Class Supplement (TOEFL Essay, one single object that represents your country)

Writing Topic: There will be an exhibition in which every country in the world is represented by one single object. What would you choose to send in order to represent your country in the exhibition? Why would you choose that object to send to the exhibition?

Let’s think: For example, tea ceremony is not an object but a cultural activity while a huge teacup used in tea ceremonies is an object. Sushi is rather a food than an object. You cannot place a sushi in a showcase at an exhibition because it is perishable. A sushi replica which is placed in front of a sushi-bar is an object that could represent Japan. A Toyota car or a Nintendo game machine is a single object that probably symbolizes Japan because those machines are the cream of our world-famous high-technology and Japanese culture.

A copy of The Tale of Genji cannot be the answer because its physical aspect, an object made of paper and ink, does not have any Japanese properties even though the content is a famous Japanese story that is considered to be the first novel in the world. Manga or anime is not an object but a form of Japanese pop culture or art.

Now, if carefully put, a copy of manga could be dealt with as an object that represents Japan. It is true that its essence is the content, which is intangible and so is not an object, but still a copy of manga is really Japanese. Its physical characteristics and its existence itself reflect Japanese culture. Its neat appearance－glossy cover and elaborate print－and unique drawings which originate from Ukiyo-e, whose flowing lines exquisitely depict three dimensions on a flat surface are uniquely Japanese. Incidentally, the contents are also not simple superheroes-punishing-homicidal-maniacs stories but those that tell you or share with you something about life, people and small things that count in daily life. Also, putting so much energy into producing just a comic book shows a tendency to be particular about rather trivial or transient things for daily use, as seen in our treatment with other things like cell-phones with many functions and Japanese gardens. Last but not least, the fact that the word manga has become an English word shows that it cannot be replaced with the word comic and that its existence itself reflects some distinctive part of Japanese culture.

Ideas and expressions:
industry: high technology, craftsmanship, car, game machine, high-quality apparel
history and geography: isolated itself until 1868, militaristic/warlike, an island county
culture: extremely aesthetic, perfectionism/love of details, neat/well-organized, polite, punctual, well-disciplined, obsession with cleanliness, group-oriented, sensitive about feelings, the samurai culture, manga/anime, high-school girl fashion, kimono, furoshiki, kotatsu foot-warmer, high-tech toilet
culture: extremely aesthetic, perfectionism/love of details, neat/well-organized, polite, punctual, well-disciplined, obsession with cleanliness, group-oriented, sensitive about feelings, the samurai culture, manga/anime, high-school girl fashion, kimono, furoshiki, kotatsu foot-warmer, high-tech toilet