Fear and Trembling

‘’Society conspires against her from early infancy. Her brain is steadily filled with plaster until it sets. ‘’If you’re not married by the time you’re twenty-five, you’ll have good reason to be ashamed’’, ‘’if you laugh, you won’t look dignified’’, ‘’if your face betrays your feelings, you’ll look coarse’’, ‘’if you mention the existence of a single body hair, you’re repulsive’’, ‘’if a boy kisses you on the cheek in public, you’re a whore’’, ‘’if you enjoy eating, you’re a pig’’, ‘’if you take pleasure in sleeping, you’re no better than a cow’’, and so on.’’

Amélie finds an ambitious job as an interpreter in a Japanese company in Tokyo. Soon, her dreams show more are thwarted. It doesn’t matter whether she has spent most of her childhood in Japan. Her coworkers only ‘’see’’ her European heritage, constantly abusing her with the phrase, ‘’You, Westerners’’. And Amélie descends, beaten by the jealousy and vicious rules of people locked in their own ridiculous microcosm.

Nothomb’s novel is shuttering, cruel, viciously sarcastic. And extremely brave. She throws away political correctness and exposes the cruelty of a significant majority in a stupid and futile clash between two parts of the world. But is it really that? Or is it really about the bottomless evil and cruelty to break the spirit of a young idealist, an act committed by people who refuse to accept change? This isn’t about countries. It is about the working environment mentality and we all have been there. And do they achieve their goals? Or does Amélie actually become stronger by turning their game against the cruel ‘’occupants’’ of the company? I think this depends on each reader’s perception of the story.

I loved her honesty and acuteness. Having read extensively on Japan and being very familiar with Japanese Literature, Nothomb describes - in a stronger and intentionally exaggerated manner- the exact same mentality that can be found in a plethora of novels by Japanese writers. Do we honestly believe that prejudices and cruelty go only one way? Here, we meet a cast of hideous men and oppressed women that find the chance to exact revenge on the ‘’new face’’. Women who are taught not to show their intelligence because it is only marriage that matters. And if you can’t get married, at least work hard. Mori is the epitome of a deeply sad, unfortunate and beaten person that projects the violence she has received on what she views as an easy target. This is a world where you need a formal statement to prepare photocopies, where you are forbidden to show your excellence in a foreign language, where you have no right to protest as your personality is being raped again and again. This is a Nazi environment in the 90s.

Yeah, well, about the Nazi thing…

I will explore Nothomb’s work with vivid enthusiasm. Speaking strictly for me, her sarcasm helped me through a novel full of humiliation and cruelty, a psychological rape, a crime against any trace of a basic human relationship. Let me tell you, I have faced a coworker like Mori, except I am no Amélie so she got what she deserved. But there are many Amélies in every country of the world, and this doesn’t seem to change…
‘’Ancient Japanese protocol stipulated that the Emperor be addressed with ‘’fear and trembling’’. I’ve always loved the expression, which so perfectly describes the way actions in Samurai films speak to their leader, their voices tremulous with almost superhuman reverence.
So I put on the mask of terror and started to tremble.’’

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com/ show less

In Nothom’s caricature of Japanese corporate life, Belgian national Amelie begins by taking a new job at the import-export division of the Yomimoto Corporation. In almost no time, she finds herself slipping down the corporate ladder. Using an exaggerated sense of humor to poke fun at some of the absurdities of the Japanese work ethic, the author enlightens its readers to a Western mind’s reaction to such a situation. What could be thought of by some as a scathing attack on Japanese corporate life seems to be just the author’s examination of culture clash presented in a very entertaining manner.

This short novel is both absurdly funny and touchingly sad. It is a fearless exploration of the differences between Eastern and Western culture, shown through the eyes of Amelie, a Japanese-born Belgian woman who has gotten a job in a Japanese corporation. Her experiences range from the absurd (being told by a superior that she is no longer allowed to understand Japanese) to the humiliating as she, with the best of intentions, continues to make mistakes and violate cultural norms.

There are some very insightful comments on the nature of Japanese culture; for example, “You find the most outrageous deviants in the countries with the most authoritarian systems.” There is also some very wry, but poignantly accurate, commentary on the show more duties of Japanese men and women. While Amelie is treated poorly at the company, she provides the context that explains to the reader why her superiors respond the way they do .

This was quite a short novel that could be read in one sitting, but leaves you thinking long afterwards. It is humorous, as well as thought-provoking and enlightening about Japanese culture and the clash that can occur when East meets West. A wonderful piece of literature. show less

Brilliant, mesmerizing, laugh-out-loud funny, insightful, I recommend reading Fear and Trembling-like other Am̩lie Nothomb books--in a single sitting. This one begins with the narrator describing her position as a Westerner in the hierarchy of a Japanese corporation (she's at the bottom) and ends with her going through the different people in the hierarchy to resign her position at the end of the year. In between it chronicles her relationships to her superiors in hilarious black comic manner, often spinning out extensive monologues of what she would say to them if she didn't have any self restraint. In the course of it, you get an interesting window into Japanese corporate culture, hierarchy, attitudes towards women, and the concepts show more around "saving face".

Much of the book centers around the narrator being held back by her immediate boss, a 29 year-old woman who is jealous that this new entrant might be promoted much more quickly than she had been. As a result the narrator's brief attempt to escape into more interesting work is squelched with her denunciation by her immediate boss and leads to a set of cruel consequences for the people around her. Although some of the figures are stereotypes (including the obligatory for a Nothomb novella grossly obese, warped character), they vary and present a rich variety of how people cope with the stresses of operating in hierarchies with life tenure. show less

Living in a foreign country is often not as wondrous and glamorous as it appears to be from the outside. No matter how much you want to get to know your new culture and fit in, there are always differences in the way you approach people or matters, and even if you're trained ahead of time, you don't know what they all are, and they can still catch you unawares, and help bring you down.

Such is the case in Nothomb's book, which is a scathing, thinly fictionalized satire of her time working in a large Japanese company. She had wanted to spend time living in Japan again since being there with her parents as a child, and working there is an ideal way to try it, but she missteps with her coworkers time and again, in the most ridiculous ways. show more For example, after being hired to translate, she is criticized for speaking Japanese in front of people from another company, and forbidden to understand Japanese in the future.

Such indignations are par for the course in this book, and the poisonous relationship between Nothomb and her immediate superior, Ms. Fubuki, provides plentiful other examples. It's a very amusing story, if a bit harsh at points, and can be read very quickly. There aren't a lot of characters, and beyond the main two, they're pretty one-dimensional, but it doesn't really make a difference in a satire. It's not something that's likely to stick with you forever, but it makes for a light, fun summer read. I'd get it out of the library rather than buying it, since it really is finishable in an afternoon, but it's worth a chance. show less

قرأت آميلي للمرة الأولى في بيوغرافيا الجوع ، هذه الكاتبة تعرف كيف تشدّ القارئ باسلوب الحوارات القصيرة والذكية . .تقحم التفاصيل الكثيرة دون ان نشعر بالملل لأنها توظفها جيداً.
اسلوب آميلي الذي لمسته بالانتقال من قراءة بيوغرافي شخصية لها و رواية بشخوص مختلفة متقارب ، يتضح أنها تتبع نمط واحد ويمكنني الآن القول بأنّ القراءة لها من اجمل القراءات التي مررت بها ، عباراتها غير متكلفة ومفرداتها جميلة وان لم تكن شعرية show more وفلسفية جداً.
نقطة اخرى جذبتني للرواية، الحديث عن الكتب ، الحديث الذي يجبرك على جذب ورقة صغيرة ووضع العناوين التي تأتي على ذكرها ،
أيضاً احببت آميلي لأني وحين استغرق في القراءة تدهشني بعض المقاطع لدرجة اشعر معها
أنني كتبتها شخصياً في وقت مضى ، اعلم في اعترافي هذا شيء من الثقة الكبيرة لكنّه الاحساس الذي شعرت به ووددت نقله ، ثم اعود للتفكير ، هل يجد من يقرأ ما اكتبه ذات المتعة ؟ ومتى سأكون مثل آميلي تأسر القارئ فلا يترك الكتاب الا بعد ساعات وقد انتهى منه.
تركت آميلي لنا حرية الاختيار بين خاتمتين ، بعد ان تنتهي الرواية تعود وتنوه انها وضعت لها خاتمة اخرى ، قد يرى البعض في هذا خللا شرعيا في الرواية ، وترددا من الكاتبة ، وارى فيه هدية جميلة لذوي الخيال المتشعب ، ولن افسد الاحداث بقول أيهما كانت سعيدة وايهما لم تكن . . show less

In this book based on her own life, Amelie returns to her birthplace Japan on a year-long contract as an interpreter for Yumimoto Corporation. The corporation is a place of rigid hierarchy - "Mister Haneda was senior to Mister Omochi, who was senior to Mister Saito, who was senior to Miss Mori, who was senior to me. I was senior to no one" begins the author.

Amelie was born in a small Japanese village and spent her formative years there. For her, this job is a dream come true, a return to her childhood. Little does she know of the trials awaiting her. Early on, she incurs the wrath of Mister Omochi when she converses in fluent Japanese with a visiting Japanese delegation to Yumimoto. Her crime - discomfiting the delegation by not knowing show more her place within the Japanese culture as a Westerner. She is immediately ordered to un-understand Japanese!

Amelie is taken under the wing of a well meaning Mister Tenshi who assigns her the task of writing a report on fat free butter being developed in Belgium. Her success with this report is immediately perceived by her ethereal superior Miss Mori as an attempt to rise too much too soon within Yumimoto without paying her dues.

Little transgressions like these get blown out of proportion and with each such misstep, Amelie is reassigned more belittling tasks. The final blow comes when Miss Mori banishes her to the toilets to clean them, both the men's and women's. Amelie enters a Zen like state by doing this task with all the dignity she can muster. She can quit over this, but doing so would be to lose face before all of Yumimoto.

All of Amelie's tribulations are detailed with a sparkling dry wit and even when you're laughing at Amelie's predicament, you're feeling terribly sorry for her. The most interesting part of the book was for me reconciling the character Amelie's life with that of the author. Amelie Nothomb's life details correspond roughly with much of the character's but you can't help but wonder if there isn't an element of exaggeration in this tale. In India, I've witnessed the fervor with companies train their teams on Japanese cultural norms. But still, if this is the way most Japanese companies run, how are they the leaders in so many fields today? show less