eting orthodox Jews, avoid body contact with the opposite sex.
3.2.2 Signs of affection
Sheree Bykofsky, an American writer, is thrilled when a cruise ship line purchases copies of her hew romantic travel guide, the best place to kiss in and around New York City. The cruise line plans to give the books as dinner favors during their special valentine’s cruise.
They invite Sheree on board to greet the passengers and autograph their copies. The Americans and Europeans delight in meeting the author and having her sign their books. However, when Sheree visits the tables of the Japanese passengers, most of them refuse to acknowledge her.
Japanese people do not approve of public body contact and, thus, have developed a complex system of bowing to express relationships. Touching a member of the opposite sex is particularly repugnant to their sensitivities; consequently, kissing in public is considered a disgraceful act.
The Japanese snubbed Sheree because the title of her book suggested behavior that did not conform to their standards of respect. They would not acknowledge her because, in their eyes, she promoted vulgarity.
Asians from countries other than Japan are equally disapproving when they see American men and women or two men to walk in public holding hands. However, when they practice this sign of friendship in the states, they are frequently mistaken for homosexuals. This shocks them.
Same-sex hand holding or walking arm-in-arm also occurs among Latinos, French, Span英语论文网 【http://www.51lunwen.org】ish, Italians, Greeks, and middle easterners.
◆ Most Japanese people strongly disapprove of public expression of affection by males and females through kissing or any other form of body contact.
◆ Same-sex hand holding between Asians, middle-easterners, Latinos, or those from Mediterranean countries is a sign of friendship. Walking with arms on each other’s shoulders or with hands or arms linked also equates with camaraderie.
3.2.3 Physical contact
When Dorothy receives a wedding invitation to attend her Japanese neighbor’s wedding, she is thrilled. She has always admired the Yamashita family. She is very fond of lance, the about-to-be-married son, and feels extremely close to Grace, his mother. Dorothy feels honored to be included in the family festivities.
After the beautiful church ceremony, Dorothy stands in line to greet the bridal party. However, when Dorothy, a very affectionate person, steps forward to embrace the mother of the groom, Grace steps backward.
Dorothy feels rejected.
Even at such a joyous occasion as a wedding, Japanese customs about physical contact in public are not relaxed, even when taking place between the same sex. Truly, more formality is demonstrated in such situations. Consider the extreme reserve displayed at the 1993 royal wedding of crown prince Naruhito to Massako Owada. The physical acts of the royal couple consisted only of sipping sacred sake and making bows—no touching, no hugging, no kissing between the couple, certainly none
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