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A greeting from Yu-Shan and Akiko! (159K)
Are You Taiwanese? Or Japanese?
Yu-Shan Liu and Akiko
Dogakinai
ISALC, Lewis and Clark College
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Are You Taiwanese? Or Japanese?
Yu-Shan Liu and Akiko
Dogakinai
Taiwan and Japan are both Asian countries and we share the same forefathers, who were from Mongolia. Also, because Japan is the model of fashion in Asia, many Asians want to dress and look like the Japanese. We share the same religion, Buddhism, so we have common ways of thinking about many issues in life. Therefore, the environment, background and culture make Taiwanese and Japanese very similar; our appearance and personalities are almost the same. However, there are still slight differences if you look in detail.
For Taiwanese and Japanese, our average height for female is about 160 cm (5 feet 3 inches), and the average weight is 50 kg (110 pounds). So, basically, our size is not tiny, but relatively small. Also, our girls' breasts are usually small but the hips are big. The body ratio, from the head to the hips and from the hips to the feet for us is 6:4; therefore, our body shape is like a honeybee, which has a low center of gravity. We have round faces, like an upside down egg, but there are more people who are long faced in Japan than in Taiwan. We have eyes with "inside-double fold". One difference between Taiwanese and Japanese is that if Taiwanese do not have such eyes, it is more and more common for people to have plastic surgery in order to get these eyes, and some mothers encourage their children to have surgery as it is a "beauty mark". For Japanese, such surgery is still unusual and if people want to do it, they will do it secretly and conceal the fact. It is also very common for Taiwanese to have protruding front teeth. Taiwanese skin is usually darker, and more yellow, compared to Japanese whose skin is pretty pale. Another thing for Taiwanese and Japanese definition of beauty is to have a pair of curved or arched eyebrows. To shape a sharp or gentle curve, we shave or pluck out unwanted brow hair. Hair is one of the very important keys to show style, too; for Taiwanese, people like to have short, orange hair or deep, wine colored long hair straight. The style of clothes for Taiwanese is more in a cute way: vivid colors and small flowers on the clothes. On the contrary, Japanese are fond of chic colors; many people have dark brown hair and wear dark colored clothes, like black, gray and brown with simple designs. Both Taiwanese and Japanese want to show themselves by the bags they carry, like handbags, shoulder bags and backpacks, and the clothes they wear, and every young woman in both countries tries to look the same; especially Japanese high school girls wear loose socks and Japanese women are well known for their "craze of fancy brand materials", like Prada, Gucci or Chanel.
Generally speaking, Taiwanese and Japanese are both shy and quiet. We do not express our ideas forthrightly; we choose an indirect way, and it often takes a long time to for other to figure out what we mean. As we want to belong to groups, we try to unify ourselves, and this also happens in public systems; we have to wear uniforms, the same kind of hairstyle, even the same school back pack in junior and senior high school. We have been taught by society that we have to be the same. But there is another big difference between us. If someone has a different idea, they would not usually speak out for themselves. If they do, however, people in Taiwan and Japan would react differently. In Taiwan, people would think that they are showing off; however, in such a situation, people in Japan tend to consider the person who gives a different opinion as an adversary and they will become a subject to be attacked or ostracized.
Both Taiwanese and Japanese people are very dependent. We live with our parents even after we get married. We usually do not earn our own money until we finish school, and our parents give us money and support our needs. Somehow, we are immature; the behaviors we exhibit are a little bit childlike sometimes. For example, we do not know how to take care of ourselves. Especially guys would not know how to wash a dish as long as they live with their parents.
There are also other various details in which Taiwanese and Japanese differ. We tend to think that American and European people are better and admire them; many Taiwanese girls even want to marry white men and try to be as pale as they can. Japanese girls also attempt to be like American or European people, but they also adore black people and many youth go to "sunburn salon", where they can get sunburned artificially. Another difference is that Taiwanese are very superstitious, which is why fortunetellers are usually quite rich in Taiwan. Taiwanese often go to a fortuneteller when a new child is born, when they feel depressed, when they get married, or even before they get divorced. As people want to know what will happen in the future, they go to see the fortuneteller eagerly. In Japan, people also like to go to see fortunetellers or read fortunetelling books, but they usually do not take what is said seriously and they listen to them just for fun.
As you can see, Taiwanese and Japanese are quite similar in appearance and personality. Also, our countries are both small Pacific islands and this may cause such similarities. But still, we have different backgrounds and beliefs. Even for us, it is sometimes difficult to tell Taiwanese from Japanese and vice versa; however, if you make Taiwanese and Japanese friends, you will be able to feel the difference.
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