The Asian Stare

By Matthew Ward | Monday, Jan 26, 2009

The first time I ever came to Japan, I was living in Taiwan at the time. One of the things I found quite refreshing about Japan was that, compared to Taiwan, hardly anyone seemed to stare at me. Most Japanese people appeared to completely ignore me, which was a relief after Taiwan, where visible foreigners tend to attract a lot of attention, for better or worse.

Now, the statement “hardly anyone seemed to stare at me” might come as a surprise to a lot of non-Japanese in Japan, who seem quite prone to complain about staring. Part of the issue is that I've spent most of my time in urban Kansai, where people seem fairly indifferent to visible foreigners—I do notice that people stare at me more in other parts of Japan. Another big factor, though, is that it's just all relative: the Japanese may stare, but not nearly as much as many other non-Asians do. I remember going to Korea for the first time a few years ago, and suddenly I felt like I was back in Taiwan because people were staring at me so much.

Before I go on, to be fair I should mention the obvious: it's not just East Asians who stare. I've been stared at plenty in places like Latin America or the Middle East before. In fact, I've been stared at plenty back in my home country, the US. When I was a teenager, I was a punk rocker, and when I went to rural places, people stared at me plenty, and sometimes screamed abuse at me or tried to attack me (I get the impression that with punk having become much more mainstream in the US, this kind of stuff doesn't happen much anymore!). When I'm in big cities in the US, no-one stares at my Japanese wife, as she just doesn't look foreign in big North American cities, but we've done a lot of road-tripping in very rural areas, and she definitely got some stares there. So, it seems that staring is not unique to Asia—it's just that it's relatively common here.

So, why is it relatively common? As far as I can tell, a big part of it is just cultural norms: staring is simply more acceptable in some cultures and regions than in others. It's not just foreigners who get stared at: especially attractive or unattractive people, disabled people, people with noticeable scars or injuries, weird-looking people, people with strange clothes and/or haircuts, people who look like they just walked off a rice paddy—basically, anyone unusual gets stared at.

But, considering that most East Asian cultures are not very racially diverse, obviously people who are racially different get more than their share of stares. I can also remember that when I lived in Thailand, people would stare at me a pretty fair amount there too (certainly more than in Japan), but when I went to more racially diverse Malaysia, people seemed to notice me a lot less. I think it's the same factor that causes my wife to be stared at in the rural US more than she does in the urban US: obviously, if you don't actually look unusual, then there is less motivation for staring.

Anyway, I think the biggest motivation in all of this staring is just curiosity: in cultures where staring is not particularly rude, people can get away with staring at strange-looking people, and stare they do. So, that's one huge factor, perhaps the biggest factor.

Another factor, though, is that the ethnocentrism that has long been common in East Asia plays a big part (although it's also definitely worth noting that ethnocentrism is far from unique to East Asia!). In this world, some folks just have trouble understanding that people who are different don't really like being stared at or singled out in any way.

Of course, it's not just staring: you also get comments and the like. Again, Japanese people are actually quite moderate in this respect compared to many other Asians: while I very occasionally hear Japanese muttering “gaijin da” to their friends when I show up, Taiwanese people will very loudly say “WAIGUOREN!” (foreigner!) and sometimes point at you. Even Chinese-speaking people in Japan tend to stare at me and call me “waiguoren” more than Japanese do, which is kind of ironic considering that they are very likely "waiguoren" too. I've had a few experiences when I was with other Western people in Japan, and someone was really staring at us, leading my friends to complain about being stared at by “Japanese people,” and then I noticed that the starers were actually speaking Chinese!.

It's not just ethnically Chinese people: when I'm in Thailand, I hear this constant buzz of “farang farang”: MUCH more noticeable than in Japan. Some of the comments you hear in Thailand about foreigners are actually hilarious, and in their own funny way, quite positive: I've often heard groups of Thai women say things like “ooh, look at that foreign woman's breasts! Don't you wish yours were like that? They do have big knockers, don't they?”

In Taiwan, a considerably more confrontive culture than Japan, I sometimes used to scold people who stared at me, pointed at me, or yelled “foreigner” when I was around. Interestingly, the most common reaction was puzzlement or even hurt: it just didn't seem to occur to people that I would mind, and at least some people seemed to think that I might be enjoying the attention. That's one reason why, although I personally dislike having anyone stare at me, I've never felt that the vast majority of people mean any harm by it.

One thing I notice about Japan that is different from places like Taiwan or Korea: in many cases, Japanese people tend to stare when they don't think you notice, and if you make eye contact with them, most of them will look embarrassed and look away. In contrast, a lot of other Asians will look at you very openly and not seem embarrassed by it. My best guess about that particular difference is that there is a somewhat stronger feeling that staring is rude in Japan as compared to many other Asian cultures. At any rate, as in Taiwan, I very rarely feel that the starer here in Japan means anything by it, aside from the very odd person who doesn't look away when I stare back at them, and those I usually figure are mentally ill.

Anyway, I do understand why non-Japanese don't like being stared at in Japan, but I would really urge people to avoid taking it too personally. For one thing, for those who are concerned that it is an example of some kind of racism, there are far more important racial issues to get concerned about.  Let's face it: if you're reading this article, then you are not exactly likely to be among the more oppressed minority groups here in Japan. Ethnic Koreans and Chinese, for example, generally don't have to worry about being stared at, but they tend to face much more serious and noteworthy kinds of discrimination.

But, even leaving those kinds of issues aside, the habit of staring at unusual people, foreigners included, is just not something that's likely to change quickly. If possible, ignore it, and if you can't ignore it, try staring back, as that seems to work pretty well (in Japan, that is!). If you really hate being stared at in Japan, then definitely avoid moving to places like Taiwan, China or Korea.

Although, I suppose there is another way of looking at it: if you moved to one of those countries for a while, then you might end up finding the level of staring in Japan quite acceptable after all! At least, that's what happened to me.

Matthew Ward's Profile

Late 30's, have lived in Asia for a lot of my life.

Interests: Music, politics, linguistics, learning languages, culture, food, traveling.

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