Literary Work Final

Kazuyoshi Morita is a big deal. In Japan, the sixty-six year old comedian has been hosting the television show "Waratte Iitomo!" since 1982. Like many famous individuals he is not known by his given name. Rather, he goes by the screen name Tamori. Interestingly, Moritasan writes "Tamori" in the Japanese katakana script. It is, of course, a Japanese name. Yet, he purposely chose not to write it in the native japanese script. Why would this be? Although I was not able to find a personal explanation as to what this answer could be, a peek back into Japan's history reveals some valuable insight into this decision.

The reason behind Moritasan's choice dates back to the westernization that swept through Japan during the Meiji era (1868-1912). Before this period, Japan had closed its borders to western culture and essentially disconnected itself from the rapid modernization taking place across the globe. When it ended this lengthy divorce, the rapid influx of western culture would serve to develop within Japanese a strong affinity for "all things western". The west became a source of trendiness; it was a rebellion from the older generation's serious, imperialistic philosophy of the past. Katakana, as the source of writing which was created to represent the foreign world, became the literary representation of this idea. With it's sharp, simple characters, katakana stands for everything the detailed, complex Kanji is not: modern, fast, and unburdened by the beliefs of the older-generation.

When Kazuyoshi Morita chose to write his name in katakana he was making a statement: he was famous, and he was cool "now". In learning the history of Japan, the clues that hint toward the origin of his intent arise. Along with this, we can begin to understand how the perception of katakana may influence the future of Japanese culture. This is a country whose decision to create a script for foreign words was symbolic of their intense desire to retain their cultural heritage in the face of outside influence. Sadly, in the end, the seeds of change may have already been sown from within.