan. Sharon Kinsella viewed the cute culture as youth's reponse to regimented social controls and bleak views of adulthood. In contrast to Western cultures where youth rebel in often angry or vengeful ways (like "punks"), Japanese youth prefer to bask in the nostalgia of childhood to ward off the feelings of responsibility and selflessness that are associated with adulthood, especially parenthood. Girls thus indulge themselves on "kawaii" designer goods, speak and write in childlike manners, and decorate their personal belongings in feminine symbols (hearts, stars, smiley faces) and popular animated characters. To think of being cute as a strategy of rebellion seems strange, but it makes some sense. According to Kinsella, ideas of maturity in the West focus on individual authority and rights, while maturity in Japan is thought more to be able to cooperate in groups and fulfill obligations. "Either way the result was the same, teachers in the West were as infuriated by cocky pupils acting tough, as Japanese teachers were infuriated with uncooperative pupils writing cute and acting infantile," she goes on to say.

The Pink Panther was made to be a sly character, but Japan turned the idea of him into a cute kitten-looking "panther pal".



This was found in a keitai denwa store; the mushroom is the symbol of NTT Docomo. I'm unsure how mushrooms with human characteristics are considered cute, but it seems even companies that sell the most practical of goods geared toward all generations have such little mascots.


Speaking of mushrooms, I went to a bar in Kyoto called "The Mushroom Bar", that had low orange lighting, smiley faces all over the walls, and kids' toys on each table. The bar's owner had his hair shaped like a mushroom. The bar wasn't nostalgic or even kawaii, just terrifying.

This concludes my blog of Japan for the semester. Thank you for viewing my photos and reading my babbling text. Japan is a culture of much more depth and dimensions than I gave it credit, but hopefully I represented it in as appropriate a way as I could.