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July 06, 2025
 

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Michael Hoffman

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Michael Hoffman
Michael Hoffman is a fiction and nonfiction writer who has lived in Hokkaido by the sea almost as long as he can remember. He has been contributing regularly to The Japan Times for 10 years. His latest novel is "The Naked Ear" (VBW/Blackcover Books, 2012).
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Jun 1, 2019
Is disgust with the status quo now feeding nostalgia for the past?
Bulgarian scholar Ivan Krastev, in an interview with the Asahi Shimbun published in March, compared the restless discontent of the 1960s with that of today. Fifty years ago, he said, disgust with the status quo fed hope for the future. Today it feeds nostalgia for the past.
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
May 18, 2019
Aging population spurs drive to tidy nation's cluttered homes
KonMari? Let's, by all means.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History / THE LIVING PAST
May 18, 2019
Go-Daigo's mysterious and most loyal warrior
'No famous character in all Japanese history is quite as obscure as Kusunoki Masashige,' writes historian Ivan Morris on 14th-century Emperor Go-Daigo's most loyal samurai.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
May 4, 2019
Deciphering the curious act of talking to oneself
Talking to oneself is not respectable. It suggests many things, none of them good: abysmal loneliness, a mental screw loose, a social wire frayed, insanity, dementia. Shukan Post magazine this month cites experts in dementia who see solitary dialogue as a potential premonitory sign — not a conclusive...
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Apr 20, 2019
Understanding the true ties between health and success
There's a right way and a wrong way to do everything — and you're probably doing it wrong.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History / THE LIVING PAST
Apr 20, 2019
Emperor Go-Daigo: The pride before a fall
The anonymous 14th-century chronicle 'Masukagami' ('The Clear Mirror,' translated by George Perkins), dramatically details the trials and errors of Emperor Go-Daigo, the 96th emperor of Japan.
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Apr 6, 2019
New era offers Japan an opportunity to reassess the future
What's in a name? What's in an era? What is an "era"? What's a "new era"? Are we entering one?
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Mar 23, 2019
Are democratic principles at risk of being undermined?
Is democracy dying? Certainly authoritarianism is rising. A generation ago, it was the opposite — authoritarianism seemed moribund, democracy on the cusp of new life. Sekai magazine (April) sums up the gloomier mood now gaining ground. "We cannot," it says, "take democracy for granted."
Japan Times
JAPAN / History / THE LIVING PAST
Mar 16, 2019
Culture bred in the midst of famine and war
'We may even be tempted to conclude that no man in the history of Japan had a greater influence on the formation of Japanese taste,' wrote Japanologist Donald Keene. But still, he continues, 'Yoshimasa may have been the worst shogun ever to rule Japan.'
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Mar 9, 2019
China's detention system offers a few lessons for Japan
Shukan Gendai magazine last month sounded a warning: "Students, if you're arrested in China it's a very serious matter."
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Feb 23, 2019
Artificial intelligence debate raises more questions than answers
"The human race, version 2" — a thought to inspire hope or fear, maybe a little (or a lot) of both. "We today," says Komazawa University economist Tomohiro Inoue, whose thought it is, "will soon be 'the former human race.'"
Japan Times
JAPAN / History / THE LIVING PAST
Feb 16, 2019
There are many sides to a great warrior
Almost nothing is known of Toyotomi Hideyoshi's early years with warlord Oda Nobunaga, but by 1570 we see him commanding a detachment, 3,000 strong, in battle against a Nobunaga rival. The peasant boy has come a long way.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Feb 9, 2019
Heisei Era hindsight gives new meaning to established terms
The ubiquitous word "productivity" last summer acquired a new meaning — or at least a new twist. Members of the LGBT community, wrote Liberal Democratic Party lawmaker Mio Sugita, "do not reproduce. In other words, they are unproductive. I wonder if it is appropriate to spend taxpayer money on them."...
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Jan 26, 2019
End of an era gives Japan a chance to hit the reset button
Maybe we're immortal. It's not a new idea. Christianity's appeal over 2,000 years rests largely on its promise of eternal life. In Japanese Buddhism, the soul passes from life to life — a dreadful prospect, it was held, which only the enlightened escaped.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History / THE LIVING PAST
Jan 19, 2019
Toyotomi Hideyoshi: The brutality of victory
In 1590, having already subdued Kyushu and northeast Japan, Toyotomi Hideyoshi successfully took Osaka Castle after a three-month siege. But with opposition defeated, what happened next?
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Jan 12, 2019
Perceived dearth of freedom in Japan's schools reflects wider woes
What a strange place a school is — a world within a world, a society within a society. Kids grow up in it asking themselves, "Is the real world like this?"
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Dec 29, 2018
Year of the Dog fails to answer the tough questions
Sodanē.
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Dec 22, 2018
Doors to foreign workers no longer slammed shut
There's no such place as Imizustan. Warabistan is equally fictitious. "Stan" means "homeland" in ancient Persian — hence Pakistan, Afghanistan and so on. A substantial Pakistani community in Imizu, Toyama Prefecture, spawned the nickname Imizustan. Warabi, Saitama Prefecture, hosts a growing community...
Japan Times
JAPAN / History / THE LIVING PAST
Dec 15, 2018
The war that spawned the way of the warrior
Spectacular battle scenes, honorable deaths and tragic pathos, 'The Tale of Heike' is like Japan's very own 'Iliad.'
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Dec 8, 2018
Second opinion: Should you trust your doctor?
Do I really need this operation? Is this medication really good for me? Does my doctor really know what ails me?
Japan braces for more quakes as authorities dismiss doomsday hype
Evacuees from Akuseki Island, located in the Tokara island chain in Kagoshima Prefecuture, arrive at Kagoshima Port on Friday.
Hidden AI prompts in academic papers spark concern about research integrity
Waseda University is one of 14 institutions in eight countries found to have used hidden prompts in research papers.
A prophesied disaster (likely) won’t strike Japan this weekend
A viral manga prediction of a July 5 disaster has gripped Japan with anxiety and triggered an economic impact, but experts warn that while such dates are unreliable, the threat of a massive earthquake remains real. 
Residents of Tokara Islands begin evacuation as seismic swarm continues
Details about evacuations from Akuseki Island, located in the Tokara island chain in Kagoshima Prefecture, is seen written on a whiteboard in the city of Kagoshima on Thursday.
U.S. military apologizes over Okinawa sexual assault case
Col. Neil Owens (right), chief of staff for the 3rd Marine Division, bows in apology at the Okinawa Prefectural Government office in Naha on Thursday.
Ghibli’s Isao Takahata exhibit shows how beloved anime is made
“The man who planted Japanese animation” exhibition includes a variety of sketches, drawings and animation cels from Isao Takahata films such as color design for characters by Michiyo Yasuda from "Grave of the Fireflies."
Flag football facing challenges and opportunities ahead
Japan’s women’s flag football team at the 2025 International Bowl in Los Angeles in June. The sport is enjoying continued growth in the country.
From Hokusai’s Great Wave, shinkansen to One Piece: a cultural treasure box for Lego Japan
Michael Ebbesen, general manager of Lego Japan, says Lego bricks based on Japanese culture have a rich global appeal and are sellable around the world.
With farmed fish, RelationFish swims against the tide in fine dining
Chef Hideaki Matsuo (middle) and the staff of Oseto Suisan Fisheries prepare to check on their sustainably farmed fish.
As Southeast Asia heats up, a Japanese cooling giant sees a major opportunity
An employee of Daikin Cambodia explains the use of different tools during an air conditioner installation training session in Phnom Penh. Daikin is one of Japan’s oldest air conditioning companies, but as Japan’s population falls, the firm is keying in on overseas growth.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji
By Alex K.T. Martin

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