| Description |
1 online resource (xiii, 253 pages) |
| Contents |
A song in praise of Japan -- Scent of a lagoon. Paris -- the 13th district -- Goddess in Beethoven Square -- Scent of a lagoon -- Preservation -- Sounds in town -- A beggar in Rome -- Porta Rossa -- Mist in Venezia -- Lodging in Asolo -- "Beijing coffee cantata" -- Peking duck, bearing a grudge -- Shanghai rhapsody -- Mi amore toilette -- Meet again -- A clock in Vienna -- Summer in Verona -- La Casa -- "The opportunity makes the thief" -- Marco in Feltre -- Battle of wits!? Trouble with transit -- Battle of wits!? -- Today's students -- the three apparitions -- All quiet on the employment front -- Were Titanic to sink today -- Break away from the front -- Students disposition: changes during 15 years -- "Bolero" -- Ann's wedding -- Bigi-of-Hiroshima Konami, Koro -- Cuccha's view -- Aberdeen -- In Singapore -- Tiananmen -- 1989 -- A visit to the ganges -- Sketches of Bangkok -- Syndrome academia -- digestive organs disease -- Syndrome academia -- circulatory organs disease -- Syndrome academia -- respiratory organs disease -- Syndrome academia -- senile brain disease -- More than just ... More than just "Coffee, tea or me" -- "Babette's feast" -- Toronto, Saigon -- Puccini -- Viva [i18n]!? -- Ram ramamoorthy -- The "SmithsoniSAUR" -- Topknot net -- An account of a Spanish adventure -- 1997 -- Tatemae -- the art of lying -- "Cavalleria Rusticana" -- Toilet fantasies -- Democracy vs. Minshu-Shugi -- "Offering my life to you" -- "A room with a view" -- "Kimiga-yo" -- 1999 -- And after 50 years -- Grumbles by Socrates -- "Ode to heavenly joy" -- A little white house in Cape Cod -- Pierrot Requiem |
| Summary |
This book is a collection of true-to-life essays which offers the reader various ways to view the socio-cultural state of the modern world as seen through the eyes of the author - a somewhat cynical but ethical Japanese professor. Through journeys in various cultures, these stories break numerous stereotypes, from the failure of higher education in Japan to the mysteries of using various types of toilets in Mediterranean Europe. The author narrates brief encounters with all aspects of society, from radical students to conservative academicians, from old-style street merchants to modern business people, from government agencies to independent artists. These stories also include lessons which, the author believes, people and society as a whole can and should learn from such encounters. The episodes highlight what is rapidly being lost across cultures in an era of globalization and the shrinking number of differences that once made every culture independent of the others. The book will captivate those who enjoy seeing another's view of the world, observing many unique 'windows' from which to view global change on a personal level. Also of interest will be the cynical but ethical assessment of the future of Japanese universities which have lost their educational principles at this critical time of survival, and the approaching IT society |
| Notes |
English |
|
Print version record |
| Subject |
Civilization, Modern -- 1950- -- Anecdotes
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Comparative civilization -- Anecdotes
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HISTORY -- Modern.
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Civilization, Modern
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Comparative civilization
|
| Genre/Form |
Anecdotes
|
| Form |
Electronic book
|
| ISBN |
9789812777690 |
|
9812777695 |
|
9789810249168 |
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9810249160 |
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