The UK and Japan:　Similarities and Differences

Minato UNESCO Salon for SDGs
The UK and Japan:　Similarities and Differences
Instructor: Sarah Emily Harrison

Date: Wednesday, September 21, 2022, 18:30~
Venue: Minato City Life-long Learning Center, #305

By recommendation of Mr. Tanabe, President of MUA, Sarah-san took part in the Japanese Speech Contest last December (2022).  Her speech was so impressive that the MUA members wanted to hear what she has to say.

　Introduction: “Japan　and the UK both have long and rich histories and share the same geographical feature as island nations.  However, there are also many differences.  By focusing on food, architecture and education, I’d like to compare differences and explore the reasons behind them.”

（1）Food: “Fish and chips” and “roast beef” are two of the most famous
　　British dishes. Others include “Sunday roast,” “full English breakfast,”
　　“bangers and mash,” “pastie” and “steak and kidney pie.”  Summer in
　　Britain is “mild and dry”, while that of Japan is “hot and humid”, which
　　is an ideal environment for the growth of healthy, edible bacteria. 　　
　　Britain is on 55.3 degrees latitude, and Japan on 36.2 degrees atitude. 
　　This geographical disparity and different summer temperatures have
　　shaped our farming techniques and contributed to a difference in
　　diet.

●Staple Food: Potatoes, bread and pastry in Britain.  Rice in Japan.
●Fermented Food: Beer, bread and blue cheese are among the few fermented foods in Britain. 
Japan boasts a variety of fermented food such as soy sauce, miso and Japanese pickles.
●Fish is rarely eaten in Britain.  Why is “fish and chips” the only famous fish dish in the UK?
　１．“Henry VII and Beef Eaters”          : Henry VII, a king of England in the late 1400’s, let his guards eat “beef as much
　　　as they liked” after the Sunday church service.  Royal Guards were widely known as Beef Eaters, and “Roast Beef
　　　on Sunday” has thus become a tradition.
　２．“Henry VIII’s break with the Catholic Church”:  In the 1500’s, England broke with Rome and became Protestant. 
　　　 Since Catholic believers used to eat “fish” every Friday and the catholic symbol was fish, fish were regarded as
　　　“too catholic” and historically avoided.
　３．England has the North Sea and other fertile fishing grounds.  However, due to the demand for its high quality fish
　　　across Europe, it is more profitable to export the fish rather than keep them in the domestic market.   Exporting
　　　quality fish to France and Spain is a good way to gain foreign currency.

　Why is it that traditional Japanese cooking use more fish and less meat?  Popular belief was that
　１．If you eat animals who help with farming, it is as if you are killing your labor force.
　２．Buddhism was introduced to Japan, which teaches that humans may be reincarnated into animals.  By eating
　　　animals, you may accidentally eat your own ancestors!  The principle of Buddhism, which respects all living things,
　　　has contributed significantly to Japanese culture.  Eating meat was prohibited for about 1,000 years, starting from
　　　675, the year of Emperor Tenmu, all the way to the Meiji Era.  If you ate goat, wolf, hare, raccoon dog, pig, deer or
　　　cow, you had to show repentance before offering a prayer at the shrine.

　While differences in food are largely caused by climatic conditions, philosophy and religion have also played a significant role.  Let us look into differences in the sense of beauty.

（2）Architecture: Canterbury Cathedral, Buckingham Palace and St. Paul’s Cathedral are some of the most famous buildings in the UK.  Durham Cathedral in the town where I went to university, the residence of the Lyme Park, and Manchester Town Hall are some examples from my personal life.

　Japan: Building materials are chosen in consideration of seismic effects, and wooden houses are suitable for humid weather.  Roofs are shaped to provide shelter from the rain.

●Colour: In Japan, shrines are often painted bright red (as we can see from Sensoji and Itsukushima Shrine). This is
　because the colour red is believed to drive away evil spirits.  However, in the UK, red is negatively associated with hell
　and satan.  Buildings usually use natural stone colours.
●Height: Britain/ In Christian teaching, God exists above us in a high, transcendent position.  Therefore, the higher the
　tower, the stronger the power of the church.  Japan/ The basic belief of Shinto is that spirits inhabit nature and all
　earthly creatures.  In Buddhism, Buddha Amidas and Boddhisatvas do not exist in a different realm, but here in the
　same realm as us.  Since climbing up to paradise in heaven is not the believers’ goal, temples and shrines don’t have to
　be tall.
●Light: Britain/ A lot of light comes in through the large, elongated windows.  Light represents heaven and divine
　knowledge.   Japan/ A window at Meigetsu-in Temple is aimed at showing the scenery.  While appreciating what
　nature has to offer in each season, visitors are inspired to think about Buddhist concepts such as impermanence and
　change.
●Size, form and design: Britain/ Architects strive for grandeur, symmetry and perfection, taking over design ideas of
　ancient Greeks.  In other words, they have strong interest in mathematics.  “Architecture should have logically perfect
　symmetry and proportions.”  They identify perfection with God, and architecture was one of the ways to get closer to
　paradise.  St. Paul’s Cathedral and British Museum are good examples.  Japan/ Japanese architects also value
　symmetry.  But they attach higher value to humbleness, and avoid perfection and grandeur according to Buddhist
　teaching.  The most important design ideas are Wabi and Sabi.  Imperfection is something not only acceptable, but
　desirable.
●Sense of beauty displayed in garden design: Britain/ During the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, geometrically-designed
　symmetric gardens became popular.  This implies the desire to transcend nature.   Japan/ Since gardens were meant to
　copy nature in the beginning, they were designed asymmetrically.  Plants, sand and rocks were arranged to symbolize
　something sacred and pure, thereby inviting the gods.  They also represent “nothingness” and “passing of time”.

　In the Meiji period, Japan imported many things including railroads and the political system from the UK.  After World War II, however, the country was largely influenced by the United States.  One example is the education system.

（3）Education system: Britain/ Secondary School (5 years) is followed by Sixth Form (for pupils ages 16 to 18), where
　　students choose four subjects.  (Sarah-san took up literature, history, philosophy and theology.)  “Early specialization
　　could help students to prepare for university.  On the other hand, students may regret the loss of the subjects they
　　did not choose.”  The United States/ Middle or junior school for pupils ages 11-14, high school for those ages 15-
　　18.  Britain and Japan share one thing in common: “school uniform”.

●Obtaining a bachelor’s degree: Britain/ 3 years.  If you fail the exam, you cannot take a makeup examination.  Japan and
　the US/ 4 years.  Even if you fail a class, you may repeat the year.
●University education system: Britain/ Study only the specialist subject from the first year.  Japan and the US/ Can study
　other fields for two years.  Sarah-san was happy as she could study not only philosophy but history, sociology and
　Japanese language as well while she was at university in Japan.
●University tuition for one year: Britain/ All universities are state-run, with the upper limit set at £9,000 (\1,470,000).  All
　British students apply for the government loan that covers academic fees and living expenses.  The loan has an
　advantage: its repayment scheme is determined according to income.  The U.S/ Harvard University (private) $54,000
　(\7,270,000), University of California, Berkeley (national) ($44,000) ($14,000 for local residents).  Japan/ Keio University
　(private) (\980,000), The University of Tokyo (national) (\530,000).

　Conclusion: “I have explained differences of the UK and Japan by focusing on food, sense of beauty and education system.  By referring to specific examples, I have investigated the reasons for these cultural differences and found that some of them were caused by factors of “climate”, as well as “philosophy and religion”.  In this globalizing world, the philosophical ideas of our countries seem to increasingly  resemble each other.  On top of that, the number of religious believers is declining.  Will our culture also reflect these trends in the future?”

(Written by Kobayashi Takayuki, Vice President.  Translated by Miyashita Yukari, Standing Director.)