in the spirit of expressing myself...
...I'd like to open this entry with a haiku.
*hem hem*
*bows*
Seriously though, five continents. Initially, I simply thought the teachers that I was talking to were crazy. (I also secretly wondered if this was a part of the Japanese textbook/distorted perspective approach to teaching social studies and mused over whether or not they counted Japan as a continent??) However, as I do whenever I need some quick research, I searched Wikipedia and churned up this information about continents. Basically, I learned that there are several different continent 'models,' ranging from four to seven continents, with several different opinions as to what the contents are; North and South America, Asia, Europe, Africa, Australia, Antarctica? America, Eurasia, Africa, Australia, Antarctica? South America, Laurasia, Africa, Australia? OR we can just ignore Antarctica altogether and lump Australia into Oceania or Australasia.
I came away more confused than when I started and still don't know which continents they teach in Japan (all of my teachers had a different list). But I did learn a valuable lesson about ethnocentricity, so listen up kiddies, we've come to the moral of the story: even those things which we believe to be the most fundamental and universal concepts (ie. seven continents) are likely to vary between cultures. Wise Wikipedia says, "geography is defined by local convention" which completely blew my mind... I always thought geography was geography, and like math, we all learned the same things in a different language. Yet, in the spirit of recognizing differences between cultures, I'd like to give you a short list of things that continue to blow my mind...
-- when a person wants to know their body temperature in Japan, they take a thermometer and stick it in their... armpit!
-- if you ask a group of Japanese children what color the sun is, most of them will shout... 'red!'
-- at what point in history did everyone start to make up their own names for foreign countries? Isn't the name that they use good enough? Why do we say 'Japan' instead of 'Nihon' or 'Nippon' and why do the Italians say 'Giappone?'
-- you can buy beer and cigarettes from vending machines in residential areas.
-- eggs come in a package of 10, not 12.
-- strawberries are a January/February fruit instead of a June fruit.
-- aloe yogurt. (I didn't think we were supposed to eat aloe)
I find it reassuring, though, that in a world of differences some things are always the same...
...like junior high school boys (who are so excited by the balloon boobs that they can't even stand still for a picture)...
...the universal importance of the Power Rangers...
...and 5 meter tall outdoor underwear mannequins.
Well, maybe the last one isn't the same across cultures, but I thought it was worth mentioning anyway.
This entry has been brought to you by the letter G and the number 5.
*hem hem*
Geography Lesson
(by Kristine)
in Japan, they say
there are five continents, but
I'll stick with seven
(by Kristine)
in Japan, they say
there are five continents, but
I'll stick with seven
*bows*
Seriously though, five continents. Initially, I simply thought the teachers that I was talking to were crazy. (I also secretly wondered if this was a part of the Japanese textbook/distorted perspective approach to teaching social studies and mused over whether or not they counted Japan as a continent??) However, as I do whenever I need some quick research, I searched Wikipedia and churned up this information about continents. Basically, I learned that there are several different continent 'models,' ranging from four to seven continents, with several different opinions as to what the contents are; North and South America, Asia, Europe, Africa, Australia, Antarctica? America, Eurasia, Africa, Australia, Antarctica? South America, Laurasia, Africa, Australia? OR we can just ignore Antarctica altogether and lump Australia into Oceania or Australasia.
I came away more confused than when I started and still don't know which continents they teach in Japan (all of my teachers had a different list). But I did learn a valuable lesson about ethnocentricity, so listen up kiddies, we've come to the moral of the story: even those things which we believe to be the most fundamental and universal concepts (ie. seven continents) are likely to vary between cultures. Wise Wikipedia says, "geography is defined by local convention" which completely blew my mind... I always thought geography was geography, and like math, we all learned the same things in a different language. Yet, in the spirit of recognizing differences between cultures, I'd like to give you a short list of things that continue to blow my mind...
-- when a person wants to know their body temperature in Japan, they take a thermometer and stick it in their... armpit!
-- if you ask a group of Japanese children what color the sun is, most of them will shout... 'red!'
-- at what point in history did everyone start to make up their own names for foreign countries? Isn't the name that they use good enough? Why do we say 'Japan' instead of 'Nihon' or 'Nippon' and why do the Italians say 'Giappone?'
-- you can buy beer and cigarettes from vending machines in residential areas.
-- eggs come in a package of 10, not 12.
-- strawberries are a January/February fruit instead of a June fruit.
-- aloe yogurt. (I didn't think we were supposed to eat aloe)
I find it reassuring, though, that in a world of differences some things are always the same...
...like junior high school boys (who are so excited by the balloon boobs that they can't even stand still for a picture)...
...the universal importance of the Power Rangers...
...and 5 meter tall outdoor underwear mannequins.Well, maybe the last one isn't the same across cultures, but I thought it was worth mentioning anyway.
This entry has been brought to you by the letter G and the number 5.
posted by Kris at
6:46 PM
3 Comments:
good point about the comments thing. i asked about what continent was the biggest and they had no idea, and then my English teacher told me not to mention continents in class. ha. strange.
isaac
p.s. i loved the sesame street ending.
By
Izzy, at 2/19/2006 11:42 PM
why do european languages use something that sounds like a flavor of "japan" (e.g. giappone, japon) to refer to japan instead of something closer to "nihon"? it's cuz "japan" comes from the chinese pronunciation of 日本 which was somehting like 'jihpun' - and westerners knew of china before japan.
also, i totally agree about the aloe yogurt. sort of disgusting, yet also intriguing. look for a brand called "moisture dessert" - it's the weirdest, it even has chunks of aloe in it.
By
byron, at 2/20/2006 7:10 AM
You make me laugh girl! And Australia is SO a continent in itself.
And um, where is that 5m manequin of Shinjo?? I need to be there - NOW!
By
GrantPGranthm, at 2/20/2006 3:17 PM
Post a Comment
<< Home