English responses, page 5

I live in Kumamoto and am a dental hygienist. I read your article on today's Asahi newspaper and found it very interesting because I have a similar experience especially when I lived in Arkansas for two years. Generally, Japanese are more shy than Americans are. This is true, and I have thought many time that we weren't . when I was on the line for registration for the coming semester in my university in Little Rock AR, a girl behind me asked me how to register on the computer because she was a freshman and did not know how, I was very surprised. In the tiny town in AR, they don't see so many Asian American, so she might have known from the way I look that I might have not spoken English well , but she didn't seem to care and kept talking to me. I was kind of impressed because I would not do the same thing to a foreign people(especially about something very important ) . I thought I want to be like her. I mean I want to be open like her no matter where I am .I thought" I don't want to judge people from the way they look" However shyness is our race's (Japanese) characteristic,and I think this is something you need to understand. By the way I also enjoy internet. I have many friends from all over the world , we used to write often but these days, we talk on the internet , I think this is very interesting (and cheap!!). I get lots of information through it, and I guess world is becoming much smaller because of it.

Thanks to your article, I realised to use mail or internet with many people on global.

I think the reason that JAPANESE are tend to be shy, compare to AMRERICAN, is feather of country. AMERICA has many imigrant, so you need to show you are not enemy. BUT japan is a only island.We don't have need to show it,so we need to know eachoter. this is a story of old time. It doesn't apply to presented JAPAN ,though. BUT the young try to use a computer to know each other. As for my unversity, I often catch the eye many people to use computer with all kind of people.

about communication you mentioned, i agree with you. but more younger people are very positive and they can get along well with strangers without help of others. The problem is that they mostly like to act in group for everything. and if there is anyone who wants to say "no" or "but, i think..." he/she is considered heresy. i experienced that and still am experiencing at my office.

I am 56 years old woman. I have started internet communication 5yars ago with my American friend who worked at Silicon valley in CA then. It was very interesting because I could show myself easely more than on the phone. I wanted to have more internet friends. So, I asked him to run my ad at Webpersonals. Because my old computer was diffucult access to the http:www. I could get more than 30 men(Wow!) around the world at my age. Now I enjoy good relationship with Yutah University professor. My English ability is only junior high school level, but I can enjoy good communication with internet friend.

I'm japanese 15 girl. I just read Asahi news paper. I am exchanging e-mail with my brother, Italian boy and Australian girl. My brother lives in Minnesota, America now. and I've never seen Italian boy and Australian girl. I searched their messages in internet. Exchange e-mail is very fun and I learned many things.English, Culture....... I am interesting in international comunication, too. and I want to go to America someday. I've been to go to Italy and Singapore. I am study English and French because I want to know much more about world.

I just started my internet in this month. So it was really timely for me to read your article. After using internet for a month, I wondered how many people would send mails to those unknown? This is my first letter to someone unknown!! Asahi is a great match maker I can trust. If I am a Dicaplio fan, I might send my mails to another and make friends with her. Common hobby or collection, it is very useful and you can exchange valuable information. I opened the penpal site several times, but I could not go anywhere.

I think America is 10 years ahead of us about using inteernet. I sent mails to my friend in U.S., her mother(maybe 50's or 60's) soon responded to me. In Japan, most of my parents' age never touch key board. some word processor at best. She asked me to open www site to receive digital post card or download some programs (ICQ?) to talk on time. I am just a beginner. It is very difficult. It takes much time to go anywhere. When I was in the U,S., there were not any computer and even when I was working, we only had word processors. So my English vocabulary lacks those new cyber terms.

I have also the same opinion as you about the behavior to a stranger. I met a forigner at the entrance of super market today, naturally we smile to each other. After coming back to Japan(long long ago, though), I think that I am a HENNA Japanese. When we pass each other at a hall way, a sidewalk or just a road, I do not know what to do. I cannot help smiling to those strangers. If you are a Japanese, you do not make any eye contact.

When I was a junior high school student, I got my first American penpal. I sent my letter and waited for weeks. He introduced me his favorite rock group called Aerosmith which I had never heard of. I went to the record shop and bought LP. It was somehow noisy and hard, but good. (This week, US hit chart Aerosmith ranks #1) NATSUKASIIWA. Times have changeed. When my daughters grow teenagers, they will be able to make friiends in seconds. Will they need English? Machine will translate more smoothly.

I agree with you on the comments that it is difficult for Japanese to talk with each other if they don't know each other. I have been living in US for two years and just came back to Japan last month. I really feel this difference. When I was in the states I could easily talk with a person who happened to sit next to me on the plane, train, and other situations, including in a queue at the supermarket. Here in Japan, we seldom do so. The reason is probably due to the difference of what is called "common sense" in the society of each country. There are lot of Japanese people who is very friendly and could talk with each other just like Americans, but those people are just an exception nowadays in Japanese society. As for myself, just after I came back here I tried to talk with strangers in those situations stated above, but in vain. People are generally unfriendly and I stopped doing so. Now I am also a common Japanese.

As for the internet, Japanese are pretty good at this, because Japanese basically hate to talk face to face, or in other words, prefer to talk on the phone or through other methods. When I came back here I realized that when I talk with other people, they don't see my face. One of the reason for this is that we usually don't communicate with "gestures", but with only words. So, the internet or e-mail system is one of the best way for us Japanese. In fact, I am exchanging e-mails with persons whom I have never met. Also, the "chat room" or something like that is very common.

I have studied English for 10 years, 3years in junior high school, 3years in high school, 4years in college. My speaking skill in English isn't fluent although my major in college was English literature.

Internet is so useful for me, but I don' t know it in detail. Sometimes I visited the sites, but I always use E-mail to communicate with my friends. I think children some years ago didn't have many chance to use computers compared with them in US. When I was a student in public high school I never used a computer. Even when I was a senior in college, I came to use it... Now in Japan, some elementary scools also let students used computers and they enjoy using them. I'm 24 years now. My friends and I used computers especially to send a e-mail and office work, but we don't use them effectively, because we don't know about them in detail.

I want to speak English to foreigners. Of course I'm afraid whether my English can convey to them or not. Sometimes I use English at my workplace, sometimes they can't understand my English. You know, Japanese tend to hesitate to say their opinion. Ordinally junior high school students come not to say their opinion in their class. I think since then Japanese students tend not to do so...

I also think American can speak stranger frankly compared with Japanese. I worked at the airport, and I feel it more there. American talk to us so friendly we talked each other common things, weather, bookings, and so on...

I am a software engineer. The time I started internet was two years ago. I think it's rather late as my occupation. It gave me the opportunity to start internet that my company cooperated with an Israeli company in developing an image processing board. I had to communicate Israeli engineers in English by email. There is a time different of 6 or 8 hours between us. I recognized the advantage of email. And, I enjoyed net-surfing behind my boss's back. I like especially visiting sites of my favorite actor In Hollywood. It's fun.

I managed to get my own computer two months ago. And my father also bought a computer just after he used the computer at my apartment. He visited some sites about fishing, which is one of his hobbies, then. He hadn't been familiar to using a computer before. But now, he enjoys emailing and net-surffing very much every day. We always change emails. I think an opportunity necessary to start internet for Japanese people.

I am also interesting about talking with many people in this world by using E-mail. I wonder how you can start E-mail with people from many countries you did not know.If you have information about that,if there are something network or homepage ,could you let me konw.I want have E-mail friends from many countries.

I think E-mail is very convinience.　Because this is faster,easier, cheaper than letter.Another point,this is confortable to Japanese,because as you know we are shy. I will not talk like now if I am face to face. This is not talking however I can feel like talking by using E-mail.

I HAVE BEEN USING E-MAIL AT HOME FOR 2 MONTHS AS MY COMMUNICATION TOOL. UNFORTUNATELY, I DID NOT HAVE OPPORTUNITY TO TALK TO FOREINERS WHOM I DO NOT KNOW AT ALL.

AS YOU WROTE DOWN, IT IS DIFFICULT FOR JAPANESE PEOPLE TO COMMUNICATE WITH SOMEONE IN ENGLISH, BECAUSE WE ARE AFRAID TO MISTAKE. I KNOW IT IS NONSENCE! I HAVE STAYED IN U.S.A. FOR 10 MONTHS, HOWEVER, I AM AFRAID TO SPEAK OUT NOW. I REALIZE I AM A TYPICAL JAPANESE.

WHEN I TALKED TO FOREINERS, I AM INTERESED IN THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN US. FOR EXAMPLE, WHEN SOMEONE ASK, ' WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO DRINK?' , WHAT WOULD YOU SAY? I SUPPOSE MOST JAPANESE PERSONS SAY 'ANYTING IS OK.'. ON THE OTHER HAND, MOST AMERICAN SAY LIKE , 'CAN I HAVE A COKE? OR I WOULD LIKE A COKE.' IT SEEMS THAT WE DO NOT TALK OURSELVES TO THE OTHERS.

I am 16yrs. old, going to the senior high school in Chiba. I have gone to USA since I was 9 and came back when I was 13.

When I read your article, I just felt the same way that Japanese people feel awkward for writing in English and talking to the foreign people. Since I got the great experience in USA, when I see foreign people in stations and other places, there is a feeling inside of me that makes me want to speak ENGLISH! Today, for first time in my life, I talked to the people that I don`t know over the Internet. ( What I meant was chatting.) It was Japanese people, but later in my life, I want to talk to the other people in other countries. I write to many of the friends in America over E-mail, but I just really want to chat! I hope that many of the Japanese people will try to communicate with many people of the other countries.

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