Any person can play both roles, depending on the group that he/she is in. The father may be the oyabun to his son but at work, he is the kobun to the boss. Success and failure is shared by everyone in the group, but disgrace and honor fall to the leader. When problems arise, the leader is the first to take responsibility for the actions/problem.

One of the reasons why Japan was able to make such a great recovery after World War II was because the country as a whole, came together as a group to rebuild their home. Villages were very close, and in this way, the group became more important than the actual individual. Now, this

Groups start at the school level in Japanese society. Children spend their lives in uniforms as well as endless group activities. The teachers never encourage individual thought but rather the mindset of being in a group. Nobody in Japan thinks as an individual, not even publishers and writers. Every newspaper has the same thing and never is an individualistic view put across.

No matter where a Japanese goes, he is followed by the group mentality. When he is out at dinner with his fellow colleagues, he must order what the others, particularly what the boss, or highest ranking person that is present, is ordering. During decision making, the Japanese never say 'no.' They always have to come to some sort of conclusion where everybody in the group agrees, or come to a consensus, no matter how long it may take. If the group decides on something and one person seems to disagree without actually saying that he does, the group must somehow get him to conform to their idea.

The group, or groupism, comes with a stress on

Some common words found in the essay are:
War II, Japanese America, , japanese society,
Approximate Word count = 696
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)