ВОСТОЧНОЕ ОКРУЖНОЕ УПРАВЛЕНИЕ ОБРАЗОВАНИЯ ДЕПАРТАМЕНТА ОБРАЗОВАНИЯ ГОРОДА МОСКВЫ

ГОСУДАРСТВЕННОЕ ОБРАЗОВАТЕЛЬНОЕ УЧРЕЖДЕНИЕ школа №356 им.Н.З.Коляды

________________________________________________________________

PROJECT

East and West: great opposition or the unity of opposites?

Made by:

Ponomaryova Karina, 9B grade

Supervised by:

Olga Peshcherskaya,

Kapitsuna Ekaterina

Moscow, 2017

Contents

I Introduction

1.1. Different cultures in the process of globalization

1. 2. The aim and the tasks of the project

II Main body

1.2.1. Geographical position and the countries’ names

1.2.2. Political structure and monarchs

1.2.3. Cities and towns

1.2.4. Languages

1.2.5. Art

1.2.6. Clothes and fashion

1.2.7. Food and cuisine

1.2.8. About everything in brief

III Practical part

IV Conclusions

I. Introduction

We are too close to the creation of a new united civilization through

globalization. This process is a combination of economic, technological,

sociocultural and political forces. It's a movement of people, goods, capital and

ideas due to increased economic integration. So globalization is likely to be a

hot potato for the twenty-first century .We are real globalists and our project is

an opportunity to get acquainted with cultures of different nations and prove that

all cultures are alike and different at the same time. Having studied different

countries deeply, we can be ready to live everywhere we want and become more

cosmopolitan. Knowledge is real power in unity.

The aim of the project work is to compare two different cultures (Asian and

European) through the comparison of their several aspects and to prove that all

these differences and similarities lead to the process of globalization ( a process

by which the people of the world are unified into a single society and function

together. This process is a combination of economic, technological,

sociocultural and political forces. It's a movement of people, goods, capital and

ideas due to increased economic integration.)

The tasks of the project are :

• Learn more things about Japan and Great Britain in general and let other

people know about them;

• To gather and to analyze the information about these two countries;

• To learn more about their culture, history and traditions;

• To reveal the differences and similarities between these state;

• To make a survey among the pupils in order to find out how much they

know about the countries;

• To prove our hypothesis that there are many similar features in different

cultures which will let them draw closer together;

• Come to several conclusions.

Object of the study: Japan and Great Britain and their several attributes.

Subject of the study: the similarity and some differences between mentality,

national spirit and customs of the two countries.

Our hypothesis: every culture has much in common with other cultures that

can cause the process of globalization but they must keep up their traditions to

save their uniqueness and originality.

The novelty : this cross-disciplinary investigation is on the fringe of several significant science: social studies, geography, history and psychology .

Topicality of this scientific work is concerned with the conflict between the

natural desire of people to be well-informed and lack of knowledge about

these states.

II.Main body

1.2.1. Geographical position

Let’s first start with the comparison of the geographical position of these

countries. Both of them are situated on islands. The UK lies to the north-west of

Europe. This country consists of two huge islands and several smaller ones.

Collectively they are known as the British Isles.

As for Japan, it is an island nation in East Asia, located in the Pacific Ocean,

it lies to the east of the East Asia in Pacific ocean.. The four largest islands are

Honshu, Hokkaido, Kyushu and Shikoku account for 97% of the total area of the

archipelago. Most of the islands are mountainous, there are many volcanoes

which are a constant threat to the country as they cause numerous eruptions and

earthquakes, one of the largest and the most terrible ones took place in 2011.

Thus, such an unusual geographical position defines the national character and

people’s psychology.

Each of these states has several official and unofficial names. The Uk is

commonly called Great Britain and the Foggy Albion.

There are many names of Japan in the English, Japanese, and other

languages. The word "Japan" is used by a large number of languages. The

Japanese names for Japan are Nippon (more official) and Nihon (more casual).

Both these words mean “the sun’s origin” thus Japan is called “the Land of the

rising sun”. There are also Chinese names for the country “Wa” and “Wakoku”

which used to denote a group of people living in the country earlier.

1.2.2. Political structure and monarchs

We have also compared the political structure of these countries. Both these

countries are constitutional monarchies and they are ruled by a monarch. But in

Japan it’s an emperor Akihito and Great and in Great Britain it is Queen

Elizabeth II. The real power of these states belongs to Parliament and Prime

Ministers. So you see how much these countries have in common.

1.2.3. Cities and tows

Let’s compare come well-known cities and towns of the two countries. The

capital of Japan is Tokyo where you can find all wonders of modern

technologies and beautiful scenery.

The capital of the UK is London where there are different styles of

architecture which reflect the spirit of the new and old.

The second point of our travelling is Kyoto- the pearl of the country full of

historic monuments and picturesque places. It’s famous for its temples and the

bamboo forest.

There are a lot of picturesque places in Britain that we can name, but we’ve

chosen Stratford-upon-Avon for its uniqueness and the spirit of history and

Shakespeare. Visit these places, seeing is believing!

1.2.4. Languages

I’d like to draw your attention to the languages spoken in these countries.

Firstly the Japanese use three alphabets: hiragana (used for native words),

katakana (used for foreign words) and Kandji (a Chinese alphabet). Japanese

also has a grammatical system to express politeness by adding different suffixes

to names (e.g.-san).

The official language in the UK is English but the Scottish and two Celtic

languages are also used.

1.2.5. Art

There are many different forms of art that are found in these countries :

literature, theatre, cinema, art etc . But there is one special art which that has

become a hobby for many people in these countries.

Japan is famous for its rock gardens. It is a beautiful landscape of rocks, water

features and bushes. Everything is meaningful.

English gardens have become a real art in Britain. Is it called topiary. Here are

the examples of such gardens, aren’t they striking?

1.2.6. Clothes and fashion

You know that in many countries modern and stylish clothes are combined

with traditional national clothing, for instance in modern Japan clothing is

typically divided into western clothing (洋服 yōfuku), and Japanese clothing (和

服 wafuku). While the various traditional ethnic clothes of Japan are still

popular, they are mainly worn for ceremonies and special occasions like

weddings, funerals, and festivals. Western clothing is worn more often in

everyday life. Both men and women like "western-style" clothing in their daily

lives and the kimono is dying, but it will remain part of the Japanese way of life

for many years. Both girls and boys can wear kimono. There are 6 different

types of kimonos that a woman can wear depending upon her marital status and

the event she wants to attend.

In Scotland you can meet a man wearing a kilt and tam o’shanter. But in all big

cities young people want to be in fashion.

1.2.7. Food and cuisine

Japanese food is famous all over the world, there are a lot of restaurants serving

national food such as sushi, rolls, sashimi etc The traditional food of Japan is

based on rice with miso soup and other dishes, with an emphasis on seasonal

ingredients. The side dishes often consist of fish, pickled vegetables, and

vegetables cooked in broth. Fish is common in the traditional cuisine. It is often

grilled. Fish may be served raw as sashimi or in sushi. Seafood and vegetables

are also deep-fried in tempura.

Apart from rice, dishes include noodles, such as soba, and udon. Foreign food,

in particular Chinese food in the form of noodles in soup called ramen and

western food such as curry and hamburger steaks are commonly found in Japan.

British don’t have their own cuisine, it is more often a mix of different cuisines:

Chinese, Japanese, Italian etc. Though some traditional dishes are still popular:

fish and chips, bacon and eggs, toast with marmalade and of course English tea.

In both countries In many families meal is a real ceremony when everyone is

gathered at a table to talk and enjoy.

When I tried to compare the food culture of the countries it was obvious they are different cuisines and eating habits but both J and GB have one common tradition connected with tea. Everyone knows about the tradition of 5 o’ clock teaThis famous tea tradition, has become the cheapest way to spend time with friends and discuss personal matters. Now the tea ceremony is gradually fading. Tea ceremony in Japan is not a daily routine and includes special rituals and rules. There are 7 types of tea ceremony. According to the classic tea ceremony the whole process is guided by four principles: 1. Harmony. 2. The veneration (respect) 3. Cleanliness. 4. Rest and spiritual connection with the universe. Over the centuries the tea ceremony has undergone many changes, but its types remained unchanged. They are seven of them: the tea ceremony takes place at dawn, morning, noon, night, with sweets, out of time and for those who came after the main tea.

1.2.8. About everything in brief

It`s an open secret that each nation has its own special national character. There are some visible differences and similarities in national characters. As for similarities

• Unusual geographical position has produced a certain insular spirit and Englishmen tend to regard their own state as the center of the world.

• They are conservative by temperament and it’s connected with attitude to monarchy,

• The best known and universally marked qualities are coldness and reserve.(don’t show their emotions openly)

• Politeness is an integral part of their daily routine. Different forms of it

• They are too practical and realistic • These states are lands of law and order (they respect law, written

and unwritten, and strictly obey it)•

Let’s define differences:

• They have various indicators of success. Modesty and practicality are the main distinctive features of Japanese culture. As for Englishmen ,. the visible trappings of success such as trendy cars, rich houses and luxury products are demonstrations of their prosperity

• Another difference is attitude to the houses .British people love their homes and consider their home to be their castle. Due to its elegance, discreet luxury and extraordinary sense of taste, the English classic is still in fashion. It is characterized with large windows, cozy rugs and luxurious curtains, a wide wooden staircase, fireplace and unchanging famous English lawns.

• The Japanese have more pragmatic attitude to their place of living. Usually their flats are very tiny and they prefer minimalistic style in everything. The main thing is that a house must be comfortable to live in and full of modern appliances.

• Different attitude to official duties. Japanese with their eastern philosophy get used to working much and earning just live paycheck to paycheck

Now some unique and specific items which can be found only in these states.

• All Japanese are real gadget heads and addicted to technological devices. For example a new kind of wife is very popular in Japan. Have a look!

• Japan it is famous for world known Anime (or Japanese animation). This cartoon is concerned with a style of big eyes of characters to express emotions and are produced for teenage and adult audience and that’s why they are so popular.

• Japanese food (Fugu, a wide range of sea products, traditional using of chopsticks.) Every gourmet dreams about trying fugu and eating with chopsticks.(the most poisoned fish) it’s a challenge!

• The secret of longevity: the longevity rate in Japan is the highest in the world.(

• Japanese will never forget about nuclear bombardment in 1945. There was lit “The fire of peace” in Hiroshima which will be burning till all nuclear weapon is destroyed

• Sadaki sasaki was 15th year old Japanese girl who wanted to live and decided to make 1000 paper cranes .But she manages to make only 664 cranes and died of atomic disease. She is a symbol of protest against war and death.

• Sacura, Japanese macaques, mountain Fuji are the most recognizable symbols of the state of Rising Sun.

As for the UK.

• They have their own system of measures

• British pubs are the way od spending spare time with friends

• British footies (football fans) are very aggressive and are crazy about football.

• There are some strange laws in the UK: a ban on eating chocolate while a woman is in public transport, on kissing at the railway station and death in the Houses of Parliament

• Detectives stories written by Agatha Christi are more often sold all over the world and they are the most published after the Bible and plays of W. Shakespeare

• Big Ben, double-decker bus, black taxi, Royal ravens , red booths

III Practical part

Our practical part can be divided into 3 surveys:

Discovery of similarities and differences between both states and making a special diagram

The general knowledge of national symbols

The correlation of knowledge about the Uk and Japan

We did research work asking students from the 9th forms of our school the

following questions:

1. What is Japan associated with?

2. What is the UK associated with?

3. What do these countries have in common?

4. How are they different?

5. How well do you know these symbols?

About 40 students became the participants of our poll.

IV. Conclusions

You can see here some main conclusions we came.

We have proved that every culture has much in common with other cultures that can cause the process of globalization but they must keep up their traditions to save their uniqueness and originality

Having studied different countries deeply, we can be ready to live everywhere we want and become more cosmopolitan and to be tolerant towards all religious beliefs, loyal to all nationalities and respect their customs/traditions, life styles and world outlook.

I came to the conclusion that I in order to live wherever you want you should Understand that all differences and similarities of various cultures lead to the process of globalization

I’d like to finish my cognitive presentation with a famous Japanese saying : Life is so different and hard to survive , do not simplify it . Live the way you want to live ... and do not interfere with others who live differently.

We have proved that every culture has much in common with other cultures that

can cause the process of globalization but they must keep up their traditions to

save their uniqueness and originality.

Having studied different countries deeply, we can be ready to live everywhere

we want and become more cosmopolitan.