Chapter 3
Spotlight on Japan

Performance Objectives
Students will be able to:

• give specific examples of the importance of presentation and aesthetics in Japanese culture.

• investigate how presentation affects their own lives

• observe and make notes about how people behave in different situations

• contrast aesthetics of Japanese culture with aesthetics of other cultures

Procedures:
Working in pairs, students will have 6-8 minutes to describe their eating behavior in the following situation.

You have returned home from school and dinner awaits in the family kitchen. Dinner is served at a table in large serving dishes and platters. The table is set with a chair, plate, silverware and napkin. The serving dishes are passed and everyone serves himself. Conversation about the day's events are exchanged.

Show slides of a Japanese meal. (see travel or cooking magazine for photos on this topic) Look at examples of kaiseki (traditional Japanese meal)

• What is the difference in atmosphere at the two meals?

• What observations can be drawn from each setting?

• If you were served the Japanese meal what is the first thing you would do?

• How does the presentation differ in each setting?

• Briefly define aesthetic.

• Would your regular eating behavior change if you were presented with meals served in this way?

Show slides of food presentation in Japan.
(See travel or cooking magazine for photos on this topic )

• If you were shopping in a supermarket and food was presented in this way, would you be more or less tempted to buy? Explain.

• How is this presentation different from the way food is presented in your market?

• What might the difference in presentation say about each culture?

We see this aesthetic sense not only in the Japanese presentation of food. It is in the way Japanese approach nature.

Show slides of Japanese gardens. (See gardening book) Give students two minutes to jot down all the things that strike them as "special". After two minutes, elicit what they have observed.

• In what way is this garden similar to or different from a park near where you live?

• What is the appeal of the Japanese garden?

• In what way is the aesthetic of the presentation of food and garden similar?

Show other pictures of Japanese food and gardens. Ask students to observe and write down other examples of the Japanese aesthetic sense.

Application
Organize students into triads. From what they have seen today and what they know about Japan's geography, religion and values, ask each group to develop a hypothesis for the development of Japan's unique aesthetic sense.

Sample Writing Topics Suggested by Lesson

• A holiday feast vs. dinner in the microwave.

• Dirt encourages more dirt, cleanliness more cleanliness.

• An incident where dressing in special clothes has affected your behavior.

• Order breeds serenity.

• Go to the school cafeteria. Take extensive notes about the way five people are eating. Can you come to any conclusions about eating habits of American high school students?

• Describe a place you like that has been loved and attended. Contrast this place with its opposite. Describe the feeling each place gives you. Use images of the senses in your description.

• Think of something small that can present your world. Explain.