Japanese Face Masks... And Not Just The Doctors Are Wearing Them

Unique, colourful, rigid, powerful, impenetrable, ancient...

These are only a few of the words that could be used to describe Japanese culture. From the distinctive melodies of Okinawan music to the beautiful tattoos of the Yakuza gangsters, Japanese culture is alive and vibrant, likely celebrated as much today as it was during the country’s years of isolation from the world. It was during these years of seclusion that the many glorious cultural traditions of Japan flourished and developed, eventually shaping into today’s familiar forms.

Language, art, theatre, samurai, folk tales… Japanese culture, along with the people of this tiny island nation, has found its way from the mountainous confines of this previously detached society, to all corners of the Western world; reaching its fingers deep into the fabric of the new world, and laying its roots along with the transplanted cultures of numerous other countries. Japanese culture and influence, both the ways of the past, and the technology of the present, is all around you. Whether you like it or not….

There is one specific aspect of Japanese culture however that has intrigued me immensely since arriving here 3 months ago. It is not the Japanese obsession with karaoke that has perplexed me, nor has it been the delectable cuisine. Similarly, it has not been the beautiful calligraphy, nor the varied assortment of deadly martial arts. No, it has been the Japanese masks that have piqued my interest the most while living in this foreign land.

Now, you may be wondering why I am interested in Japanese masks. Allow me to clarify. First of all, I am not so much interested in these masks as much as I am confused by them. However, the type of mask that baffles me may not be the same type of mask that you are picturing in your mind as you read this. No, it is not the colourful, wooden Kabuki theatre masks or the beautifully painted and carved Noh theatre masks that interest me. They are all well and good. But, it is a different type of mask that I am confused by ….the Japanese face mask.

You may know it as a ‘physician’s mask’, as that is what it was likely originally designed for. Doctors use it, I believe, to keep their germs from transferring to their often ‘immune-vulnerable’ patients. Other professionals have since adopted the mask as well; not to keep the bad things in, but to keep other bad things out. Carpenters and other trades-people, for example, often use the masks to keep tiny, foreign particles of wood and metal from entering their bodies. Likewise, industrial painters have adopted a similar mask to keep the harsh, toxic fumes of vast amounts of paint from intoxicating them and causing potentially un-enjoyable hallucinations (you always have to wonder about the painters who choose not to wear a mask… never trust those beatniks!).

Here in Japan, it is not only those aforementioned professionals who wear these thin, white masks, but also the average Japanese person with as much as a common cold. You see, the Japanese culture is based on a group mentality. The interests of the ‘group’ are always placed before those of the individual. Japanese society has successfully adapted the Japanese people to be so concerned for the health and safety of their co-workers and family, that whenever a Japanese person develops the slightest tickle in their throat, they don the face mask to prevent rapid spread of disease and the potential for reduction in group productivity.

I’m guessing that when the whole theory of germ transfer was being formulated, and doctors in Japan first started to wear the face mask, some clever Japanese patient looked at the mask and thought “well, wouldn’t that be just peachy! Next time I’m sick, I’ll just put on the face mask, and then Yuki won’t get sick as well, and sword production won’t drop below 50 %!”

Well, because of Yuki and his face-mask wearing friend, Japanese people can today be seen in all reaches of society, wearing the mask while performing their daily duties for the group. All too often, a teacher will show up at school with a mask strapped tightly to their face (a la Michael Jackson), making for awkward conversation (and I thought the language barrier was a big enough obstacle…). Kids show up to school wearing the mask. Bus drivers, police officers, homeless people… they’ve all worn the mask at one time or another.

The funniest mask sighting of all however, is the lone person driving in their car, to or from work no doubt, the mask covering all but their eyes and forehead as they putt slowly down the narrow roads. Now, when driving alone, even if deathly ill, could you not just remove the mask until you once again come into contact with a ‘group member’? Couldn’t you just enjoy a few minutes of solitary, mask-free comfort, away from the constant pressures of the group and the endless fear of infection? When alone, just take that mask off… some fresh air would do you some good, you infectious fool!

I would think that when sick, simply covering your mouth when coughing or sneezing would be sufficient to reduce the spread of germs. But, the Japanese people see it differently I guess, and the more power to them for it! When your society places more emphasis on taking care of those around you than it does on physical appearance, it can’t be that bad of a place.

But, don’t get me wrong. Japan isn’t some utopia where everyone cares for their neighbor and physical appearances don’t matter. Sure, the people are very friendly to me, but I have a suspicion that most of them are only willing to offer brief moments of friendliness, and would never truly allow me to be part of their ‘group’. The Japanese perception of foreigners (‘gaijins’ – which basically means ‘outsider’), is a topic for a whole other email. It is, in actuality, a very ethnocentric and xenophobic society. One might even say ‘racist’.

In many respects, Japan is a land of contradictions. They wear the face mask when sick, yet, in 75% of the public washrooms that I’ve been in, there is no soap and no paper towels! You’d think that if you wanted to reduce the spread of disease, the use of soap would be your first barrier of defense. Even countries like Morocco and America are catching on to that little tidbit of information! What good is a face mask if your hands are covered in e-coli bacteria?

But, having said that, the Japanese people rarely, if ever, touch each other. They bow rather than shake hands, and display little to no physical contact. But, there are still the door handles! They’re using the same door handles, aren’t they?!

Furthermore, this can’t truly be a society that is not concerned with physical appearances. This is probably the most materialistic society on earth! It is worse than Hollywood! Japanese people will skimp on food in order to buy their Louis Vutton handbag and their designer clothes! Appearances are everything for young Japanese people! Ask a Shibuya girl what she spends on makeup in one year, and then question whether this is a society un-concerned with physical appearances! They’re just not ashamed to wear a face mask occasionally, that’s all…

One of these days, I think I will spend 24 hours donning a face mask, just to see the reactions that I get. Maybe then I can be part of ‘the group’!

Hey, at least I haven’t been sick yet…. Thanks team!