In analyzing the movie Campaign by Kazuhiro Soda, it becomes evident that Japan has a cultural hierarchy based primarily on age and gender. The film is based around Kazuhiko Yamauchi, the Liberal Democrat Party’s candidate, and his campaign for a City Council seat in Kawasaki City. As the film progresses, peculiar exchanges occur between Yamauchi and his elders, wife, and future constituents. Representing a clear hierarchy, Yamauchi’s elders repeatedly chastise him for bowing incorrectly, neglecting to look others in the eye after shaking hands, showing up to a rally thirty minutes early, and keeping the Sensei waiting after the election. Through all of these small infractions, it is clear that the elder members perceive themselves to be wiser, more mature, and simply of a higher value to society than the younger Yamauchi. Beyond the confines of age, the film also portrays the sexism within Japanese culture. Yamauchi’s wife, Sayuri, is often referred to as simply a “housewife,” even though she works and financially supports Yamauchi during the election. Despite Sayuri’s professionality, the term housewife is used to show her as subordinate to Yamauchi. Additionally, while Yamauchi is campaigning, he tells his wife not to talk about politics, and citizens tell Sayuri that she should quit her job in order to be a better wife for Yamauchi. Merely because of her gender, others view her as less of a benefit to society and believe she would best serve society by staying at home. Extrapolating on the perceptions of societal ranking based on economic production or value to society, both the Christians in Nigeria circa 1976 and the Crown in England in the seventeenth century viewed themselves superior in this regard. In 1976, Nigeria was divided primarily between the Christians who occupied a large portion of the south, and the Muslims that had a majority in the north. As the country wrote a new, independent, and democratic constitution, fears over a …show more content…
One of the most telling examples given by Chang regarding cultural superiority is the simplification of “all Asians look the same.” Because of unfamiliarity with distinct cultural characteristics and an unwillingness to learn because of perceived economic superiority, White people often claim that East Asians all looks the same. Historically, White people viewed Asian countries and individuals in a negative light due to lack of economic productivity, thus not caring enough to learn about their cultural differences. Relating this heritage of success and hierarchy to Campaign, the citizens of Kawasaki City were unsure about Yamauchi simply because he was not native to Kawasaki City, but rather was born and raised in Tokyo. They did not care to learn about his education, platform, or past successes simply because they viewed his culture as foreign and inferior to