Looking Beyond the Mask: When American Women Marry Japanese Men [Paperback]

Nancy Brown Diggs (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 2001

Interviews with women in cross-cultural marriages.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Looking Beyond the Mask focuses on the personal stories of the growing number of American women who-despite vast cultural differences, and sometimes because of them-are married to Japanese men. Although the problems encountered in such marriages are similar to those found in any union, there are cultural implications that can exacerbate almost any of them. Potential areas of conflict are examined, such as in-laws, customs and manners, values, living conditions, religion, communication, sex and gender, and raising children. The book deals with meeting such challenges and attempting to look beyond the cultural masks to see the real people behind them. The women in question stress the importance of commitment, a flexible attitude, a strong sense of identity, a support network, a sense of perspective, and a sense of humor. They also reveal the benefits of these marriages, including a greater appreciation for Japanese ways and the opportunity to continually grow and learn. Based on extensive research, the book provides a new look at Japan from the unique perspective of those American women most intimately involved with its culture.

About the Author

Nancy Brown Diggs is the author of Steel Butterflies: Japanese Women and the American Experience, also published by SUNY Press.

Product Details

• Paperback: 231 pages
• Publisher: State Univ of New York Pr (September 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0791450708
• ISBN-13: 978-0791450703
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.1 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,623,556 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Worth a shot, July 2, 2003

By 

Houdini (Tokyo) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Looking Beyond the Mask: When American Women Marry Japanese Men (Paperback)

I just finished reading this book. It may not be for everyone but speaks very well to my situation. I live in Japan and am thinking about marrying a Japanese natioonal. This book brought our some points which we need to consider. The points were also backed up with real stories. He is reading parts of the book now and finds it very interesting to see Japan through the eyes of an American woman.

16 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Somewhat agree with Japan, this book sucked, July 10, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Looking Beyond the Mask: When American Women Marry Japanese Men (Hardcover)

Actually, Diggs did interview at least one Jewish-American woman, she interviewed only one Japanese-American woman. In a sense this book, as I think the reader from Japan was trying to emphasize, was LARGELY based on the views of middle-class white women... The diversity was largely in hair color, ideals and personality. The only other person of color to be quoted in this book about her experiences in Japan was Karen Hill-Anton, who is an African American woman married to a Jewish man who has lived in Japan for over 20 years. Diggs only quoted her about child birth, but not about her other experiences. I don't even think she actually talked to her (she was a syndicated columnist in the Japan Times for a while). Since this book is about American women marrying Japanese men, it's a little hard to ask her the same questions as she did the other participants.

I think that this book was being unfair in its portrayals of *American* women marrying Japanese men. It was not completely representational of "American women" so I think the book was misleading. Many of the experiences the white wives had in their husband's country are not so different from what minorities experience in the US. People stare, ideas about health care are different, etc. for women of color in the US. It would have been interesting to see the experiences of Latina, African American, or non-Japanese Asian American women recorded. What would their experiences be like as 'double-minorities'? Anyone who knows about the intercultural conflicts among Asians will understand why this would make a big difference in the way she presented her research. I also agree with the reviewer from Japan on another point. The only time she really talked about minorities (with the acceptions above) was when she was making assumptions.

Diggs could get away with using the term "American" by sprinkling a minute number of ethnic and religious minorities though the pages of her book. In this sense, I agree with the reviewer from Japan that her research was rushed. For example an article was written about African American women married to Japanese men about ten years ago in a major publication. There have been books published before this one and documentaries containing the stories of Latinas and African American women who are married to Japanese men. The material is easy to get and their experiences and issues with their marriage differed quite a bit from the women in this book. One of the women is very much open to interviews (I've seen her story featured in a few articles)!

It's also interesting that Diggs didn't seem to get any interviews with women who's family may have been completely against their marriage to a Japanese man or the man's family being completely against his marriage to the American woman. It just sounded a little too utopian to me. I mean I was left to wonder how couples with dispproving parents handled their situation. I have also read articles about this that are also very easy to find.

Yes, the point of the book was that marriages work even though there are differences. One does not need to write a book to come to this conclusion. If one is to write a book, the argument must be strong enough to back up the point. Diggs left a lot of holes.

I guess I found this book a bit frustrating because I happen to be a woman of color married to a Japanese man. I was scratching my head the whole time while saying "Duh! You had to go all the way to Japan to realize that?" at almost every other thing that was said. I wish she could've interviewed me!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars insightful and readable, January 11, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Looking Beyond the Mask: When American Women Marry Japanese Men (Paperback)

This book offers an easy way to learn about Japanese culture. I found it encouraging that, in spite of all the problems in such marriages, the couples learn how to get along.