1. Introduction
It is obvious that Japan and America have many differences. I experienced those differences firsthand when I went to America for my home-stay program. I went to Minnesota in America from July to August. Minnesota is a big state. I stayed there for one month, and I learned about the differences in culture between America and Japan. I was deeply impressed by the attitude towards adoption in America. Do you know the Adoption system? Adoptions bring together un-related families, usually parents and a child. Adoption is not very popular in Japan. However in America, it is very popular. In fact, an American family hosting my friend adopted a Korean child. And, when I asked my host family about adoption, they replied “We know about an adopted child in the neighborhood”. I was a little surprised that adoption is a common thing in America. I felt that America was more passionate about their adoption system. On the other hand, in Japan, when I asked my parents about adoption, they said “We have no opinions on adoption.” I could clearly see that the adoption systems in Japan and America were extremely different. To find out why, I did some research. This thesis statement cites the differences in adoption between Japan and America.
2. In Japan
Firstly, adoption in Japan is not increasing. Before the war, many people in Japan viewed adoption as slavery. Many children were adopted purely for economic purposes. Another reason was to enable succession to the head of the family, or to take over the family business. Before the war, adoption was more for economic and utilitarian purposes rather than the welfare of the child. Of course, not all adoptions at that time were for these reasons. Those children who were born from unexpected pregnancies were generally given to childless couples during the 1970s.. It was practiced in secret. In 1973, these practices came to light and an obstetrician placed an article about adoption in a newspaper. After this, adoption was reexamined and legal guidelines were built to protect the child.
Also, in Japan blood-relationships are a lot more important than in America. I believe this to be related to Confucianism. Because adoption in Japan is not filtered, when a parent and child are formed, the relationship is seen as artificial. Adoption in Japan has a lot of different meanings to different people. For the reasons stated above, I think that the adoption system in Japan is in a grey area. And the purposes for adopting are various.
3. In US
In the US, it is important that an adoption is in the best interests of the child. In other words, the aim of adoption in America is to give an adoptive parent the opportunity to raise a child, mostly in a more suitable environment. In Japan, many adoptions are admitted. However, America has a very strict adoption process. For example, if you want to adopt a child, you must go to a court in America. It is quite rare for a couple to be accepted in court. America is stricter than Japan about its adoption system. By this, freedom surrounding the adoption system is severe in America. America’s adoption system succeeds to exclude utilitarian purposes, like Japan. The basic importance of America’s adoption system is the children’s welfare. Some reasons for adopting in America were observed, and it seems that a lot of the time, a child is promptly put up for adoption after birth. This is due to religion, as many Americans are Christian. The abortion act is forbidden in Christianity. Therefore, many children who are born from unexpected pregnancies are put up for adoption. And they are cherished by their adoptive parents.
Next, I researched the differences between Christianity and Confucianism. Many Japanese people have Confucian thoughts. Firstly, I introduced American adoptions from a Christian perspective. Christians believe in neighborly love... In Japan, religious rules are not as important. That’s because religion is not rooted in Japan’s history. On the other hand, in Confucian, they hold an importance on blood-relations. It is the most important thing in Confucianism.
Confucianism is a Chinese ethical and philosophical system developed from the teachings of the Chinese philosopher Confucius. It spread to Japan when it was learnt by an Emporer, who thought it scholarly and economical... However, it is rare in Japan to see Confucianism as a religion. Confucian is deeply related to funerals and the view of life and death in Japan. A Buddhist mortuary tablet and a Buddhist memorial services originate from Confucian. Confucian filtered into Asia.
Christianity is a monotheistic and Abrahamic religion based on the life and teaching of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and New Testament writings. It also considers the Hebrew Bible, which is known as the Old Testament, to be canonical. Adherents of the Christian faith are known as Christians. In America, Christian rules are deeply integrated in the Christian believer. My host family prayed to God every dinner. At first, I was surprised about it.
4. Conclusion
The above- mentioned items are the differences between adoption in Japan and America. I got the impression that adoption system is deeply related to religious thoughts. I felt that the different religious rules created different adoption systems. When I searched about the different adoption systems in Japan and America, I became interested in adoption systems around the world.. What I have discovered about adoption, including my trip to Minnesota has given me better insight in different cultures.
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