Cultural Differences In Mr Baseball By Tom Selleck

Culture is the customs, beliefs and ways of life that are shared and accepted by the people in a society. In the movie “Mr. Baseball” by Tom Selleck, shows the differences between American and Japanese culture. The main character, Jack Elliott, gets traded to a Japanese baseball team and has to adjust to the differences there. The cultural shift is what the movie is based on. Examining such a cultural shift from two different sides of the world is interesting, as there are many differences and few similarities between the two cultures. Greetings are something that you can’t avoid. In America, no matter where you are when you usually meet someone you give them a firm handshake, especially when talking to someone of high authority or importance. It is a sign of respect but a simple wave will do the job. Handshakes aren’t required as there is a good number of germaphobes that don’t shake hands. In Japan however the way of greeting someone is a bit different. In Japan to greet a new face you bow to them and make no physical contact whatsoever. This is good for all the …show more content…
In sports when walking into the locker room no one takes off their shoes as its not required. However in Japan, the silly idea of taking your shoes off when entering your home isn’t so silly in Japan. It’s actually frowned upon if you don’t do so. It’s a custom that is taken very serious. In Mr. Baseball Jack Elliot is hassled every time he walks into the dugout with his shoes on. It was frowned upon by his teammates. When he walked into his house, his assistant who followed, insisted he took off his shoes. This act of taking off your shoes is to keep your house clean of the dirt outside. It’s not a respect thing or anything of that nature. The Japanese are strict with this and heavily enforce it. You won’t get arrested if you break this unwritten rule, yet you will get a few dirty