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July 16, 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 / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Sep 5, 2020
Trust and truth go hand in hand in a troubled year
COVID-19's most visible symbol is the mask, but 85 of 100 doctors surveyed by Shukan Gendai say masks are unnecessary in open outdoor spaces.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Aug 22, 2020
Japan’s office worker struggles to adjust to a 'new normal'
It's tough to sing the company song at daily morning meetings wearing a mask.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History / THE LIVING PAST
Aug 15, 2020
War ends and humanity remains resilient
Chaos, destruction u2026 humanity endures and yet, we seem stuck in repeating the same mistakes.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Aug 8, 2020
COVID-19 pandemic tests our resolve to be self-disciplined
Exercising self-control in an environment that allows more freedom is more difficult than you think.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Jul 25, 2020
Go To Travel campaign stirs anxieties outside Tokyo
in some areas, out-of-prefecture motorists have been pelted with rocks and intimidated by reckless driving.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History / THE LIVING PAST
Jul 18, 2020
A thousand years of walking through Japan
The act of walking was one that Saigyo, Basho and Matsuo turned into poetry.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Jul 11, 2020
COVID-19 pulls the rug out from under workers' feet
And that may not be the worse thing that could happen to them.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Jun 27, 2020
COVID-19 pandemic has left us all feeling a little overwhelmed
When the internet sits in judgment on perceived violators of unwritten laws, its standards tend to be those of a technologized lynch mob.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History / THE LIVING PAST
Jun 20, 2020
Leaving the Heian: A sexual revolution in reverse
Japan's Heian Period courtiers displayed an attitude to sex unmatched in other societies of the day.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Jun 13, 2020
What constitutes nothingness? The answer could drive you insane
If we assume that everything is something, then nothing is in fact nothing.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
May 30, 2020
COVID-19 reminds us what everyday words such as 'viral' really mean
Will the global pandemic prompt us into changing the way we speak?
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
May 16, 2020
Disasters like COVID-19 bring us together — if we let them
Communities might have rallied behind each other in the face of the calamitous earthquakes in 1995 and 2011, but the new coronavirus pandemic has spurred a response that is more about self-preservation than helping others in need.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History / THE LIVING PAST
May 16, 2020
The revolt against Japan's cultured courtiers
The Meiji Restoration changed Japanese society on a grand scale, but let's not forget another 'revolution' that turned things upside down.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History / BIG IN JAPAN
May 2, 2020
Redefining normality in a world turned upside down by COVID-19
In normal times, we seek happiness. In times of crisis, we seek normality.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Apr 18, 2020
It’s a little tough to truly feel free in a time of pestilence
Humanity is eternally vulnerable to the 'unknown' and there's not much that we know about the new coronavirus.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History / THE LIVING PAST
Apr 18, 2020
The dogs have their day in old Edo
The Laws of Compassion that Tokugawa Tsunayoshi issued trickled down to the lowest rungs of Edo Period (1603-1868) Japan, which included the capital's many feral dogs.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Apr 4, 2020
Defining masculinity in a brave new world of despair
Dad works in a bank. “For a man, work is everything” — that’s his motto. It was his father’s before him. Unquestioned and undoubted, it entered his bloodstream.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Mar 28, 2020
Face masks can foster a false sense of security
What’s happening in Japan is written all over our faces — our blank, expressionless, masked faces. Never before, it seems safe to say, have so many people gone about masked.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History / THE LIVING PAST
Mar 14, 2020
The Edo Period: An era of utter weirdness
The Edo Period (1603-1868) was a bizarre time that visitors to Japan could not help but comment on — the countless laws, the brutal punishments ... and the dogs.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Mar 7, 2020
Paradise lost: Japan longs for simpler times in trying days
The Japanese weren't always workaholics. Once upon a time, work had its place and knew its place. It didn't swallow life whole. Other pursuits were given their due. People worked without being consumed by work.
Bloodied Trump survives assassination attempt at political rally
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is surrounded and evacuated by Secret Service agents at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday. Trump was rushed off stage at the rally after shots rang out.
How to beat Japan’s summer heat in ways better for the planet
Tenugui towels hang up to dry at a dyeing company in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, on May 8. The durable and versatile tenugui, which many people have in their homes, can be used in many ways to cool one’s body.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'
Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
Amid same-sex marriage ban, LGBTQ couples opt for 'photo weddings'
A lesbian couple, consisting of a 35-year-old woman (left) and 40-year-old woman, cover their faces with bouquets as they pose for wedding photos in Yokohama on Nov. 1.
China and Russia conduct joint Pacific military patrol
The Russian corvette Gromkiy enters the Chinese port of Zhanjiang as part of a joint China-Russia naval exercise on Saturday.
How to beat Japan’s summer heat in ways better for the planet
Tenugui towels hang up to dry at a dyeing company in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, on May 8. The durable and versatile tenugui, which many people have in their homes, can be used in many ways to cool one’s body.
After Trump shooting, U.S. presidential race might take a violent turn
United States Secret Service Counter Snipers stand guard on a rooftop during a campaign rally for U.S. President Donald Trump in Avoca, Pennsylvania, in 2020.
No AC this summer? No problem (for me).
Think air conditioning is a requirement for a Tokyo summer? Think again.
She’s paying ¥1 million to help behind the scenes at the Paris Olympics
Mai Tarumi, who previously volunteered at the postponed Tokyo Olympics in 2021, has a travel budget of ¥1 million for her trip to volunteer at the Paris Games.
How to tweak your diet when temperatures spike
Most people think of hydration as a strictly liquid-based concept, but eating foods with high water content is an essential part of making it through a Japanese summer unscathed.

Podcast

You can often see generations of families enjoying performances together at Fuji Rock Festival.
Japan’s summer music festivals are feeling the heat in more ways than one

Longform

Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'
By Tomoko Otake

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