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November 23, 2024
 

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Michael Hoffman

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Michael Hoffman
Michael Hoffman is a fiction and nonfiction writer who has lived in Hokkaido by the sea almost as long as he can remember. He has been contributing regularly to The Japan Times for 10 years. His latest novel is "The Naked Ear" (VBW/Blackcover Books, 2012).
Japan Times
JAPAN / History / THE LIVING PAST
Apr 18, 2021
Driven to murder by poverty and racial prejudice?
A gifted child's talents go to waste as a result of his ethnicity. Falling into a life of despair, he lashes out in revenge. How would his situation be treated nearly 100 years later?
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Apr 17, 2021
Paralysis and calm: Two sides of Japan's inertia
COVID-19 hasn't (so far) affected Japan as badly as other Western countries, but sometimes extreme situations can push people to get up and try to improve their lots in life.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Apr 3, 2021
Humanity can't seem to escape its own web of lies
When did you last tell a fib? Go on u2026 be honest.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History / THE LIVING PAST
Mar 22, 2021
Archetypes of the 'modern girl' from Japan's 'jazz age'
People thronged European-style cafes and breathed new air with new lungs. At the center of it all were the 'mobo' and 'moga': modern boys and girls, respectively.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Mar 20, 2021
Reality check: ‘We’re in a tunnel with no exit in sight’
Buddhist priest Myoyu Tamaoki describes the world in terms hard to argue with. “Calm,” she says, “is elusive.” Disaster, ruin and upheaval, if not hitting you personally at any given moment, may strike the next, as a glance at news of them hyperactive elsewhere cannot fail to remind you. “Everyone,”...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Mar 6, 2021
Repressing the urge to do something might be better for us all
The ultimate relaxation, says one magazine, is not idleness but suitable activity — doing what you want, which does take courage.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History / THE LIVING PAST
Feb 20, 2021
Matsuo Taseko: It’s myth vs. reality for Japanese nationalism
Inspired by the u2018Manyoshu,' a peasant-poet took the Japanese capital by eloquent storm.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Feb 20, 2021
Line between solitude and withdrawal becomes blurred in Japan amid pandemic
More than half of the nationwide hikikomori population of 1.15 million are between 40 and 64 years old.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Feb 6, 2021
Finding the right measure of Olympic success in Japan
Does academic success lead to happiness? Weekly magazine Shukan Gendai offers a cautionary tale u2026
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Jan 23, 2021
Wisdom often fails the test of time
One generation's knowledge is the next generation's folly.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History / THE LIVING PAST
Jan 16, 2021
Matsuo Taseko: A poet caught up in nationalist fervor
When nine swordsmen stormed a temple in 1863 they cut the heads of three statues, making a political statement that reverberates to this day.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Jan 9, 2021
Can a few simple words ease Japan's anxiety?
What we say to ourselves carries a lot of weight u2026
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Dec 26, 2020
In 2020, kids still say the drollest things
2020 was a year to forget, if only we can u2026
Japan Times
JAPAN / History / THE LIVING PAST
Dec 19, 2020
Thoughts on healing from the Heian Period
The psychology of health in 'The Tale of Genji' suggests that enlightenment may be the cure for what ails you.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Dec 12, 2020
Rising suicide figures reflect many women’s despair in a pandemic
Almost as anguishing as having no future is having an unknown one.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Nov 28, 2020
When sensitivity becomes that one thing too many
Sensitivity is agony. In moderation it’s good, but moderation rarely knows when to stop, and soon becomes excess. Excessive sensitivity is a theme taken up by Spa magazine this month.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History / THE LIVING PAST
Nov 16, 2020
A charm offensive in the Yoshiwara pleasure district
Life in the pleasure district was fun, if you were capable of mustering up the right amount of charm.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Nov 14, 2020
Japan’s rocky road to gender parity
Japan’s road to gender parity is rocky and potholed. Aera magazine this month chronicles a stumbling, faltering journey.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Oct 31, 2020
Together or alone? Yukichi Fukuzawa’s 19th-century template for beating COVID-19
Influential Japanese writer may provide an example of the virtues needed to outlast the pandemic.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History / THE LIVING PAST
Oct 17, 2020
Japan and Russia: The chivalrous war erupts
A key figure in the Russo-Japanese War, Gen. Maresuke Nogi was both a soldier and a poet.
Japan approves ¥21.9 trillion stimulus plan
The policy chiefs of the Democratic Party for the People, Liberal Democratic Party and Komeito — Makoto Hamaguchi (left), Itsunori Onodera (center) and Mitsunari Okamoto — shake hands after reaching an agreement on an economic stimulus package on Wednesday.
Tokyo Metro’s overseas efforts begin in earnest with London deal
Tokyo Metro will soon have a role in the running of London's Elizabeth Line, a major train route serving the U.K.’s capital city and environs.
Saitama court bans demonstrations over anti-Kurd hate speech
Kurdish people in Japan in 2015. A court injunction has banned acts that defame the Japan Kurdish Cultural Association and are disrespectful, such as putting up banner flags or handing out fliers with hate speech like “Refugees should go back to their home countries.”
China reinstates visa-free travel for Japanese nationals
Beijing Daxing International Airport
U.S. aircraft carrier returns to Japan carrying navy’s ‘most capable fighter’
U.S. 7th Fleet Commander Vice Adm. Fred Kacher speaks to reporters shortly after the arrival of aircraft carrier USS George Washington at Yokosuka naval base in Kanagawa Prefecture on Friday.
Shohei Ohtani wins National League MVP award
Shohei Ohtani celebrates after hitting a three-run home run against the Padres during the National League Division Series at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles last month.
The slow-burn success of ‘A Samurai in Time’
A 19th-century warrior gets struck by lightning and wakes to find himself in 21st-century Kyoto in Junichi Yasuda’s surprise hit “A Samurai in Time.”
Around a quarter of Japan married couples in their 20s met through dating apps
A survey released by an organization promoting “Good Couples Day” shows that 24% of couples in their 20s met their marriage partner through a dating app.
'Tokyo Swindlers': Get deep into the minds of real estate con artists
In Ko Shinjo's "Tokyo Swindlers," a group of con artists manipulates real estate giants into falsified deals within the highly competitive, quick market.
Japan, U.K. and Italy discuss inviting more countries to joint fighter project
A new concept model of a next-generation fighter jet to be jointly developed by Japan, Britain and Italy is on display in Farnborough, Hampshire, in July.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

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Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?
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