Q2: Who was Percival Lowell? When and why did he come to be in Japan? What were some of his views on Japan and its relationship to the West as expressed in The Soul of the Far East? How can Paik and Day’s criticism of Lost in Translation be seen as an indictment of director Sophia Coppola for exhibiting views of Japan that are similar to Lowell’s. Do you agree with their criticisms of this film? Explain why or why not.
- Soul of the Far East, Chapter One: “Individuality,” by Percival Lowell (Reading Packet Pt. 1, pp. 19-31).
- “Messages from Mars” by Christopher Benfey (Reading Packet Pt. 1, pp. 32-49).
- “Totally Lost in Translation,” by Kiku Day (Reading Packet, Pt. 1, pp. 50-51),
- “Is Lost in Translation Racist?” by E. Koohan Paik (Reading Packet, Pt. 1, pp. 52-58).
Percival Lowell was an interpreter of Japanese culture and society during the 19th century. Coming from a wealthy family, Lowell strongly believed that Japan reached a limit for its cultural evolution because there is not enough individuality in the society. He believed that Japan has stopped developing due to the lack of individuality. He also focused on the otherness of Japan in his writings using words, such as “reversed” and “stranger” to describe Japan. (Lowell, 19) He was one of the first pioneers to explore Japan, the mysterious Asia, and thus his book about Japan was very popular at the time. Moreover, arguments and observations he made in his book inspired many people.
Especially in one of his books, “The Soul of the Far East,” Lowell stated what the Westerners would consider as normal, Japanese would “observe in a diametrically opposite manner.” (Lowell, 19) However, some of his arguments were exaggerated because he acknowledged that people want to read about how different Japan is from other countries. For an example, Lowell wrote that Japanese people have strange point of view because of a “cat-like obliqueness of their eyes.” (Lowell, 19) He proposed an irrational argument by saying how Japanese people have slanted point of view because they have slanted eyes. He emphasized the otherness of Japan by accentuating the fact that “these people are human beings; with all their eccentricities they are men.” It is ironical because he is stating the obvious. Lowell also inferred that “Japanese ways look odd at first sight, they but look more odd on closer acquaintance” because they do things differently. (Lowell, 21) For example, they take off their shoes instead of taking off their hats before they enter the house. Lowell also referred Japanese to “mirth-provoking mirror” because they are so different from the Westerners that it makes them laugh. (Lowell, 20)
Furthermore, there are several evidences that indicate Lowell’s negative view on Japan. For instance, he wrote “For the Japanese civilization in the sense of not being savagery is the equal of our own. It is not in the polish that the real difference lies; it is in the substance polished.” (Lowell, 21) He meant how equally one polished two crystals; one will be shiner than the other. Here, the shiner one is being referred to the Westerners while the less shiner one is being referred to the Japanese.
Not only he was an interpreter, Lowell was also an astronomer, having a great interest in Mars. He was convinced that there is life on Mars. In addition, Lowell believed in Darwinism, which is also reflected on his writing when he refers Japanese to “the survival of the unfittest.” (Lowell, 22) Lowell argued that there are links between Japan and Mars.
First of all, Japan and Mars share a Darwinian connection. Lowell argued that living species on both Mars and Japan are in danger of extinction because they are “the survival of the unfittest” according to Darwinism. Lowell believed that Mars is “relatively more advanced in his evolutionary career” than Earth. (Lowell, 37)
Additionally, Lowell expressed his desire to travel to a remote place, such as Japan and Mars. He also admired Columbus and how he “led the more daring of the Aryans to quit the shade of their beech trees… and wander into Central Asia.” (Lowell, 37)
Finally, Lowell believed that an astronomer should be a “high priest” and “hardy pilgrim” who should travel to “distant” by himself in order to find “elevated shrines.” (Lowell, 37) Mars and Japan are both distant, and they were both unrevealed to the world which would make him a great pioneer. (Lowell, 37)
In addition, Sophia Coppola, the director of “Lost in Translation”, is considered to exhibit similar view on Japan as Percival Lowell for a couple of reasons. First of all, Coppola also emphasized how strange Japan looks from a foreigner’s point of view. “Lost in Translation” is about the two strangers from America, Bob and Charlotte, who meet up in Tokyo coincidentally and become close friends. However, some critics called the movie, “Lost in Translation” as racism because all the Japanese characters were portrayed as “one-dimensional” even though the movie was about Japan. (Day, 50) Day also claimed that “the longest vocal contribution any Japanese character makes is at a karaoke party, singing a few lines of the Sex Pistols’ God Save the Queen.” (Day, 50)
Sophia Coppola and Lowell also created a stereotypical image of Japan by depicting Japan as something “other” and something strange that they are not familiar with. For instance, Paik argued “when westerners ape the Rolling Stones, it’s normal; but when Asian kids fall prey to the same media hype, they’re pathetic wannabes.” Despite the genre of the movie, “Lost in Translation” should be considered racist because the “hilarity is rooted entirely in the otherness of the Japanese people.” (Paik, 52) Paik agreed with Day that all the Japanese characters were “represented with cardboard depth,” and that the film “depicts only those of European descent as multi-faceted human beings.” (Paik, 53) Paik also emphasized how arrogant the film is because there is “not a single attempt made by Bob or Charlotte to communicate in Japanese.” (Paik, 55)
I understand that the film is about the emptiness of the two American characters feel at a strange place called, Japan. However, I believe that the film should have had at least one multi-dimensional Japanese character because the characters are in Japan. It is impossible to say that one fully understands Japanese culture without having at least a little knowledge about its language. I believe that it is the same way with this film. Coppola should have put at least one multi-dimensional Japanese character in the movie to show at least some kind of respect to the country. If one were to film a movie about a country, one should at least acknowledge its culture in a proper way. However, Coppola refused to explain any cultural aspects of Japan and dehumanized all the Japanese characters in the movie.
Lowell and Coppola both emphasized the otherness of Japan from a foreigner’s point of view. Lowell claimed that Japan and America are “equal but opposite” because Japanese people do everything backwards. The critics argued that Coppola’s film is racism because it is focused too much on otherness of Japan. The film contained no multi-dimensional Japanese character, and the two main characters, Bob and Charlotte, did not even try to communicate with the Japanese in the film. I also think the director should have put at least one multi-dimensional Japanese character in the movie instead of totally ignoring the culture and the country.
Yuhyun Kim 