The Material Child

Coming of Age in Japan and America

Author: Merry White
ISBN: 9780520089402

What does it mean to be an adolescent in today's world? Are teens from different cultures becoming increasingly similar as they become subject to the same media and pop influences? And how do these influences shape adolescents' perceptions of their lives and their futures? What roles do parents and teachers play in this process? In The Material Child, Merry White explores the world of the teenager in two significantly different modern societies, Japan and America. Drawing on the voices of adolescents themselves, she offers an in-depth look at the sexuality, school work, family relationships, leisure activities, friendships, and buying behavior of the young in both worlds. Through her analysis, White shows that although adolescents in the United States and Japan may share the same taste in pizza, pop music, and leather jackets, they remain very different from each other. The Japanese teen, for example, is sexually sophisticated, but dependent and childish by American standards. In contr

Publisher: University of California Press
Publish Date: 1994

Subjects: Family & Relationships / Life Stages / Adolescence, History / Asia / General, History / Asia / Japan, Social Science / Sociology / General

This book is available in the following Community Centers: Cross-Cultural Center (Location: Asian/Pacific Islander American (APIA))