Chapter 7: "Ce N'est Pas Logique" or "You've Got a Point There" ?

I agree with Nisbett that Asians take a "both/and" stance rather than an "either/or". When reading that part, I was reminded of the way Japanese culture seems to absorb many religions. I myself don't have one single religion that I follow, but I realized that there are bits and pieces of different religions weaved in my daily life. For example, I visit both shrines and temples during New Year's (Shinto & Buddhism), I attend a memorial service done by a monk (houji, right?) for my grandpa (Buddism), I celebrate Christmas, and will learn about Christianity at my university. I guess none of this makes me an actual follower of those religions, and that there are of course exceptions where some Asians solely believe ONE religion or Westerners who act in a similar way as me. However, I personally feel that the wall that seperates each religion is set at a low place in Japan, making it easier for people to be a part of more than one religion.

Another example is blood types and personalities. This might sound unconvincing since blood types and their connections with personalities are most likely to be complete bogus, nevertheless, there was this personality test on a Japanese fashion magazine which reminded me of contradictions coexisting together. The test was about finding one's "inner" blood-type. The catch was that the result would not necessarily match the actual blood-type one was born with, giving interesting insight into one's personality. Thus, the results would show how the sterotypical characteristics of each blood type would contradict with each other within one person. This shows how the "law of identity" which Nisbett says is strong in Westerners and thus makes them committed to their identities, takes on a more "both/and" position among many Japanese people... or maybe specifically, Japanese young women, in this case.

Sorry, I think I just wrote like a zillion assumptions lol
Gotta read the next chapter nowwwwww.
Otsukare-sama to everybody :) Hope everybody's getting some good rest today!