Thread: Turning Japanese?

Originally Posted by tsurara

After having read the article, I'm inclined to think that Japanophilia is the least of this woman's problems:

"this will be the 42nd time she has had plastic surgery and she is closing in on the world record of 47..."

At this point, I think we can all safely say that this woman is unhappy with herself in general and it's getting a bit difficult to find bits of her body that are still pliant enough to chop up.

Or maybe she's just addicted to plastic surgery.

Originally Posted by tsurara

There is more to race than almond eyes...

Just like asians having eyelid surgery: it's usually not as much an issue of wanting to actually be or pass for another ethnicity as it is to appear more exotic or attain desireable features associated with another ethnicity.

There are actually many asians born with a double eyelid. It occurs naturally in Japan all the time (and those who have them are praised). But because it is a desireable feature and the tighter hooded eyelids are associated most with the image of asians to other ethnic groups it becomes a racial issue in ethnically mixed cultures. Within Japan, it's a nonissue. In the Asian-American community it's considered an epidemic. Depends on your perspective.

Even a white person or hispanic goes through the surgical equvalent of scotch-tape to the eyelids: their skin tone, hair color, body/skin/hair type, mannerisms and language will still make them stand out as "gaijin". The only thing the surgery would accomplish is to make you less attractive to the Japanese by removing a natural feature they value.

Way to not answer my question.

I know someone who is half Japanese and physically the only difference is his eyes. Now he thinks the surgery is funny and isn't interested himself but he won't visit Japan either because of the way he is treated by "full Japanese" both in and out of Japan. However, as I said before, with minimal surgery like this he would look full Japanese. I have also heard from those living in Japan who LOOK full Japanese that they do not have to deal with the same prejudices as the ones that don't. SO for the ones that don't who, like him, would only need something small like this to look like everyone else would it be worth it?

oh wow,,, having someone go the that extreme is just... crazy. I would never do somthing like that, because i'm happy with the body i was born with and all of you should be too.
this reminds me of an advertisment i read in a japanese magazine,, there is this thing were you can make your eyes more round and less "japanese" i think it's a cream u put on every night,, or a sticky thing like tape i guess you put on the side of your eyes. I forget exactly what it was.

Originally Posted by Arrianna

Way to not answer my question.

I know someone who is half Japanese and physically the only difference is his eyes. Now he thinks the surgery is funny and isn't interested himself but he won't visit Japan either because of the way he is treated by "full Japanese" both in and out of Japan. However, as I said before, with minimal surgery like this he would look full Japanese. I have also heard from those living in Japan who LOOK full Japanese that they do not have to deal with the same prejudices as the ones that don't. SO for the ones that don't who, like him, would only need something small like this to look like everyone else would it be worth it?

I thought I did answer your question in saying that, in most cases, there is more to one's "foreign-ness" than the slant of their eyes. Your half-Japanese friend may appear completely Japanese to you, but to another Japanese: he or she likely does not. And even if your friend had surgery to alter their eyes, they would likely be outed by their mannerisms, inability to use Japanese/heavily accented Japanese, and the simple fact of their parentage/name/history/ability in another language/etc.

If it were merely an issue of LOOKING Japanese, there would be very little racism toward other Asians in Japan. At a glance, most Japanese can not tell a Korean from Japanese. And yet, descrimination toward other Asians in Japan is quite possibly a BIGGER problem than descrimination toward those who are outwardly "foreign" in appearance.

As for the amount of overt racism you attract: it depends entirely on where you go, who you deal with and how long you live in the culture or how deeply you try to penetrate it's labor/immigration systems. For the most part, racism ISN'T appearance based at all (though those who appear foreign are more likely to be discussed in public as if they can't speak Japanese or be turned away from businesses on account of nationality).

I teach children who the other kids tease for "looking foreign" but are full-blooded Japanese. They're not the victims of racism... with the exception of some good-natured jokes about their appearance. For the most part they're popular and considered handsome/pretty and among the most desireable students in the school to date on account of their exotic looks.

Meanwhile I have kids who appear completely Japanese, speak Japanese fluently, dress and act Japanese, and have never left Japan to so much as visit another country. But one of their parents is black, filipino, or caucasian. THESE students get the ****.

In any case: it would be ridiculous to suggest that the solution to xenophobia is for everyone to hide their ethnicity from the Japanese in attempt not to offend their sensitive sense of national cohesion O_o; It's the Japanese culture that should be growing to accept foreigners, not foreigners who should be attempting to "pass" for Japanese. Japan is facing a population and labor crisis: the ONLY way to support their aging population and fill positions emptied by retirees who have opted never to have children is to open their borders to immigration. Japan is about to diversify -- it has no choice. Eventually the Japanese people will just need to DEAL with differences in race/appearance/ethnicity.

And quite a few "half"s are considered completely gorgeous and are desireable above and beyond the average Japanese: provided they are raised more or less entirely in Japan, assimilate to Japanese culture completely and survive the gauntlet of primary and secondary school. A good chunk of famous celebrities and sex symbols are only half-Japanese. Helps to be gorgeous, though, I suppose.

Wow for real. I can't believe this. I am still in shock. Anyways my opinon on this is she is insane! Well not really but she should be happy with her looks. She is a model and she wants to change herself? I am not to happy with my looks but I would never go and have them changed. You were given these looks by the people who loved you most. I like Japan and their style but I am not going to change everything about me to fit them.

Your aren't supposed to try and change who are you. It's just not right.
She's an idiot anyways for doing that.
She obviously doesn't want to be pure brazilian anymore, appearance wise.

Originally Posted by Saionji

Your aren't supposed to try and change who are you. It's just not right.
She's an idiot anyways for doing that.
She obviously doesn't want to be pure brazilian anymore, appearance wise.

So getting a new kidney because your own are failing is bad as well since it changes who you are? Or a blood transfusion? Or having surgery on your eyes because your own are not working properly?