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May 17, 2024
 

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Roger Pulvers

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Roger Pulvers
Roger Pulvers is an author, playwright, theater director and translator who divides his time between Tokyo and Sydney. He has published more than 40 books. His latest book in English is "The Dream of Lafcadio Hearn."
For Roger Pulvers's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Aug 1, 2010
Japanese quotes cast country's life and culture in disparate lights
SECOND IN A THREE-PART SERIES — In its current issue, the popular monthly magazine Bungei Shunju has a long feature titled "Tekichushita yogen 50," meaning "50 predictions that hit the mark."
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Jul 25, 2010
Savoring the wisdom of some Japanese predictions about Japan
FIRST IN A THREE-PART SERIES — I was 8 years old when we got our first television set, a 10-inch Admiral. That was in 1952, still early days for the new and exciting medium. It wasn't long before I was glued every week to my favorite program, "Criswell Predicts."
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Jul 18, 2010
Laws can lead, but society must grasp the value of childcare leave
In 1992 my wife, Susan, and I took ourfour children — then aged between 3 and 9 — from Kyoto to Sydney. The children, who until then had been going to Japanese kindergarten and primary schools, spoke Japanese among themselves. We felt they needed some time in an English-speaking environment...
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Jul 11, 2010
For Japan's own good, it's high time to get into that holiday thing
It may surprise you, but one of the trickiest words to translate from Japanese into English is isogashii. Every dictionary will tell you that its closest equivalent is "busy," and you'd be hard pressed to find a native Japanese speaker who disagreed with this.
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Jul 4, 2010
Japanese betray some blinkered views of their foreign coworkers
On June 6, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun newspaper ran a feature on Japanese people's attitudes to non-Japanese colleagues at their places of work. The article included the results of a survey that explored those attitudes.
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Jun 27, 2010
Where's the spirit of Japan's troublemaking coffee-house Hobbits?
There was a time, in the 1960s and early '70s, when the people of Japan were not apathetic about what was being done on their soil. The opposition here to the U.S. invasion of Vietnam and Japan's support of it was large scale and vocal. Mass demonstrations were frequently held across the nation, participated...
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Jun 20, 2010
Grammar and sums have gone — all that's left is a je ne sais quoi
Hi Bris again tho this is the first time Im facing U my msg that Im prepared to rocket to Alaska so that Alaska can rejoin the USA and we can be 5×10 states again like in Barack's time So seriously Your Mal
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Jun 13, 2010
Time was when the future of English is simply real ba-a-a-a-d, or not
So I like OMG Im so not going there no matter what the Quadrangle says it will do Vlad and I are running Alaska from Tea Party headquarters in Cheney and I can see the whole world from my living room Again the TPA (Tea Party of Alaska) government refuses to kowtow [pronounced cow toe] to American imperialism...
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Jun 6, 2010
E-books look set to swamp us just as microwave ovens once did
The "microwave phenomenon" is with us again. I use this term to describe a product that arrives on the market before its time, then disappears for a while before returning with a vengeance to strike at people's hearts and wallets.
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
May 30, 2010
Studies highlight a 'heartwarming' resu of the real thing in Japan
Nothing gets the circulation going like sex.
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
May 23, 2010
What's a rogue gusher when you never had a cherry tree anyway?
Fingerpointing, dear reader, has been elevated to an art. Halliburton is pointing the finger at BP. Transocean is also pointing the finger at BP. And BP, not to be outdone, is pointing fingers at both Halliburton and Transocean.
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
May 16, 2010
Reality check, 2010: 'Smoking doesn't cause cancer' (Japan Tobacco)
Every generation has its theme song.
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
May 9, 2010
To realize its cultural potential, Japan must celebrate its strengths
Europe received a cultural shock of major proportions during the last quarter of the 19th century. The exquisite shikisai kankaku (sense of color), the startling spatial and compositional elements and the sublime craftsmanship of the Japanese arts took the continent by storm. Many well-known collectors...
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
May 2, 2010
Downed in her prime, a beacon of Japan's emerging new culture
The formative culture of a country is its subculture. Mainstream culture is about the present; subculture creates the future.
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Apr 25, 2010
Book makes real those whose lives led them to become homeless
When I was living in Kyoto in the late 1960s, I would often see homeless people along the banks of the Kamo River. They generally lived under the bridges in structures made of cardboard and blue sheeting. Having seen many homeless people in my native Los Angeles, I was particularly struck by the neatness...
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Apr 18, 2010
Hisashi Inoue: A great friend, writer, and people's champion is gone
O n Friday, April 9, Hisashi Inoue died at the age of 75, and with his passing Japan lost its most brilliant playwright.
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Apr 4, 2010
Basking in misplaced faith is no way to prepare for any disaster
"Calender journalism" is what it's called. It's when the anniversary of an event, ideally in some round number of years, provides the point of departure for an article commemorating the event and/or considering its ongoing relevance.
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Mar 28, 2010
Words of wisdom from beyond the grave of Japan's secret pacts
A drama currently being played out on the stage of national politics in Japan may well mark a turning point in the country's postwar history.
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Mar 21, 2010
Who ever could make war if they saw it through children's eyes?
The misery of war remains for many long years as scar tissue in the minds of children deeply traumatized by it. And yet, there are not many works of fiction or nonfiction that have conveyed the confusion and pain felt by such children.
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Mar 14, 2010
Patient's tale casts a sublime lightness on some awful scars of war
"Elephant," by Minoru Betsuyaku, is a postwar classic of Japanese drama.
Japanese stripper bids to have her porn movies taken off internet
Plaintiff Miyuki Ariga (left) speaks at a news conference along with her lawyer, Yoshitomo Morohashi, after filing a lawsuit at the Tokyo District Court on Monday.
Kishida defends planned rule to revoke foreigners' residency
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during a meeting of the Lower House Judicial Affairs Committee on Wednesday.
Human bone-like objects found at Nippon Steel plant’s molten iron pot, with one worker missing
Police believe it’s highly possible that human bones found in a molten iron pot at Nippon Steel's Oita factory belong to a missing male employee.
Was Onosato's defeat of Terunofuji an era-defining bout?
Onosato (right) defeats Terunofuji at the Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo on May 12. While nothing in sumo is guaranteed, it seems almost inevitable that Onosato is destined for the top of the sport's pyramid.
Man suspected of using smart glasses to cheat on Waseda University exams
The Waseda University campus in Tokyo. An 18-year-old male test-taker is suspected of using smart glasses to cheat during the university's entrance exam.
Japanese rap creates its mecca in Pop Yours
Tokyo-based artist Jumadiba says he forgoes the label of simply “rap” for his music because the Japanese rap scene isn’t confined to a particular sound.
Who’s toughest on China? Biden’s tariff tactic ups ante as election looms.
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks about new actions to protect American workers and businesses from China's "unfair" trade practices, in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington on Tuesday.
Was Onosato's defeat of Terunofuji an era-defining bout?
Onosato (right) defeats Terunofuji at the Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo on May 12. While nothing in sumo is guaranteed, it seems almost inevitable that Onosato is destined for the top of the sport's pyramid.
Ishin struggles to set itself apart from other parties
Nippon Ishin no Kai Secretary-General Fumitake Fujita (right) speaks beside Yui Kanazawa, the party's candidate in the Tokyo 15th district by-election on April 28. Nippon Ishin lost in this by-election as well as another in Nagasaki held on the same day.
In Japan, 68,000 people over 65 projected to die alone at home this year
As Japan grapples with its population's rapid aging, supporting people who live and age alone is looming larger on the policy agenda.

Podcast

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[Rebroadcast] Japan is doing better on accessibility than you may think

Longform

Things may look perfect to the outside world, but today's mom is fine with some imperfection at home.
How 'Reiwa moms' are reshaping motherhood in Japan
By Mai Yoshikawa

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Vol. 35: Travel in time — and stay there
Vol. 35: Travel in time — and stay there

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