Second of two parts
There is a quiet revolution taking place in this country, and it's bringing about change in the very way Japanese people view their culture and society.
The values of the Japanese have been shifting over the past decade. The traditionally potent aversion to those who don't "fit in" has lessened. In the past, anyone who spurned the smooth escalator of "a first-rate university leading to a first-rate company" was frowned upon as some kind of misfit. Now, many young people are building their own staircases up instead.