Survey : which of these statements/opinions have you heard in Japan ?

[DoctorP]

For those of you who live in Japan, I suggest that you print this poll and ask your Japanese friends which statements they agree or disagree with, and which ones they have heard from other Japanese people. I am sure this is an excellent way of getting to know them better.

Are you being serious? For someone who became quite irritated with mundane questions I think that you would realize this may indeed prevent you from making friends.

[Maciamo]

Are you being serious? For someone who became quite irritated with mundane questions I think that you would realize this may indeed prevent you from making friends.

Mundane ? That's a kind of survey. I did ask such things to my students, although not all the same day, but little by little.

You have to try to be tactful when asking. For instance, to get people to say whether they think that "Chinese people are indoctrinated since their childhood", it is better to raise the topic of the tense relations between Japan and China, the Yasukuni and textbook protests, and ask them why they think that so many Chinese are angry at Japan. It works wonders.

I heard a lot "English grammar is more similar to Chinese than Japanese" while teaching English and discussing the differences between the languages I know. Of course, if you are not a language teacher or not much into linguistics, your chances of hearing that comment is pretty low.

Btw, my wife says that she has heard almost all of them. With people you know well, you can just give them the list and ask directly which one they have heard (or said/thought).