Over the years there have been many discussions about the influence that music, movies, games and other media can have on people. There are several controversial expressions that some hate to hear like “gaming makes a person violent”, “pornography ruins marriages” and many others.
It is obvious that playing or watching violent movies will not turn a person into a serial killer, and many who play action games hate anything real violence related. But the subject I want to address is exactly the fact that yes! The things that people do and enjoy influence and are also reflections of people's personalities and cultures.
We can start by citing that people are easily influenced by each other. What drives someone to use drugs or smoke? In most young people it is the influence of some friend. The environment in which we live shapes us in a certain way, it is obvious that what we watch and hear has a great influence on this mold.
The simple fact that a person denies or does not accept that they are being influenced by something is already proof that they have been influenced by something. I am influenced by my lifestyle and do not deny it. Watching anime led me to pursue a career related to Japan and created the desire to learn Japanese and more about the country's culture. The lifestyle I was raised in made me not like most of the things that people enjoy nowadays.
How do people try to deny that the things they do have no bearing on their personalities? We live in a generation where people follow each other and where no one accepts different opinions from each other. Not to mention how much people have idolized celebrities, singers and other random things.
Table of Content
A cultural contrast between Brazil and Japan
On one side, we have Japan, a country that is quite open and closed at the same time. There is social pressure to be collective and to always think of others, but at the same time, people live their lives individually.
At the same time, while the Japanese care little about what others do or wear, those who try to break certain norms end up being hammered down.
On the other side is Brazil, a country where people are apparently warm and friendly, but at the same time enjoy meddling in the lives of others. While the Japanese try to avoid disagreement as much as possible, Brazilians do everything to be right and usually do not listen to opposing opinions. Unfortunately, a portion of Brazilians are viewed as corrupt, egotistical, and wrongdoers.
Both countries have their problems, but Japan is one of the safest countries in the world while Brazil, a country with the potential to beat the US, is dominated by violence, corruption and poverty. Many Brazilians blame the rulers, but the truth is that the lifestyle and culture of Brazilians brought this result.
cultural contrasts
Both countries have media filled with violence and immorality, which are popular with most people. Some cultural aspects influence the creation of this media that also influences the rest of the population. Below we can cite some cultural contrasts that can affect the influence of people and the media:
Responsive Table: Scroll the table to the side with your finger >>
| Brazil | Japan |
| No shame or shyness. | There is a lot of shame and shyness. |
| They do things without thinking. | Think about how your choices might affect others. |
| Always look for the easiest and fastest way. | Try to do things as ordered. |
| It doesn't care what others think. | They strive to gain the approval of others. |
| Uses a language full of sexual connotation. | Use a formal, polite, and humble language. |
| He loves bullshit, arguments and controversies. | Avoid disagreeing, criticizing and getting into polemics. |
| Seek only the things you want. | Seek knowledge, research. |
| Education? That it? | Rigid education and upbringing. |
Probably someone will want to comment “but I'm not like that”. All human beings are different, understand that when I quote something referring to a country you must keep in mind that this is relative. Several people from both countries can do the opposite of each other.
Let's see how these things are exposed in Brazilian culture and media and how this has caused catastrophic results in our country.
Does culture influence the media?
Brazilian soap operas usually show the sad reality of our society. Things like betrayals, theft, corruption and sex are portrayed naturally as if they were normal. Japanese dramas usually have their plots, but things usually end well, a happy fantasy where good prevails. Shyness makes Japanese relationships so innocent that sometimes some dramas end without even a kiss.
Popular songs in Japan often have elaborate, philosophical lyrics that look like poems. In Brazil, popular songs tend to have repetitive lyrics and rhythms that make an apology for drugs, sex and violence. Despite defending these styles, the songs don't bring any reflection and present negative things as being nice things.
We are not saying that there are no media contrary to those mentioned here; when it comes to this, there are millions of genres in both countries. We are only talking about what is most popular in each country.
For most Brazilians and Japanese, the lifestyle and popular media of their country is something ridiculous. Both also find the lifestyle and media of the other country ridiculous. There is a great diversity of tastes in both countries, however, there is the famous herd mentality.
If you're like me and you follow the reviews of gaming sites you'll see a lot of haters of Nintendo which is quite popular in Japan. Most Brazilians find Nintendo games childish and colorful, here realistic action games and FPS are much more popular, especially among children (even though the game is prohibited for minors).
The media in Japan is dominated by fantasy and cute things aimed at leading a positive life. The media in Brazil is dominated by the reality that people do not fight to change, but rather embrace with love. Don't think that the media in Japan is innocent; like most media around the world, it is dominated by fanservice.
The media influencing people's attitude
People are easily carried away by each other. We can see this in trends and even in celebrities who are successful at a given time and then gradually disappear and are largely forgotten. Some end up idolizing and being dependent on a certain media or person.
Have I become a violent person by my lifestyle? Ask yourself: If someone does something bad to you, what do you do? Do you feel like fighting with this person or let it go? Choices will vary greatly depending on the person's age, nationality and lifestyle. This is the cultural reflection and creation of the person.
The most practical way to end something wrong is to eliminate that thing. Other countries try to show through the media that certain things are wrong, but it seems that the Brazilian media has been showing the wrong things as the correct or the best choices. In the same way our country has sustained poverty rather than ending it.
I understand how people are easily swayed by false information and generalized news, and some even carry this external opinion strongly to the grave. Now there are people who do not accept that things influence them? Human beings are easily manipulated by TV, the internet, games, religion, government, family, and especially by their own self or desires.
Just as I don't like certain things because I haven't been exposed to them during my life, most people like what is considered wrong for the simple fact that they are exposed to it or because it is considered something common and normal. Some people are very open about things, while others end up not understanding or wanting to know them.
Our world is a total disgrace and it gets worse and worse, at some point in history the lifestyle people lead caused this. The world has always been at war, with violence and misfortune, but we have reached astronomical proportions. Even if the effect of this is small, the world is still a reflection of our lives and choices.